" If you are really looking for perfect dry housing, use a housing with
several athmosphere high overpressure. I mean the really high pressure in
the enclosure will stop any building of moisture... then you can use N2-gas
instead of simple air..."
I don't know why we hams can't have an economical low-pressure dry air
system to protect coax & outdoor equipment boxes. The telephone companies
have used pressurized dry air for years to protect their cables & remote
equipment from moisture. It is well known that the cold rain quickly cools
outdoor cables & enclosures, contracting the internal air, the vacuum of
which then sucks water in through any pinhole opening. All PVC cable
sheaths have numerous pinholes in them.
A small air pump, desiccant chamber & plastic delivery tubes (coax works
fine) would channel a few psi of dried air to our total outdoor systems.
Changing out UHF connectors for N connectors would be the final touch, to
minimize leakage. The pump would run intermittently a few times a day or a
week to keep pressure within limits.
Here in Florida, water somehow gets in all my coaxes & ruins them,
regardless of coax seal & rain shields If the water intrusion problem could
be remedied, then I would have more time to work on stuff damaged by
lightning. And a lightning charge detector could static charge a tower or
wire antenna with the same charge as the lightning, probably preventing the
strikes...............anudder "free lunch" thought.......
73, OM Doug / NX4D
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