In our free time, we all love to watch a good series or movie on TV. Fortunately, someone has long been connected to Internet TV and few people need a television antenna. But there are those who still have the antenna. Imagine a situation that it has broken, and only a gray screen will turn out to look. In this case, you can buy a new antenna or make it yourself.
In this article, you will learn how to make an antenna out of wire, how to make an antenna using beer cans, and what types of television antennas are.
How to make a TV antenna for wire
Based on the name, it is already clear that the wire will participate in the work (2 pieces of 180 cm each). And also we need:
- an amplifier from an unnecessary old device;
- a plastic or wooden plate with sides of 15 by 15 cm;
- drill and drill;
- small bolts;
- hammer;
- metal pipe;
- cable for tv.
Step 1. In order to prepare a wave catcher, bend the diamond-shaped wire so that all sides are exactly 45 cm apart. Such dimensions will be optimal for the device.
Step 2 To attach the wire to the plate, flatten the veins in the attachment points, drill holes and twist the bolts. But also for fixing the wire to the plate, a welding machine is suitable (the plate in this case should be metal).
Step 3 Connect the television cable in the resulting design.
Step 4 Brew the metal pipe to the resulting structure with a soldering iron (you can use a drill and screws) and fix it on the roof of the house or dig it into the ground. The pipe will play the role of a mast, elevating the structure itself.
The antenna is ready! The main advantage of such an antenna will be that it does not take a lot of time and cost to produce it. And also it is made by hand, which will bring considerable pleasure when watching TV.
How to make an antenna for a TV from beer cans
Fans of a weekend with a couple of cans of beer will surely find empty beer cans.
Important: it is best to take cans with a volume of 1 liter, but if there are none, cans with a volume of 0.75 liters and 0.5 liters are suitable.
We take 2 pieces, wash them thoroughly and dry them. In addition to cans, we will need:
- 4 meters of cable;
- soldering iron and tin;
- screwdriver;
- adhesive tape or electrical tape;
- wooden hanger.
Step 1. In order to properly prepare the cable, cut it 10 cm from the edge and remove a small part of the top layer of insulation. Having accessed the groove, roll it in one turn. Then cut the middle layer of insulation, thereby exposing the thin copper core of the cable. The other end of the television cable must have a plug for connecting it to an outlet.
Step 2 We take cans and use a soldering iron to fix the contacts to the banks as shown in the photo.
Step 3 The receiver is ready. Now you need to make the supporting structure. We take a wooden hanger as a basis. Using electrical tape or tape, attach the tins to the shoulders, as in the photo.
Important: both cans should be strictly on the same line, otherwise the signal quality will not be as high as we would like.
Step 4 It remains only to install the antenna and enjoy your favorite program. By the way, the optimal place for the antenna is near the window.
The beer can antenna is ready and does its job just as well as a wire antenna. The process itself is very simple and will not force you to spend a lot of time and effort.
To make a simple but equally effective foil antenna, we need:
- foil;
- cardboard;
- Skocht;
- stapler;
- glue;
- roulette;
- marker;
- scissors.
Step 1. Print the templates on paper first.
Step 2 Cut the reflector out of cardboard with sides of 35 by 32.5 cm, then glue the part with foil on both sides.
Step 3 Cut out two small rectangles.
Step 4 Cut out the rest of the details using the template. If desired, you can paint over the resulting parts in any color.
Step 5 Cut the foil with a template.
Step 6 Glue the foil onto the vibrator of the structure on the so-called “butterfly”.
Step 7. Glue the “butterfly” in the gap of 3.5 cm from the reflector.
Step 8. In the center of the "butterfly" we drill a hole for the television cable.
The antenna is ready! A foil antenna will be an equally effective option for picking up a signal, and also will not require a lot of costs to create it.
How to make a simple TV antenna
To make the simplest version of a television antenna, you will need two metal thin rods, a metal mast cable and a soldering iron with tin.
Step 1. We bend both rods at an angle of 180 degrees.
Step 2 We attach the rods to the iron mast.
Step 3 We fix the television cable to the structure and fix it on the roof.
The manufacturing process of such a variant of a television antenna will take no more than 5 minutes. In terms of signal capture, this antenna will in many ways be inferior to a wire antenna and an antenna from beer cans.
Think about which is better: spend a little more time and effort and make a high-quality antenna, or spend a couple of minutes and get a product with low quality.
Types of Television Antennas
There are several types of antennas that will be discussed now.
- Dipole. They come in several forms: wave, half wave, quarter wave. For wave antennas, the size of the vibrator is equal to the size of the wave of the received signal. The half-wave size of the vibrator is 1/2 the wavelength of the received signal, and the quarter-wave size is 1/4. Dipole - similar to a room antenna, which comes bundled with televisions.
- Antenna type "wave channel". This antenna is presented in the form of a set of a loop vibrator, reflector and several directors mounted on one boom. Passive vibrators located in front of the loop vibrator (active vibrator) are designated directors. And the vibrators located behind the loop vibrator are designated as reflectors.
- Log-periodic antennas. These are devices that provide maximum signal capture with a wide frequency range. The working frequency length of such an antenna is limited by the sides of the maximum or minimum antenna vibrators.
- Common Mode Antenna Array It is presented in the form of a difficult directional antenna system, which consists of separate non-directional antennas. Most often, such devices are assembled from the same antennas located in 2-3 rows at the same level. Such an antenna picks up waves at low and high range frequencies with the highest quality.
- Polish antenna. This model looks like a four-story common-mode array, which is equipped with an internal amplifier. The antenna is equipped with an active vibrator in the form of a lattice, which is located behind the antenna. The Polish antenna began to be widely used back in the 90s, when the market did not have a large selection of antennas. In those same years, the antenna, by the way, was produced.
- Aerial of a traveling wave. This is a directional antenna through which a traveling wave of a captured signal passes. Often such an antenna is represented by a collective line. Several reflectors are connected to it, which are located at an equal distance from each other.
Useful tips on how to make an antenna for your TV yourself
- In order for any antenna (including a homemade one) to pick up the signal with the highest quality, it is necessary to install it at a height of 7-10 meters. When climbing to such a height, do not forget about safety regulations.
- In no case do not install the antenna in rain or heavy fog.
- In heavy ice it is not recommended to climb to such a height alone and without insurance / protection.
If you decide to assemble one of the above structures and adhere to all the rules at home, you will get an effective and powerful signal receiver, which will not be inferior to factory models.
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