water tower bounce??

biblesurplus · 02-15-2004

Has anyone successfully bounced a signal off a water tower? I need to establish a 1.5 mile link but the only way I can get a clear LOS is to bounce each end off of nearby water towers. One end is only 1 block from the 1st tower and the other end is .5 miles from it's respective tower. Am I nuts for trying this? I'm going to try it first with a couple of cantennas and if I even get a little signal I'll buy some more serious antennas with very narrow patterns.

Any thoughts?

Thorn · 02-15-2004

It can be done. Maybe.

The hard part is going to be whether or not the signal can be bounced at the right angle. You can easily do this on a flat panel that can be aimed. It's a lot harder to do with a fixed object.

biblesurplus · 02-15-2004

Both of the water tanks are spherical. So i figure the signal will be seriously diffused and therefore attenuated.

Thorn · 02-15-2004

Ugh.

It propably won't work then. On the other hand, it can't hurt to give it a try. You never know...

King_Ice_Flash · 02-15-2004

Can you use a couple of those 900 mhz converters?

renderman · 02-16-2004

you may be surprised at the results if you give it a go with the cantenna's.

a few local university guys wanted to link networks and took the unusual step of using the parabolic dish on the roof of the local exchange office of the local telco as a reflector.

A phone call, NS and a about and hour effort lining everything up worked nicely at last report. I personally think they lucked out.

proves it's worth a shot though

02-15-2004	#1 (permalink)
biblesurplus Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: Sweet Home Alabama Posts: 4	water tower bounce?? Has anyone successfully bounced a signal off a water tower? I need to establish a 1.5 mile link but the only way I can get a clear LOS is to bounce each end off of nearby water towers. One end is only 1 block from the 1st tower and the other end is .5 miles from it's respective tower. Am I nuts for trying this? I'm going to try it first with a couple of cantennas and if I even get a little signal I'll buy some more serious antennas with very narrow patterns. Any thoughts?

02-15-2004	#2 (permalink)
Thorn Did you do the math? Join Date: Apr 2002 Location: Villa Straylight Posts: 10,358	It can be done. Maybe. The hard part is going to be whether or not the signal can be bounced at the right angle. You can easily do this on a flat panel that can be aimed. It's a lot harder to do with a fixed object. __________________ Thorn "Read Altas Shrugged. Compare it to today. Repeat as necessary"

02-15-2004	#4 (permalink)
Thorn Did you do the math? Join Date: Apr 2002 Location: Villa Straylight Posts: 10,358	Ugh. It propably won't work then. On the other hand, it can't hurt to give it a try. You never know... __________________ Thorn "Read Altas Shrugged. Compare it to today. Repeat as necessary"

02-15-2004	#5 (permalink)
King_Ice_Flash Alien Paranoid Stumbler Join Date: May 2003 Location: WI Posts: 2,688	Can you use a couple of those 900 mhz converters? __________________ "Yeah," said a voice from under the table, "you go to pieces so fast people get hit by the shrapnel."

02-16-2004	#6 (permalink)
renderman Drunken Stumbler Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: Anywhere but Utah Posts: 1,862	you may be surprised at the results if you give it a go with the cantenna's. a few local university guys wanted to link networks and took the unusual step of using the parabolic dish on the roof of the local exchange office of the local telco as a reflector. A phone call, NS and a about and hour effort lining everything up worked nicely at last report. I personally think they lucked out. proves it's worth a shot though __________________ Never drink anything larger than your head! Scaramental Wine Taster for the Church Of WiFi Buy our books! "I reject your reality, and substitute my own!" – Adam Savage CoWF WPA Hash Tables

02-15-2004	#3 (permalink)
biblesurplus Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: Sweet Home Alabama Posts: 4	Both of the water tanks are spherical. So i figure the signal will be seriously diffused and therefore attenuated.

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