Bob YoungMar 17
This directional antenna is on the roof of a hotel in Springfield, Oregon. It is mounted behind a concrete screen to keep it from being visible from the street. It also ruins the antenna's effectiveness for anything but very short range communication. I can't make this stuff up.
Show threadThe Ghost of Toots PassedMar 19
@fifonetworks
Jurisdictional requirements can be troublesome
Show threadBob YoungMar 19
@paulgatling
And that’s totally it. Those visual barriers are there to meet city ordinance requirements. For example, several years ago there was a community in Colorado that was western-themed, and I couldn’t put a commercial communications antenna on any roof in the area. We finally found a building owner, wood-framed building, who rented us space in the ATTIC above a store. We were transmitting 500 watts ERP, and barely had enough feet of clearance to meet emissions requirements from the populated portion of the building.
Show threadBob Young
@paulgatling
Are you familiar with PIM testing? (Passive InterModulation, a kind of RF interference). I was working with a cellular communications company that could NOT get this one site to pass PIM requirements. They had a requirement from the city to put the antennas behind a visual screen that matched the color of the building, which happened to be white. I asked, “Can you get me the information on this paint?” It turned out they painted that screen white with a paint that was full of titanium, often used for bright white. They couldn’t pass PIM because the paint was essentially metallic. They changed the screen, used a different paint, and it worked fine.
Mar 19 at 11:16pmWeb
Show threadThe Ghost of Toots PassedMar 19
@fifonetworks
I know if you are trying to clear PIM from that rooftop photo you shared, I hope you're billing by the hour!
Show threadBob YoungMar 19
@paulgatling
LOL! There will be no PIM reduction on that roof!