Re: Topband: Why do rodents eat coax?

[David Harmon]

I had one of those Owls too.
It took several months for me to figger out why there were so many dead
birds laying on the ground with huge grins on their beaks.
It was easier to work in the garden than sweep up them birds.
The owl joined the birdsbut without a grin.
My wife laughed so hard that for a while I thought I was gonna have to fling
her in the can with them birds
And the owl.


73

David Harmon
K6XYZ
Sperry, OK


-Original Message-
From: Topband [mailto:topband-boun...@contesting.com] On Behalf Of Mike
Waters
Sent: Friday, November 20, 2015 6:35 PM
To: Donald Chester 
Cc: topband@contesting.com
Subject: Re: Topband: Why do rodents eat coax?

How about battery-powered plastic owls, with a motion detector? One of those
fastened to a corner fence post worked to keep birds away from a 16'x16'
vegetable garden we used to have 11 years ago. When motion is sensed
(birds), its eyes flashed and it played recorded whoo-whoo-whoo owl sounds.

73, Mike
www.w0btu.com

On Fri, Nov 20, 2015 at 5:59 PM, Donald Chester  wrote:
I

> > found the culprit to be medium sized woodpecker birds.  Two or three
> birds ...
> > Terry K4RX
>
> I have  had that problem, except  they were eating my shack!  They 
> pecked holes in the wood siding and trimming.
> <http://www.contesting.com/_topband>
>
_
Topband Reflector Archives - http://www.contesting.com/_topband

_
Topband Reflector Archives - http://www.contesting.com/_topband

Re: Topband: Why do rodents eat coax?

[Mike Waters]

How about battery-powered plastic owls, with a motion detector? One of
those fastened to a corner fence post worked to keep birds away from a
16'x16' vegetable garden we used to have 11 years ago. When motion is
sensed (birds), its eyes flashed and it played recorded whoo-whoo-whoo owl
sounds.

73, Mike
www.w0btu.com

On Fri, Nov 20, 2015 at 5:59 PM, Donald Chester  wrote:
I

> > found the culprit to be medium sized woodpecker birds.  Two or three
> birds ...
> > Terry K4RX
>
> I have  had that problem, except  they were eating my shack!  They pecked
> holes in the wood siding and trimming.
> 
>
_
Topband Reflector Archives - http://www.contesting.com/_topband

Topband: Why do rodents eat coax?

[Donald Chester]

> After a few months the problem returned and the coax was found
> stripped away again.  I set aside radio operating for a while and began
> watching my 6m tower for evidence of the guilty party.  To my surprise, I
> found the culprit to be medium sized woodpecker birds.  Two or three birds
> would hang upside down under the Yagi boom and very efficiently strip away
> at the coax until the damage was done.

> Terry K4RX

I have  had that problem, except  they were eating my shack!  They pecked holes 
in the wood siding and trimming.  The only way I have even been able to 
discourage them is to stuff aluminium foil in the hole they already made, and 
they will abandon that hole but a few days later start another one.  I'm sure 
it isn't insects in the wood that attract them; the building is treated for 
termites and the wood they chose to destroy is sound and solid, with no sign of 
insect infestation.

I looked up on a couple of websites and it appears to be a common problem but 
the only suggestions anyone was able to furnish was something impractical like 
covering the entire building with netting.

Don k4kyv
  
_
Topband Reflector Archives - http://www.contesting.com/_topband

Re: Topband: Why do rodents eat coax?

[Dave Olean]

You are right, Guy, but I have plenty of test gear to check coax. I can sweep 
it for return loss, check insertion loss and all that stuff. I use several HP 
scalar analyzers as well as an 8753D vector network analyzer good to six GHz. I 
have an Anritsu Sitemaster that has a great TDR function as well. I even have a 
500 MHz 50 : 75 ohm transformer.  Being a VHF and microwave addict, I am 
constantly testing cables on the higher bands looking for humidity getting into 
otherwise new good looking cable and making things NG. Checking cables for 160 
is a piece of cake by comparison. I am running the new 1000 ft run of flooded 
cable in conduit to my EU beverage , but I have also rejuvenated the chewed up 
cable and its' insertion loss and VSWR are back to normal. TDR wise, I saw the 
biggest bump at the BNC connector I put on one end. All the splices look pretty 
good.  I replaced about 15 ft of bad cable with F splices, dielectric grease, 
and adhesive backed heat shrink tubing over each
  splice. The coax was Belden flooded direct burial RG-6, and it appears that 
water did not move very far in the cable. I'll use the repaired cable for 
another beverage. There is room in the conduit for a second run of cable.

73

Dave K1WHS 
  - Original Message - 
  From: Guy Olinger K2AV 
  To: Dave Olean ; TopBand List 
  Sent: Wednesday, November 11, 2015 5:49 PM
  Subject: Re: Topband: Why do rodents eat coax?


  Gotta vote loudly with Frank on this one. 


  I had to throw away 480 feet of balanced "window" line (Wireman 554) that ran 
elevated from my tractor shed to the base of my 3/8 wl 160 inverted L over FCP. 
 The spans were supported from trees a few inches away from the trunks. Very 
easy access to squirrels as it turned out. They knawed the PE insulation off 
the wires enough that water seeped the entire length of the seven copperweld 
strand conductors on both sides. Forever ruined for transmission purposes. 
Junk. 


  It slowly robbed me increasing ultimately to 3.8 dB extra loss. No sudden 
change in performance to sound the critter alarm.  



  Dim view from here of reusing that knawed RG6. To put it bluntly if you can't 
scan it for loss and impedance anomalies, chuck it and save yourself a lot of 
trouble. 


  73, Guy K2AV 


  On Wednesday, November 11, 2015, Dave Olean  wrote:

Thanks to all who responded with all sorts of great hints and ideas for 
combating the rodent problem with beverage feedlines. I ended up going with 
buying 1000 ft of 1/2" PVC conduit and will lay that on the ground through the 
woods. I ordered a new 1000 ft roll of RG-6 flooded cable to use inside the 
PVC.  I also removed my existing 1000 ft run of coax and gave it a good 
inspection looking for chew marks. After laying the coax out in my open field, 
I identified five areas where the critters had chewed it. At least three of the 
spots were severe with chewing marks that went deep down to expose the center 
conductor. I can cut the bad parts out and will only lose about 10-12 ft of 
overall length. I'll put F fittings and splices there and will try to reuse the 
old cable as well. It won't fit inside the PVC along with the new cable, but 
hopefully, I can bury it enough so that it lasts a few years. I was hoping to 
add another beverage at the same spot with a second feedline. I
  can
  lay out an 800-900 ft wire aimed at Africa and the middle East. That is 
an area that I have had nothing in the past, so maybe I can improve things 
while I repair the rodent damage.  Those darn critters sure caused a lot of 
damage and expense!
Anyway, thanks to all who responded. I appreciate all the great 
comments and ideas.
73
Dave K1WHS
_
Topband Reflector Archives - http://www.contesting.com/_topband



  -- 
  Sent via Gmail Mobile on my iPhone
_
Topband Reflector Archives - http://www.contesting.com/_topband

Re: Topband: Why do rodents eat coax?

[Jim Brown]

I installed a pair of Beverages in 2007. They use DXE hardware and DXE 
window line. The coax was from a 1,000 ft spool of Commscope 5781 that I 
bought before leaving Chicago. The coax lays on the ground; one run is 
about 150 ft, the other about twice that. I just looked at the data 
sheet -- the outer jacket is PVC.


Both Beverages are still working just fine, but I haven't looked with 
TDR. I should do that. Critters around here are mostly squirrels and 
deer, but there are also skunks, raccoons, and bigger ones.


I originally supported the window line with cable ties and electric 
fence post insulators. Over the years, branches and even limbs have 
fallen on the Beverages, and many of those attachments have come loose. 
I've had NO breaks in the window line, but the ends have broken or come 
loose 2-3 times. Now, these Beverages mostly lie on top of low (4-6 ft) 
foliage.


I did one CQWW from PJ4, where the ground is quite hard and there's lots 
of low scrub vegetation. There, our Beverages mostly lay over the low 
scrub, and were terminated by 25-50 ft of wire laying on the ground. 
They worked.


73, Jim K9YC

On Mon,11/9/2015 2:32 PM, Michael Clarson wrote:

Mike: I did say critter resistant, not critter proof, but so far, so good.
Polyethylene (PE) is harder, stiffer (but bends almost as much) and more
slippery than PVC. I'd bet that is what you have. If you can get a number
off the jacket, Google it for specs. Most direct burial cable is PE or
something similar, NOT PVC.--Mike, WV2ZOW


_
Topband Reflector Archives - http://www.contesting.com/_topband

Re: Topband: Why do rodents eat coax?

[Guy Olinger K2AV]

Gotta vote loudly with Frank on this one.

I had to throw away 480 feet of balanced "window" line (Wireman 554) that
ran elevated from my tractor shed to the base of my 3/8 wl 160 inverted L
over FCP.  The spans were supported from trees a few inches away from the
trunks. Very easy access to squirrels as it turned out. They knawed the PE
insulation off the wires enough that water seeped the entire length of the
seven copperweld strand conductors on both sides. Forever ruined for
transmission purposes. Junk.

It slowly robbed me increasing ultimately to 3.8 dB extra loss. No sudden
change in performance to sound the critter alarm.

Dim view from here of reusing that knawed RG6. To put it bluntly if you
can't scan it for loss and impedance anomalies, chuck it and save yourself
a lot of trouble.

73, Guy K2AV

On Wednesday, November 11, 2015, Dave Olean  wrote:

> Thanks to all who responded with all sorts of great hints and ideas for
> combating the rodent problem with beverage feedlines. I ended up going with
> buying 1000 ft of 1/2" PVC conduit and will lay that on the ground through
> the woods. I ordered a new 1000 ft roll of RG-6 flooded cable to use inside
> the PVC.  I also removed my existing 1000 ft run of coax and gave it a good
> inspection looking for chew marks. After laying the coax out in my open
> field, I identified five areas where the critters had chewed it. At least
> three of the spots were severe with chewing marks that went deep down to
> expose the center conductor. I can cut the bad parts out and will only lose
> about 10-12 ft of overall length. I'll put F fittings and splices there and
> will try to reuse the old cable as well. It won't fit inside the PVC along
> with the new cable, but hopefully, I can bury it enough so that it lasts a
> few years. I was hoping to add another beverage at the same spot with a
> second feedline. I can
>   lay out an 800-900 ft wire aimed at Africa and the middle East. That is
> an area that I have had nothing in the past, so maybe I can improve things
> while I repair the rodent damage.  Those darn critters sure caused a lot of
> damage and expense!
> Anyway, thanks to all who responded. I appreciate all the great
> comments and ideas.
> 73
> Dave K1WHS
> _
> Topband Reflector Archives - http://www.contesting.com/_topband
>


-- 
Sent via Gmail Mobile on my iPhone
_
Topband Reflector Archives - http://www.contesting.com/_topband

Re: Topband: Why do rodents eat coax?

[donovanf]

Hi Dave, 


You might need to use a TDR to identify the extent of cable damage. 
Hopefully the flooded cable limited the extent of damage, but water can 
intrude quite a long distance into some brands of RG-6. All RG-6 is 
not created equal, far from it. Hopefully you have the good stuff! 


73 
Frank 
W3LPL 

- Original Message -

From: "Dave Olean"  
To: topband@contesting.com 
Sent: Wednesday, November 11, 2015 3:19:08 PM 
Subject: Topband: Why do rodents eat coax? 

Thanks to all who responded with all sorts of great hints and ideas for 
combating the rodent problem with beverage feedlines. I ended up going with 
buying 1000 ft of 1/2" PVC conduit and will lay that on the ground through the 
woods. I ordered a new 1000 ft roll of RG-6 flooded cable to use inside the 
PVC. I also removed my existing 1000 ft run of coax and gave it a good 
inspection looking for chew marks. After laying the coax out in my open field, 
I identified five areas where the critters had chewed it. At least three of the 
spots were severe with chewing marks that went deep down to expose the center 
conductor. I can cut the bad parts out and will only lose about 10-12 ft of 
overall length. I'll put F fittings and splices there and will try to reuse the 
old cable as well. It won't fit inside the PVC along with the new cable, but 
hopefully, I can bury it enough so that it lasts a few years. I was hoping to 
add another beverage at the same spot with a second feedline. I can 
lay out an 800-900 ft wire aimed at Africa and the middle East. That is an area 
that I have had nothing in the past, so maybe I can improve things while I 
repair the rodent damage. Those darn critters sure caused a lot of damage and 
expense! 
Anyway, thanks to all who responded. I appreciate all the great comments and 
ideas. 
73 
Dave K1WHS 
_ 
Topband Reflector Archives - http://www.contesting.com/_topband 

_
Topband Reflector Archives - http://www.contesting.com/_topband

Topband: Why do rodents eat coax?

[Dave Olean]

Thanks to all who responded with all sorts of great hints and ideas for 
combating the rodent problem with beverage feedlines. I ended up going with 
buying 1000 ft of 1/2" PVC conduit and will lay that on the ground through the 
woods. I ordered a new 1000 ft roll of RG-6 flooded cable to use inside the 
PVC.  I also removed my existing 1000 ft run of coax and gave it a good 
inspection looking for chew marks. After laying the coax out in my open field, 
I identified five areas where the critters had chewed it. At least three of the 
spots were severe with chewing marks that went deep down to expose the center 
conductor. I can cut the bad parts out and will only lose about 10-12 ft of 
overall length. I'll put F fittings and splices there and will try to reuse the 
old cable as well. It won't fit inside the PVC along with the new cable, but 
hopefully, I can bury it enough so that it lasts a few years. I was hoping to 
add another beverage at the same spot with a second feedline. I can
  lay out an 800-900 ft wire aimed at Africa and the middle East. That is an 
area that I have had nothing in the past, so maybe I can improve things while I 
repair the rodent damage.  Those darn critters sure caused a lot of damage and 
expense!
Anyway, thanks to all who responded. I appreciate all the great comments 
and ideas.
73
Dave K1WHS
_
Topband Reflector Archives - http://www.contesting.com/_topband

Re: Topband: Why do rodents eat coax?

[HAROLD SMITH JR]

Dave, I converted to phillistrand 6700lb about 25 years ago. At that time their 
termination was with 4 cable clamps at each end. They were torqued to 25 ft/lbs 
as per instructions. I have 80ft Rohn 45G with a Telrex 20M546 at 81 ft, Hygain 
153BAS at 90 ft and a 103BAS at 100ft. My phillistrand ends are connected to 3 
1/2inch galv pipe in the ground with concrete to 10 ft below. They are above 
ground at 8 ft. I have had winds over 100 mph and all is well. I use an Orion 
2800 rotor. 
73 de Price W0RI 


 On Monday, November 9, 2015 9:09 PM, "Dave Blaschke, w5un"  
wrote:
   

 Same here.

W5UN

On 11/10/2015 1:00 AM, Herbert Schoenbohm wrote:
> I use Phyllistran guy wires here but never run them to the ground as a 
> simple brush fire could bring your towers down. Always have at least a 
> 3O foot steel guy wire for the last section so you guys will survive.  
> If you have the unusual situation where some rodents will try to climb 
> the guys just put a large funnel on the wire backward so they can't 
> ever pass that.
>
> Herb Schoenbohm, KV4FZ
>
> On 11/9/2015 8:24 PM, Merv Schweigert wrote:
>> Boxbe  This message is eligible for 
>> Automatic Cleanup! (k...@flex.com) Add cleanup rule 
>> 
>>  
>> | More info 
>> 
>>  
>>
>> I have this same problem all the time,  I tried to put a BOG out, 
>> made of teflon wire,
>> thinking they would not eat teflon,  it lasted a few days and was chewed
>> In pieces,  Coax the same,
>> Latest I found is my phyllistran guy wires are all chewed near the 
>> bottom,
>> herds of deer are the problem with that,  anything on the ground is done
>> away with by mongoose.
>> I have found no solution,  only sunny part is the deer keep me in 
>> steaks and
>> burger all year round,  mongoose is good for nothing.
>> Merv K9FD/KH6
>>
>>
>>
>> I can't afford to spend $150 each time an animal feasts on it. I need 
>> to do something different! Incidentally, the beverage still has great 
>> directivity, but signals are very weak with the bad cable. It is 
>> barely useable now as a result. 73 Dave K1WHS
>> _
>> Topband Reflector Archives - http://www.contesting.com/_topband
>
> _
> Topband Reflector Archives - http://www.contesting.com/_topband
>

_
Topband Reflector Archives - http://www.contesting.com/_topband


  
_
Topband Reflector Archives - http://www.contesting.com/_topband

Re: Topband: Why do rodents eat coax?

[j...@kk9a.com]

I think that you are lucky that it lasted two years! I set up a temporary
tower/rotator when I moved to this QTH and in less than a week the rotator
and control cables were chewed so bad that it did not work. For the coax I
used old Heliax and that was not chewed, although at my previous home in
IL something would occasional chew the smaller Heliax near the tower base,
but not enough to make it unusable. So I repaired the rotator cable and
temporarily elevated it on lawn chairs, etc which stopped the chewing.

So you have several options, bury the cable, elevate it, cover it inside
something or use Andrew Heliax. I believe even burying it a little would
resolve the issue and this should not be difficult using a trencher.

John KK9A


To: 
Subject:Topband: Why do rodents eat coax?
From:   "Dave Olean" 
Date:   Mon, 9 Nov 2015 19:38:32 -


I was transmitting on 160 last week, and after calling a CQ I noted that the
background noise from one of my beverages dropped to almost nothing.
Something
obviously broke right then. All checks pointed to something external to the
shack. I finally got out in the woods and checked the antenna system. All
looked great. I used my new SARK-110 vector network analyzer and saw very
believable results when connected to my 1100 ft long Europe beverage:
about 75
ohms impedance and a VSWR that fluctuated between 1.5 and maybe 1.8:1 across
the freq range. I double checked the entire beverage run for shorts or
anomalies, and even took apart the termination box to make sure all was
OK. The
last thing left was the 1000 ft run of flooded RG-6 coax. I had run the cable
on the ground back to the house about 2 years ago. It was mostly invisible
now,
being covered with leaves and moss etc etc. A TDR check showed gross "bad"
things and a VOM test across the center pin to ground showed a resista
 nce of 35 ohms while the far end was terminated in a 75 ohm load. Obviously
the cable was compromised. I made a quick inspection and found a few spots
where small animals had chewed on the coax enough to break through the outer
plastic covering and into the braid and aluminum foil shield. Water and gunk
have caused a low resistance between center pin and the shield.
What are my options now? I don't want to spend another $150 for another
roll of coax just so a squirrel can feast on the PVC. Should I route the coax
in the air and away from small mouths? That is one option.  It seems that
digging a 1000 ft trench thru the woods and burying it would work, but it
would
be an awful big chore for a 70 year old doofus. I doubt that I could manage
that. If I run the coax above ground, I run the risk of picking up noise
etc. I
also worry about falling limbs and old dead trees falling on it. With a few
beverages in the woods, I can't afford to spend $150 each time an animal
feasts
on it. I need to do something different!
Incidentally, the beverage still has great directivity, but signals are
very weak with the bad cable. It is barely useable now as a result.
73
Dave K1WHS

_
Topband Reflector Archives - http://www.contesting.com/_topband

Re: Topband: Why do rodents eat coax?

[Terry Posey]

All of my transmission lines are buried except for the single coaxial cable
that feeds my 6m long-boom Yagi.  After 15 years, I have not experienced any
problem with varmints chewing on any of my buried cables, despite being
located in the dense North Florida jungle.  

However, the aerial coax located along the boom of my 6m Yagi was attacked
and destroyed on two occasions several years ago.  The first time, some
critter stripped away the BuryFlex outer sheath, foil and braided shield,
and center dielectric along a 10-foot section of the feedline.  That left
only a skinny center conductor as a very poor transmission line.  At the
time I supposed that it must have been the work of nesting squirrels (tree
rats), so I simply rebuilt the feedline harness for the upcoming Summer Es
skip season.  After a few months the problem returned and the coax was found
stripped away again.  I set aside radio operating for a while and began
watching my 6m tower for evidence of the guilty party.  To my surprise, I
found the culprit to be medium sized woodpecker birds.  Two or three birds
would hang upside down under the Yagi boom and very efficiently strip away
at the coax until the damage was done.   I rebuilt the feedline harness
again, but this time I installed all of the coax on the Yagi inside of
protective grey PVC conduit.  The conduit did increase the antenna wind
loading, but I have not lost a transmission line to birds since then.

YMMV.

Terry K4RX  


W8JI wrote in part:

Squirrels and rats can be a problem, but mostly my cable chew issues have
been from raccoons. I used to trap them and deport them a few miles.

Now I just I bury my cables. Even a few inches of dirt is enough. Where they
come up out of ground, I sleeve them with cheap plastic sprinkler pipe.

You can splice out the bad areas, but you have to bury, sleeve, or fix
whatever is eating it.



_
Topband Reflector Archives - http://www.contesting.com/_topband

Re: Topband: Why do rodents eat coax?

[Dave Blaschke, w5un]

Same here.

W5UN

On 11/10/2015 1:00 AM, Herbert Schoenbohm wrote:
I use Phyllistran guy wires here but never run them to the ground as a 
simple brush fire could bring your towers down. Always have at least a 
3O foot steel guy wire for the last section so you guys will survive.  
If you have the unusual situation where some rodents will try to climb 
the guys just put a large funnel on the wire backward so they can't 
ever pass that.


Herb Schoenbohm, KV4FZ

On 11/9/2015 8:24 PM, Merv Schweigert wrote:
Boxbe  This message is eligible for 
Automatic Cleanup! (k...@flex.com) Add cleanup rule 
 
| More info 
 

I have this same problem all the time,  I tried to put a BOG out, 
made of teflon wire,

thinking they would not eat teflon,  it lasted a few days and was chewed
In pieces,   Coax the same,
Latest I found is my phyllistran guy wires are all chewed near the 
bottom,

herds of deer are the problem with that,  anything on the ground is done
away with by mongoose.
I have found no solution,  only sunny part is the deer keep me in 
steaks and

burger all year round,   mongoose is good for nothing.
Merv K9FD/KH6



I can't afford to spend $150 each time an animal feasts on it. I need 
to do something different! Incidentally, the beverage still has great 
directivity, but signals are very weak with the bad cable. It is 
barely useable now as a result. 73 Dave K1WHS

_
Topband Reflector Archives - http://www.contesting.com/_topband


_
Topband Reflector Archives - http://www.contesting.com/_topband



_
Topband Reflector Archives - http://www.contesting.com/_topband

Re: Topband: Why do rodents eat coax?

[Robert Harmon]

No one has answered the original question of "why do rodents eat coax"

The reason rodents eat coax, and they like 50 ohm coax the best,  is 
their digestive system

is 50 ohms impedance,  their SWR goes up otherwise.

Bob
K6UJ




On 11/9/15 12:38 PM, Mike Waters wrote:

Hi Dave,

There are lots of mice and squirrels here in the rural Ozarks, but they've
never chewed on my Commscope flooded quad-aluminum-shield RG-6. (Yet. :-)

*Perhaps your coax has a soy-based plastic jacket.* There are countless
stories of rodents destroying the wiring harnesses of parked cars, because
soy-based plastic --apparently mandated by the government-- tastes good (so
I hear).
www.google.com/search?newwindow=1&q=mice+ate+wiring+in+car+%22soy%22

I bought two 1000' rolls of that coax from eBay, perhaps 4 or 5 years ago.
One run of it, perhaps 600', is lying on the ground; some still exposed,
some not. Another run of it, from another spool and another seller(?) is
~60% encased in PVC conduit where it runs across an open field. (If you do
that, DON'T put it where vehicles can drive over it! Use metal conduit
instead.) I can try and see if I can find the sellers if you're interested.

73, Mike
www.w0btu.com
_
Topband Reflector Archives - http://www.contesting.com/_topband



_
Topband Reflector Archives - http://www.contesting.com/_topband

Re: Topband: Why do rodents eat coax?

[Ashton Lee]

I had a pack rat problem, eating into cables and have completely cured the 
issue by running coax inside the inexpensive black tubing made for underground 
sprinkler systems. It comes in 100 and 500 foot rolls.

To get the coax into the tubes cut the length you want… then either push an 
electricians snake through, or use a vacuum and suck a small rag with string 
attached in from the other side. Either way gives you a messenger to pull the 
coax.

The tubing comes in several sizes. Be sure you get at least 1.5” to accommodate 
coax connectors. Larger sizes will protect multiple runs of coax.


On Nov 9, 2015, at 6:00 PM, Mike Waters  wrote:

> That's one of the reasons why Phillystran is not supposed to be run all the
> way to the ground. Isn't there supposed to be 6' of steel EHS between the
> guy anchor and the Phillystran?
> 
> Teflon?! Maybe it tastes good with a little butter and salt. ;-)
> 
> 73, Mike
> www.w0btu.com
> 
> On Mon, Nov 9, 2015 at 6:24 PM, Merv Schweigert  wrote:
> 
>> ... teflon,  it lasted a few days and was chewed In pieces ...
>> Latest I found is my phyllistran guy wires are all chewed near the bottom,
>> ...
>> 
> _
> Topband Reflector Archives - http://www.contesting.com/_topband

_
Topband Reflector Archives - http://www.contesting.com/_topband

Re: Topband: Why do rodents eat coax?

[Mike Waters]

That's one of the reasons why Phillystran is not supposed to be run all the
way to the ground. Isn't there supposed to be 6' of steel EHS between the
guy anchor and the Phillystran?

Teflon?! Maybe it tastes good with a little butter and salt. ;-)

73, Mike
www.w0btu.com

On Mon, Nov 9, 2015 at 6:24 PM, Merv Schweigert  wrote:

> ... teflon,  it lasted a few days and was chewed In pieces ...
> Latest I found is my phyllistran guy wires are all chewed near the bottom,
> ...
>
_
Topband Reflector Archives - http://www.contesting.com/_topband

Re: Topband: Why do rodents eat coax?

[Herbert Schoenbohm]

I use Phyllistran guy wires here but never run them to the ground as a 
simple brush fire could bring your towers down. Always have at least a 
3O foot steel guy wire for the last section so you guys will survive.  
If you have the unusual situation where some rodents will try to climb 
the guys just put a large funnel on the wire backward so they can't ever 
pass that.


Herb Schoenbohm, KV4FZ

On 11/9/2015 8:24 PM, Merv Schweigert wrote:
Boxbe  This message is eligible for 
Automatic Cleanup! (k...@flex.com) Add cleanup rule 
 
| More info 
 

I have this same problem all the time,  I tried to put a BOG out, made 
of teflon wire,

thinking they would not eat teflon,  it lasted a few days and was chewed
In pieces,   Coax the same,
Latest I found is my phyllistran guy wires are all chewed near the 
bottom,

herds of deer are the problem with that,  anything on the ground is done
away with by mongoose.
I have found no solution,  only sunny part is the deer keep me in 
steaks and

burger all year round,   mongoose is good for nothing.
Merv K9FD/KH6



I can't afford to spend $150 each time an animal feasts on it. I need 
to do something different! Incidentally, the beverage still has great 
directivity, but signals are very weak with the bad cable. It is 
barely useable now as a result. 73 Dave K1WHS

_
Topband Reflector Archives - http://www.contesting.com/_topband


_
Topband Reflector Archives - http://www.contesting.com/_topband

Re: Topband: Why do rodents eat coax?

[Merv Schweigert]

I have this same problem all the time,  I tried to put a BOG out, made 
of teflon wire,

thinking they would not eat teflon,  it lasted a few days and was chewed
In pieces,   Coax the same,
Latest I found is my phyllistran guy wires are all chewed near the bottom,
herds of deer are the problem with that,  anything on the ground is done
away with by mongoose.
I have found no solution,  only sunny part is the deer keep me in steaks and
burger all year round,   mongoose is good for nothing.
Merv K9FD/KH6



I can't afford to spend $150 each time an animal feasts on it. I need to 
do something different! Incidentally, the beverage still has great 
directivity, but signals are very weak with the bad cable. It is barely 
useable now as a result. 73 Dave K1WHS

_
Topband Reflector Archives - http://www.contesting.com/_topband

Re: Topband: Why do rodents eat coax?

[Bob Kupps via Topband]

Hi Dave
I am currently rebuilding the RX antennas after rodents chewed meter-long 
sections of flooded RG6 away to the center wire before it was even operational. 
Now putting all the cables into PVC pipe laying on top of the ground -  over 
300 meters of flanged pipe sliding over the cables one section at a time...
73 GL Bob HS0ZIA
  From: Dave Olean 
 To: topband@contesting.com 
 Sent: Tuesday, November 10, 2015 2:38 AM
 Subject: Topband: Why do rodents eat coax?
   
I was transmitting on 160 last week, and after calling a CQ I noted that the 
background noise from one of my beverages dropped to almost nothing. Something 
obviously broke right then. All checks pointed to something external to the 
shack. I finally got out in the woods and checked the antenna system. All 
looked great. I used my new SARK-110 vector network analyzer and saw very 
believable results when connected to my 1100 ft long Europe beverage: about 75 
ohms impedance and a VSWR that fluctuated between 1.5 and maybe 1.8:1 across 
the freq range. I double checked the entire beverage run for shorts or 
anomalies, and even took apart the termination box to make sure all was OK. The 
last thing left was the 1000 ft run of flooded RG-6 coax. I had run the cable 
on the ground back to the house about 2 years ago. It was mostly invisible now, 
being covered with leaves and moss etc etc. A TDR check showed gross "bad" 
things and a VOM test across the center pin to ground showed a resista
 nce of 35 ohms while the far end was terminated in a 75 ohm load. Obviously 
the cable was compromised. I made a quick inspection and found a few spots 
where small animals had chewed on the coax enough to break through the outer 
plastic covering and into the braid and aluminum foil shield. Water and gunk 
have caused a low resistance between center pin and the shield.
    What are my options now? I don't want to spend another $150 for another 
roll of coax just so a squirrel can feast on the PVC. Should I route the coax 
in the air and away from small mouths? That is one option.  It seems that 
digging a 1000 ft trench thru the woods and burying it would work, but it would 
be an awful big chore for a 70 year old doofus. I doubt that I could manage 
that. If I run the coax above ground, I run the risk of picking up noise etc. I 
also worry about falling limbs and old dead trees falling on it. With a few 
beverages in the woods, I can't afford to spend $150 each time an animal feasts 
on it. I need to do something different! 
    Incidentally, the beverage still has great directivity, but signals are 
very weak with the bad cable. It is barely useable now as a result.
73
Dave K1WHS
 
_
Topband Reflector Archives - http://www.contesting.com/_topband


  
_
Topband Reflector Archives - http://www.contesting.com/_topband

Re: Topband: Why do rodents eat coax?

[Mike Waters]

Thanks, Mike. That sounds like what I have. It's shinier, too.

73, Mike
www.w0btu.com

On Mon, Nov 9, 2015 at 4:32 PM, Michael Clarson  wrote:

> Mike: I did say critter resistant, not critter proof, but so far, so good.
> Polyethylene (PE) is harder, stiffer (but bends almost as much) and more
> slippery than PVC. I'd bet that is what you have. If you can get a number
> off the jacket, Google it for specs. Most direct burial cable is PE or
> something similar, NOT PVC.--Mike, WV2ZOW
>
> On Mon, Nov 9, 2015 at 5:19 PM, Mike Waters  wrote:
>
>> If all Polyethylene is indeed critter resistant, that seems like a good
>> clue; before buying outdoor coax, check the jacket material on the mfg.
>> data sheet.
>>
>> Other than that, how do we tell for sure what our coax jacket material
>> is? And aren't there different formulas and various hardness specs? I think
>> there's hard and soft PVC.
>>
>> FWIW, the flooded RG-6 I mentioned has a rather hard jacket. A thumbnail
>> makes less of a dent in it, compared to the somewhat softer outer jackets
>> of most of the other coax I have here (RG-11, RG-213, RG-58C/U, etc).
>>
>> 73, Mike
>> www.w0btu.com
>>
>> On Mon, Nov 9, 2015 at 3:53 PM, Michael Clarson  wrote:
>>
>>> ... animals like to chew on or eat PVC. ... I know Polyethylene is
>>> critter resistant
>>>
>>
>>
>
_
Topband Reflector Archives - http://www.contesting.com/_topband

Re: Topband: Why do rodents eat coax?

[Michael Clarson]

Mike: I did say critter resistant, not critter proof, but so far, so good.
Polyethylene (PE) is harder, stiffer (but bends almost as much) and more
slippery than PVC. I'd bet that is what you have. If you can get a number
off the jacket, Google it for specs. Most direct burial cable is PE or
something similar, NOT PVC.--Mike, WV2ZOW

On Mon, Nov 9, 2015 at 5:19 PM, Mike Waters  wrote:

> If all Polyethylene is indeed critter resistant, that seems like a good
> clue; before buying outdoor coax, check the jacket material on the mfg.
> data sheet.
>
> Other than that, how do we tell for sure what our coax jacket material is?
> And aren't there different formulas and various hardness specs? I think
> there's hard and soft PVC.
>
> FWIW, the flooded RG-6 I mentioned has a rather hard jacket. A thumbnail
> makes less of a dent in it, compared to the somewhat softer outer jackets
> of most of the other coax I have here (RG-11, RG-213, RG-58C/U, etc).
>
> 73, Mike
> www.w0btu.com
>
> On Mon, Nov 9, 2015 at 3:53 PM, Michael Clarson  wrote:
>
>> ... animals like to chew on or eat PVC. ... I know Polyethylene is
>> critter resistant
>>
>
>
_
Topband Reflector Archives - http://www.contesting.com/_topband

Re: Topband: Why do rodents eat coax?

[Mike Waters]

If all Polyethylene is indeed critter resistant, that seems like a good
clue; before buying outdoor coax, check the jacket material on the mfg.
data sheet.

Other than that, how do we tell for sure what our coax jacket material is?
And aren't there different formulas and various hardness specs? I think
there's hard and soft PVC.

FWIW, the flooded RG-6 I mentioned has a rather hard jacket. A thumbnail
makes less of a dent in it, compared to the somewhat softer outer jackets
of most of the other coax I have here (RG-11, RG-213, RG-58C/U, etc).

73, Mike
www.w0btu.com

On Mon, Nov 9, 2015 at 3:53 PM, Michael Clarson  wrote:

> ... animals like to chew on or eat PVC. ... I know Polyethylene is critter
> resistant
>
_
Topband Reflector Archives - http://www.contesting.com/_topband

Re: Topband: Why do rodents eat coax?

[baughn]

Mice got into the wiring on my 2005Trailblazer as we live out in the woods..Had 
a friend repair what he could then sold it..They did a job on it.

Steve,  WD8NPL


Sent from Samsung Mobile

 Original message 
From: Michael Clarson  
Date: 11/09/2015  4:53 PM  (GMT-05:00) 
To: Dave Olean  
Cc: topband@contesting.com 
Subject: Re: Topband: Why do rodents eat coax? 
 
Dave: For some reason, a lot of animals like to chew on or eat PVC. That is
why cats chew on line cords. I had a run of RG213 on the ground in my
suburban yard, Squirrels chewed through it 3 times in 5 years. I replaced
it with a polyethylene jacket cable, and its been left alone for 7 years so
far. I know Polyethylene is critter resistant, not sure about other
polyolefins. Check out RG-6 made for direct burial. Many have a
polyethylene jacket. You might also try putting some voltage on the shield
to ground. Once the critter breaks through the jacket, he'll find a
surprise inside. Not too much -- just enough to supply a few milliamperes.
--Mike, WV2ZOW

On Mon, Nov 9, 2015 at 2:38 PM, Dave Olean  wrote:

> I was transmitting on 160 last week, and after calling a CQ I noted that
> the background noise from one of my beverages dropped to almost nothing.
> Something obviously broke right then. All checks pointed to something
> external to the shack. I finally got out in the woods and checked the
> antenna system. All looked great. I used my new SARK-110 vector network
> analyzer and saw very believable results when connected to my 1100 ft long
> Europe beverage: about 75 ohms impedance and a VSWR that fluctuated between
> 1.5 and maybe 1.8:1 across the freq range. I double checked the entire
> beverage run for shorts or anomalies, and even took apart the termination
> box to make sure all was OK. The last thing left was the 1000 ft run of
> flooded RG-6 coax. I had run the cable on the ground back to the house
> about 2 years ago. It was mostly invisible now, being covered with leaves
> and moss etc etc. A TDR check showed gross "bad" things and a VOM test
> across the center pin to ground showed a resista
>  nce of 35 ohms while the far end was terminated in a 75 ohm load.
> Obviously the cable was compromised. I made a quick inspection and found a
> few spots where small animals had chewed on the coax enough to break
> through the outer plastic covering and into the braid and aluminum foil
> shield. Water and gunk have caused a low resistance between center pin and
> the shield.
> What are my options now? I don't want to spend another $150 for
> another roll of coax just so a squirrel can feast on the PVC. Should I
> route the coax in the air and away from small mouths? That is one option.
> It seems that digging a 1000 ft trench thru the woods and burying it would
> work, but it would be an awful big chore for a 70 year old doofus. I doubt
> that I could manage that. If I run the coax above ground, I run the risk of
> picking up noise etc. I also worry about falling limbs and old dead trees
> falling on it. With a few beverages in the woods, I can't afford to spend
> $150 each time an animal feasts on it. I need to do something different!
> Incidentally, the beverage still has great directivity, but signals
> are very weak with the bad cable. It is barely useable now as a result.
> 73
> Dave K1WHS
>
> _
> Topband Reflector Archives - http://www.contesting.com/_topband
>
_
Topband Reflector Archives - http://www.contesting.com/_topband
_
Topband Reflector Archives - http://www.contesting.com/_topband

Re: Topband: Why do rodents eat coax?

[Michael Clarson]

Dave: For some reason, a lot of animals like to chew on or eat PVC. That is
why cats chew on line cords. I had a run of RG213 on the ground in my
suburban yard, Squirrels chewed through it 3 times in 5 years. I replaced
it with a polyethylene jacket cable, and its been left alone for 7 years so
far. I know Polyethylene is critter resistant, not sure about other
polyolefins. Check out RG-6 made for direct burial. Many have a
polyethylene jacket. You might also try putting some voltage on the shield
to ground. Once the critter breaks through the jacket, he'll find a
surprise inside. Not too much -- just enough to supply a few milliamperes.
--Mike, WV2ZOW

On Mon, Nov 9, 2015 at 2:38 PM, Dave Olean  wrote:

> I was transmitting on 160 last week, and after calling a CQ I noted that
> the background noise from one of my beverages dropped to almost nothing.
> Something obviously broke right then. All checks pointed to something
> external to the shack. I finally got out in the woods and checked the
> antenna system. All looked great. I used my new SARK-110 vector network
> analyzer and saw very believable results when connected to my 1100 ft long
> Europe beverage: about 75 ohms impedance and a VSWR that fluctuated between
> 1.5 and maybe 1.8:1 across the freq range. I double checked the entire
> beverage run for shorts or anomalies, and even took apart the termination
> box to make sure all was OK. The last thing left was the 1000 ft run of
> flooded RG-6 coax. I had run the cable on the ground back to the house
> about 2 years ago. It was mostly invisible now, being covered with leaves
> and moss etc etc. A TDR check showed gross "bad" things and a VOM test
> across the center pin to ground showed a resista
>  nce of 35 ohms while the far end was terminated in a 75 ohm load.
> Obviously the cable was compromised. I made a quick inspection and found a
> few spots where small animals had chewed on the coax enough to break
> through the outer plastic covering and into the braid and aluminum foil
> shield. Water and gunk have caused a low resistance between center pin and
> the shield.
> What are my options now? I don't want to spend another $150 for
> another roll of coax just so a squirrel can feast on the PVC. Should I
> route the coax in the air and away from small mouths? That is one option.
> It seems that digging a 1000 ft trench thru the woods and burying it would
> work, but it would be an awful big chore for a 70 year old doofus. I doubt
> that I could manage that. If I run the coax above ground, I run the risk of
> picking up noise etc. I also worry about falling limbs and old dead trees
> falling on it. With a few beverages in the woods, I can't afford to spend
> $150 each time an animal feasts on it. I need to do something different!
> Incidentally, the beverage still has great directivity, but signals
> are very weak with the bad cable. It is barely useable now as a result.
> 73
> Dave K1WHS
>
> _
> Topband Reflector Archives - http://www.contesting.com/_topband
>
_
Topband Reflector Archives - http://www.contesting.com/_topband

Re: Topband: Why do rodents eat coax?

[N5PA]

Dave:

I have problems with squirrels and rats at my farm with the wiring systems
on my tractors.  They chew the wire up to sharpen their teeth.  I know you
cannot do this for a thousand foot run, but what I did to keep them away
from the wiring harnesses I put a bag of moth balls in the electrical
compartment behind the dashboard of all three of my tractors.  I had to
replace the wiring harness on my Massey-Ferguson 471 last year and it was
$2,800 to replace it.  I have not had any more problems with rodents of any
kind since putting the moth balls out.  It also keeps the wasps and bees
from building nests in there, also.  I know in some states it is illegal to
use moth balls, though.  But as I said, I do not think it would work outside
in that big of an area.  I have had problems with moles eating through my
buried coax and rotator control cables before and I ended up putting it in
PVC.  I have a couple of pecan trees and a lot of oak trees at the farm near
my 160 meter Windom and so far they have not damaged that antenna.  I have a
friend north of Jackson and the squirrels eat through his dipole antennas
all the time.  Another ham friend here in town sets out traps for them and
then hauls them off to the National Forest and lets them go.  That is a
never ending battle, though.  The problem I have with Beverages are deer.
Tree limbs are a big problem, also.

73,
Alan, N5PA


-Original Message-
From: Topband [mailto:topband-boun...@contesting.com] On Behalf Of Dave
Olean
Sent: Monday, November 09, 2015 1:39 PM
To: topband@contesting.com
Subject: Topband: Why do rodents eat coax?

I was transmitting on 160 last week, and after calling a CQ I noted that the
background noise from one of my beverages dropped to almost nothing.
Something obviously broke right then. All checks pointed to something
external to the shack. I finally got out in the woods and checked the
antenna system. All looked great. I used my new SARK-110 vector network
analyzer and saw very believable results when connected to my 1100 ft long
Europe beverage: about 75 ohms impedance and a VSWR that fluctuated between
1.5 and maybe 1.8:1 across the freq range. I double checked the entire
beverage run for shorts or anomalies, and even took apart the termination
box to make sure all was OK. The last thing left was the 1000 ft run of
flooded RG-6 coax. I had run the cable on the ground back to the house about
2 years ago. It was mostly invisible now, being covered with leaves and moss
etc etc. A TDR check showed gross "bad" things and a VOM test across the
center pin to ground showed a resista  nce of 35 ohms while the far end was
terminated in a 75 ohm load. Obviously the cable was compromised. I made a
quick inspection and found a few spots where small animals had chewed on the
coax enough to break through the outer plastic covering and into the braid
and aluminum foil shield. Water and gunk have caused a low resistance
between center pin and the shield.
What are my options now? I don't want to spend another $150 for another
roll of coax just so a squirrel can feast on the PVC. Should I route the
coax in the air and away from small mouths? That is one option.  It seems
that digging a 1000 ft trench thru the woods and burying it would work, but
it would be an awful big chore for a 70 year old doofus. I doubt that I
could manage that. If I run the coax above ground, I run the risk of picking
up noise etc. I also worry about falling limbs and old dead trees falling on
it. With a few beverages in the woods, I can't afford to spend $150 each
time an animal feasts on it. I need to do something different! 
Incidentally, the beverage still has great directivity, but signals are
very weak with the bad cable. It is barely useable now as a result.
73
Dave K1WHS
 
_
Topband Reflector Archives - http://www.contesting.com/_topband

_
Topband Reflector Archives - http://www.contesting.com/_topband

Re: Topband: Why do rodents eat coax?

[Mike Waters]

Here you go. Hilarious, unless it happens to you.

forums.qrz.com/index.php?threads/insulation-eating-rabbits.268034/

73, Mike
www.w0btu.com

On Mon, Nov 9, 2015 at 2:38 PM, Mike Waters  wrote:

> *Perhaps your coax has a soy-based plastic jacket.*
>
_
Topband Reflector Archives - http://www.contesting.com/_topband

Re: Topband: Why do rodents eat coax?

[Mike Waters]

That's *exactly* what I would do.

Just partially fill the F connectors with silicone dielectric compound to
keep any moisture from corroding anything. I would probably also
stretch-wrap the whole splice with electrical tape.

73, Mike
www.w0btu.com

On Mon, Nov 9, 2015 at 2:29 PM, David Harmon  wrote:

> If I had a run as long as yours I think I would just cut out the bad
> length and put on F connectors.
> Just keep doing this to delay the replacement of the whole length.
>
_
Topband Reflector Archives - http://www.contesting.com/_topband

Re: Topband: Why do rodents eat coax?

[Tom W8JI]

Squirrels and rats can be a problem, but mostly my cable chew issues have 
been from raccoons. I used to trap them and deport them a few miles.


Now I just I bury my cables. Even a few inches of dirt is enough. Where they 
come up out of ground, I sleeve them with cheap plastic sprinkler pipe.


You can splice out the bad areas, but you have to bury, sleeve, or fix 
whatever is eating it.



- Original Message - 
From: "Dave Olean" 

To: 
Sent: Monday, November 09, 2015 2:38 PM
Subject: Topband: Why do rodents eat coax?


I was transmitting on 160 last week, and after calling a CQ I noted that 
the background noise from one of my beverages dropped to almost nothing. 
Something obviously broke right then. All checks pointed to something 
external to the shack. I finally got out in the woods and checked the 
antenna system. All looked great. I used my new SARK-110 vector network 
analyzer and saw very believable results when connected to my 1100 ft long 
Europe beverage: about 75 ohms impedance and a VSWR that fluctuated between 
1.5 and maybe 1.8:1 across the freq range. I double checked the entire 
beverage run for shorts or anomalies, and even took apart the termination 
box to make sure all was OK. The last thing left was the 1000 ft run of 
flooded RG-6 coax. I had run the cable on the ground back to the house 
about 2 years ago. It was mostly invisible now, being covered with leaves 
and moss etc etc. A TDR check showed gross "bad" things and a VOM test 
across the center pin to ground showed a resista
nce of 35 ohms while the far end was terminated in a 75 ohm load. 
Obviously the cable was compromised. I made a quick inspection and found a 
few spots where small animals had chewed on the coax enough to break 
through the outer plastic covering and into the braid and aluminum foil 
shield. Water and gunk have caused a low resistance between center pin and 
the shield.
   What are my options now? I don't want to spend another $150 for another 
roll of coax just so a squirrel can feast on the PVC. Should I route the 
coax in the air and away from small mouths? That is one option.  It seems 
that digging a 1000 ft trench thru the woods and burying it would work, 
but it would be an awful big chore for a 70 year old doofus. I doubt that 
I could manage that. If I run the coax above ground, I run the risk of 
picking up noise etc. I also worry about falling limbs and old dead trees 
falling on it. With a few beverages in the woods, I can't afford to spend 
$150 each time an animal feasts on it. I need to do something different!
   Incidentally, the beverage still has great directivity, but signals are 
very weak with the bad cable. It is barely useable now as a result.

73
Dave K1WHS

_
Topband Reflector Archives - http://www.contesting.com/_topband


-
No virus found in this message.
Checked by AVG - www.avg.com
Version: 2014.0.4842 / Virus Database: 4447/10968 - Release Date: 11/09/15



_
Topband Reflector Archives - http://www.contesting.com/_topband

Re: Topband: Why do rodents eat coax?

[Mike Waters]

Hi Dave,

There are lots of mice and squirrels here in the rural Ozarks, but they've
never chewed on my Commscope flooded quad-aluminum-shield RG-6. (Yet. :-)

*Perhaps your coax has a soy-based plastic jacket.* There are countless
stories of rodents destroying the wiring harnesses of parked cars, because
soy-based plastic --apparently mandated by the government-- tastes good (so
I hear).
www.google.com/search?newwindow=1&q=mice+ate+wiring+in+car+%22soy%22

I bought two 1000' rolls of that coax from eBay, perhaps 4 or 5 years ago.
One run of it, perhaps 600', is lying on the ground; some still exposed,
some not. Another run of it, from another spool and another seller(?) is
~60% encased in PVC conduit where it runs across an open field. (If you do
that, DON'T put it where vehicles can drive over it! Use metal conduit
instead.) I can try and see if I can find the sellers if you're interested.

73, Mike
www.w0btu.com
_
Topband Reflector Archives - http://www.contesting.com/_topband

Re: Topband: Why do rodents eat coax?

[David Harmon]

I had the same problem but on a much shorter run.I put the coax inside
flared plastic pipethe type that slips togetherno glue needed.
My problem solved.
If I had a run as long as yours I think I would just cut out the bad length
and put on F connectors.
Just keep doing this to delay the replacement of the whole length.


73

David Harmon
K6XYZ
Sperry, OK

-Original Message-
From: Topband [mailto:topband-boun...@contesting.com] On Behalf Of Dave
Olean
Sent: Monday, November 9, 2015 1:39 PM
To: topband@contesting.com
Subject: Topband: Why do rodents eat coax?

I was transmitting on 160 last week, and after calling a CQ I noted that the
background noise from one of my beverages dropped to almost nothing.
Something obviously broke right then. All checks pointed to something
external to the shack. I finally got out in the woods and checked the
antenna system. All looked great. I used my new SARK-110 vector network
analyzer and saw very believable results when connected to my 1100 ft long
Europe beverage: about 75 ohms impedance and a VSWR that fluctuated between
1.5 and maybe 1.8:1 across the freq range. I double checked the entire
beverage run for shorts or anomalies, and even took apart the termination
box to make sure all was OK. The last thing left was the 1000 ft run of
flooded RG-6 coax. I had run the cable on the ground back to the house about
2 years ago. It was mostly invisible now, being covered with leaves and moss
etc etc. A TDR check showed gross "bad" things and a VOM test across the
center pin to ground showed a resista  nce of 35 ohms while the far end was
terminated in a 75 ohm load. Obviously the cable was compromised. I made a
quick inspection and found a few spots where small animals had chewed on the
coax enough to break through the outer plastic covering and into the braid
and aluminum foil shield. Water and gunk have caused a low resistance
between center pin and the shield.
What are my options now? I don't want to spend another $150 for another
roll of coax just so a squirrel can feast on the PVC. Should I route the
coax in the air and away from small mouths? That is one option.  It seems
that digging a 1000 ft trench thru the woods and burying it would work, but
it would be an awful big chore for a 70 year old doofus. I doubt that I
could manage that. If I run the coax above ground, I run the risk of picking
up noise etc. I also worry about falling limbs and old dead trees falling on
it. With a few beverages in the woods, I can't afford to spend $150 each
time an animal feasts on it. I need to do something different! 
Incidentally, the beverage still has great directivity, but signals are
very weak with the bad cable. It is barely useable now as a result.
73
Dave K1WHS
 
_
Topband Reflector Archives - http://www.contesting.com/_topband

_
Topband Reflector Archives - http://www.contesting.com/_topband

Topband: Why do rodents eat coax?

[Dave Olean]

I was transmitting on 160 last week, and after calling a CQ I noted that the 
background noise from one of my beverages dropped to almost nothing. Something 
obviously broke right then. All checks pointed to something external to the 
shack. I finally got out in the woods and checked the antenna system. All 
looked great. I used my new SARK-110 vector network analyzer and saw very 
believable results when connected to my 1100 ft long Europe beverage: about 75 
ohms impedance and a VSWR that fluctuated between 1.5 and maybe 1.8:1 across 
the freq range. I double checked the entire beverage run for shorts or 
anomalies, and even took apart the termination box to make sure all was OK. The 
last thing left was the 1000 ft run of flooded RG-6 coax. I had run the cable 
on the ground back to the house about 2 years ago. It was mostly invisible now, 
being covered with leaves and moss etc etc. A TDR check showed gross "bad" 
things and a VOM test across the center pin to ground showed a resista
 nce of 35 ohms while the far end was terminated in a 75 ohm load. Obviously 
the cable was compromised. I made a quick inspection and found a few spots 
where small animals had chewed on the coax enough to break through the outer 
plastic covering and into the braid and aluminum foil shield. Water and gunk 
have caused a low resistance between center pin and the shield.
What are my options now? I don't want to spend another $150 for another 
roll of coax just so a squirrel can feast on the PVC. Should I route the coax 
in the air and away from small mouths? That is one option.  It seems that 
digging a 1000 ft trench thru the woods and burying it would work, but it would 
be an awful big chore for a 70 year old doofus. I doubt that I could manage 
that. If I run the coax above ground, I run the risk of picking up noise etc. I 
also worry about falling limbs and old dead trees falling on it. With a few 
beverages in the woods, I can't afford to spend $150 each time an animal feasts 
on it. I need to do something different! 
Incidentally, the beverage still has great directivity, but signals are 
very weak with the bad cable. It is barely useable now as a result.
73
Dave K1WHS
 
_
Topband Reflector Archives - http://www.contesting.com/_topband