Guide to locating sites for your antenna

 Intro:  Because television requires line-of-sight, you need to be able to SEE all the homes you want to receive your broadcast (line-of-sight).   This means that your antenna pole or mast should be located where you can see as many homes as possible.

How to locate suitable sites for your antenna

• Obtain a map of your city (scale 1:50,000 or 1:100,000), so that you can mark possible sites on it.
• Look to see where other broadcasters have located their antennas [often they have done much research, so try to benefit from this].  Please mark the location of their sites and names on the map.
• Investigate the opportunities to place your antenna either on the land where the other antennas are located, or close by.  A short mast or tower on a high hill can be very effective.
• If the ground is very flat, a tall building in your city could be a useful spot.

The essentials for a good site are:

#	Requirement	Site 1	Site 2	Site 3
1	High location, to see as many homes as possible  [Write name of site]
2	A piece of land where you can erect a pole or mast.  You need the same amount of land as the height of your mast (40m mast needs 40m x 40m of land).  [Give size of land]
3	What electrical supply is available at or near the site, with suitable lightning protection  (1 Kva single phase needed)  [Give voltage available]
4	Can you see your proposed studio from this site?  [Yes / No]
5	What security for the equipment (in a hut, room or cabinet) is in place at the site now? [Can be added later]
6	Is there a tall pole, mast or tower on this piece of land?  [ Yes / No] If yes, would you be able to use it for an antenna?  [  Yes / No }
7	Is there road access to this site (for delivery of equipment)?  [Yes / No ]
8	Name of site owner and phone number [We may need to make an appointment to see the site.]
9	Write a number giving your order of preference for the possible sites on this page  (e.g. 1, 2, 3  etc.)

Using the information from your preferred site (the one you marked #1), please complete <media 955>form B2</media>.   

EXTRA NOTES

What is a Site?

 

The term “site” is used for a high place where we could locate a mast or tower for our antenna.   From this site you should be able to see a high % of homes in the city.  

 

A site (or location) could therefore be any of the following:

1    On an existing broadcast mast or tower

2    A piece of land next to an existing mast or tower

3    A piece of land where there is no nearby mast or tower, but which has electrical power  and a good view of the city

4    A church in the middle of a city, but because it is usually not very high, we would need a tall mast or tower to be able to "see" the homes in the city.

 

In the form, please write the NAME of each site.  Find out who the owner is.  Write down his name and phone number, so we can phone for an appointment to visit the site.  If there is an existing tower, we need his permission to climb the tower at least halfway to take photos of the city.

Renting space on an existing mast or tower

Contact owners of existing masts or towers, to find out whether they would be willing to rent you space on their tower.   You would need:

• Electrical supply, with good surge protection
• Space in their hut or room below the mast (about 1m x 1m) for a cabinet mounted on the wall
• Air conditioning to maintain a fairly constant temperature
• Access to the hut when you need it
• Space on their mast:  You would need:

Establish the rental per month and minimum term (years).

Note:  Renting space can be very expensive, and needs to be carefully considered as it may be a long term commitment.

 

Sharing facilities with other broadcasters

In situations where other UHF broadcasters are operating, it may be worthwhile to find out if you can share antennas and feeder cables.   This can usually only be done:

    a)  Where there is an existing UHF transmitter

    b)  Where the antenna covers the angles  you wish to cover

    c)   Where the owner is willing to share antenna and feeder cable with you.

The sharing would be done using a device which combines the signals (often called a “combiner”) from the existing transmitter with your transmitter, sending these together up the feeder cable to the antenna/s.

By sharing you should avoid / save the costs of:

    a)  Putting in your own Antenna & Feeder Cable

    b)  Rental of space on the tower / mast

Please complete <media 955>Form B3</media> as fully as possible