WeatherProof Enclosure

streaker69 · 05-03-2005

I've had to build 5 of these for an installation I'm doing shortly. All the AP's are WAP54G's using the standard wallmount that comes with those units mounted inside the box. The holes for the antennas are 3/4", then covered with rubber as a gasket and a metal plate cut and drilled to just fit around the antenna. I used heatshrink around the joint of the antenna caulked with clear silicon between the antenna and metal plate.

Wires enter the box from the side and will be caulked with clear silicon once the installation is complete. I got the boxes from Lowes for around $24 each. They are 8"x8"x6" with a gasket on the lid. Fairly easy to work with and the units just fit in snug. The POE adaptor could be used inside this if you'd mount it to the lid on the inside.

All of these units will be installed out of reach of persons in the vacinity so I'm not concerned about antenna breakage. Even so, the antennas are fairly easy to replace if it were to happen.

ADDITION: Enclosure Page on my site.

beakmyn · 05-03-2005

How come you run the antennas through the enclosure and not use a short pigtail to a SMA panel mount? Seems like it might be easier to seal from the elements and allow for different antenna options. Just curious.

Dutch · 05-03-2005

Quote:

Originally Posted by streaker69

I've had to build 5 of these for an installation I'm doing shortly. All the AP's are WAP54G's using the standard wallmount that comes with those units mounted inside the box. The holes for the antennas are 3/4", then covered with rubber as a gasket and a metal plate cut and drilled to just fit around the antenna. I used heatshrink around the joint of the antenna caulked with clear silicon between the antenna and metal plate.

Wires enter the box from the side and will be caulked with clear silicon once the installation is complete. I got the boxes from Lowes for around $24 each. They are 8"x8"x6" with a gasket on the lid. Fairly easy to work with and the units just fit in snug. The POE adaptor could be used inside this if you'd mount it to the lid on the inside.

All of these units will be installed out of reach of persons in the vacinity so I'm not concerned about antenna breakage. Even so, the antennas are fairly easy to replace if it were to happen.

If they are going to be mounted outdoor, be aware of the following issues :
Heat, from sunshine, as well as condensation inside the boxes, due to heat/cooling cycles. (A decondensation bag of sillicate crystal in each box is a small but worthwhile investment).

Dutch

beakmyn · 05-03-2005

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dutch

If they are going to be mounted outdoor, be aware of the following issues :
Heat, from sunshine, as well as condensation inside the boxes, due to heat/cooling cycles. (A decondensation bag of sillicate crystal in each box is a small but worthwhile investment).

Dutch

Maybe a weep hole on the bottom with a piece of screen glued over it on the inside?

streaker69 · 05-03-2005

Thanks for the suggestions. Most of the boxes are going to be under eaves of the building so they're not going to be exposed to direct sunlight. I'll get some dessicant and probably put a small hole in the down orientation once they're mounted.

Here's some more pictures. These are the Linksys WRE54G extenders. This box is 6"x6"x4" box. I cut a small board to fit into the bottom of the box and then screw it in place then mount the Extender to the board. The antenna just protrudes from the box and will be sealed with silicon caulk during installation. I got these boxes from a local Electrical supply place since Lowes and Home Depot didn't have anything that really worked. They were about $18 each.

streaker69 · 05-03-2005

Quote:

Originally Posted by beakmyn

How come you run the antennas through the enclosure and not use a short pigtail to a SMA panel mount? Seems like it might be easier to seal from the elements and allow for different antenna options. Just curious.

Trying to keep costs down, plus time for the parts to get here. This job was supposed to be completed by April 30th. But their people didn't get the wiring done and I already had this design completed. I've had less than 2 weeks to get this job together. So far the delay isn't anywhere close to my fault. Which makes me happy. All the components are already programmed and labeled just waiting to be installed.

Airstreamer · 05-03-2005

Quote:

Originally Posted by streaker69

Thanks for the suggestions. Most of the boxes are going to be under eaves of the building so they're not going to be exposed to direct sunlight. I'll get some dessicant and probably put a small hole in the down orientation once they're mounted.

Here's some more pictures. These are the Linksys WRE54G extenders. This box is 6"x6"x4" box. I cut a small board to fit into the bottom of the box and then screw it in place then mount the Extender to the board. The antenna just protrudes from the box and will be sealed with silicon caulk during installation. I got these boxes from a local Electrical supply place since Lowes and Home Depot didn't have anything that really worked. They were about $18 each.

Might camouflage them by painting to match the background colors since you said sunlight isn't an issue.

Also, silicone sealer gives off acetic acid as it cures. It turns to water vapor. Might let them 'breathe' for a day or so after applying the sealer.

Condensation shouldn't be an issue 'cause the WAPs generate a fair bit of heat. They are always going to be slightly warmer that the outside air temp. If they get exposed to blowing snow, you might have a problem with water inside though, if not sealed well.

streaker69 · 05-03-2005

Quote:

Originally Posted by Airstreamer

Might camouflage them by painting to match the background colors since you said sunlight isn't an issue.

Also, silicone sealer gives off acetic acid as it cures. It turns to water vapor. Might let them 'breathe' for a day or so after applying the sealer.

Condensation shouldn't be an issue 'cause the WAPs generate a fair bit of heat. They are always going to be slightly warmer that the outside air temp. If they get exposed to blowing snow, you might have a problem with water inside though, if not sealed well.

I didn't know that, so I learnt sumthung new today. Is this a concern on the boxes that the silicon is only going to be on the outside? I believe you were just mentioning it because of the hole in the Extention boxes.

Airstreamer · 05-03-2005

Quote:

Originally Posted by streaker69

I didn't know that, so I learnt sumthung new today. Is this a concern on the boxes that the silicon is only going to be on the outside? I believe you were just mentioning it because of the hole in the Extention boxes.

Nah, trivia stuff.

We ran into it in a food processing plant with a freeze tunnel, -35 F at the final stage. We were always getting limit switches locking up with moisture in them and we couldn't figure out why. They had to be sealed really well to keep the cleanup folks from getting water in the switches, so we used to fill up the conduits with a big blob of sealer. Still had the problem. Finally found out about the acetic acid turning to water vapor. We'd let the switch assembly lay open and cure overnight when the tunnel was out of service, and most of the problems went away.

nevtxjustin · 05-03-2005

[quote=streaker69]I used heatshrink around the joint of the antenna caulked with clear silicon between the antenna and metal plate.
QUOTE]

Silicone sealers are problematic when used on plastics. The volatile componds in the plastic eventually "boil off" and act as a mold release, loosing all adhesion to the plastic surface. A non-silicone caulk would be a better choice - one of those "25 year" types which will certainly outlast the technology.

streaker69 · 05-03-2005

[quote=nevtxjustin]

Quote:

Originally Posted by streaker69

I used heatshrink around the joint of the antenna caulked with clear silicon between the antenna and metal plate.
QUOTE]

Silicone sealers are problematic when used on plastics. The volatile componds in the plastic eventually "boil off" and act as a mold release, loosing all adhesion to the plastic surface. A non-silicone caulk would be a better choice - one of those "25 year" types which will certainly outlast the technology.

What is the timespan for that happening? And is it on all plastics or certain plastics? The actual Silicon is actually attached to the heatshrink and the metal plate, not directly to the plastic of the antenna.

Barry · 05-03-2005

Cool setup, looks kinda like these. I used one of those boxes to house a wireless light switch. Turned on some blue rope light that I ran down the side of my driveway. Found out that that stuff doesn't work up here in the cold. The plastic contracted or something and broke connections inside, had whole sections stop working. Then the dumbass fuel delivery guy ran down half the fence with his truck. Don't think he had ever backed that truck before. It looked cool while it lasted though.

streaker69 · 05-04-2005

Quote:

Originally Posted by Barry

Cool setup, looks kinda like these. I used one of those boxes to house a wireless light switch. Turned on some blue rope light that I ran down the side of my driveway. Found out that that stuff doesn't work up here in the cold. The plastic contracted or something and broke connections inside, had whole sections stop working. Then the dumbass fuel delivery guy ran down half the fence with his truck. Don't think he had ever backed that truck before. It looked cool while it lasted though.

Same kind of box, just smaller. I went with the smaller size so that they wouldn't stand out quite so much at the site. I just got word from the client, they still haven't completed the wiring. I would normally do the wiring myself, at least the CAT5 stuff, but since this is linking 3 buildings together I figured their maintenance people would be better at getting them done. I ran wiring at another location last friday, completed all those runs in about 3 hours. But that was all indoors and drop ceilings.

Barry · 05-04-2005

I'm still trying to figure out how to build a robot that can drive along cable trays and pull wire. I hate drop cielings.

streaker69 · 05-04-2005

Quote:

Originally Posted by Barry

I'm still trying to figure out how to build a robot that can drive along cable trays and pull wire. I hate drop cielings.

We should collaborate and build something. I have a cable shooter that I use when there is enough space above the ceiling. Otherwise this last job was fairly easy because it was a stright run 150' down the hallway.

Off the top of my head, a remote controlled lightweight robot with tracks instead of wheels and a small wireless camera would probably work well for pulling cable, don't ya think?

Time to dig through the RC parts.

05-03-2005	#2 (permalink)
beakmyn Free Public Wifi Join Date: Aug 2003 Posts: 4,992	How come you run the antennas through the enclosure and not use a short pigtail to a SMA panel mount? Seems like it might be easier to seal from the elements and allow for different antenna options. Just curious. __________________ ┌──────────────────────────────┐ ╞ NS Icons Explained\|et hoc genus omne ╡ └──────────────────────────────┘ Creating yesterday's future, Today!

05-03-2005	#12 (permalink)
Barry Managing the iTards. Join Date: Dec 2002 Location: Ohio Posts: 5,882	Cool setup, looks kinda like these. I used one of those boxes to house a wireless light switch. Turned on some blue rope light that I ran down the side of my driveway. Found out that that stuff doesn't work up here in the cold. The plastic contracted or something and broke connections inside, had whole sections stop working. Then the dumbass fuel delivery guy ran down half the fence with his truck. Don't think he had ever backed that truck before. It looked cool while it lasted though. __________________ Never do anything you don't want to explain to the paramedics.

05-04-2005	#14 (permalink)
Barry Managing the iTards. Join Date: Dec 2002 Location: Ohio Posts: 5,882	I'm still trying to figure out how to build a robot that can drive along cable trays and pull wire. I hate drop cielings. __________________ Never do anything you don't want to explain to the paramedics.

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05-03-2005	#10 (permalink)
nevtxjustin Registered Member Join Date: May 2005 Location: Wise County, TEXAS Posts: 12	[quote=streaker69]I used heatshrink around the joint of the antenna caulked with clear silicon between the antenna and metal plate. QUOTE] Silicone sealers are problematic when used on plastics. The volatile componds in the plastic eventually "boil off" and act as a mold release, loosing all adhesion to the plastic surface. A non-silicone caulk would be a better choice - one of those "25 year" types which will certainly outlast the technology.