Fwd: Fw: Matheran Repeater

[VU2WSM_Satheesh]

---------- Forwarded message ----------

Dear All

"I would like to say a big thank you to all of you who participated in the CQ Mumbai meet held in Thane on the 14th of this month.  The response was wonderful and we are very encouraged by it.  To those who could not attend, all of us had an enjoyable time and we look forward to your participation in future events.

 

I would also like to say thank you to Deepak for his lovely presentation which had all of us rooted to our seats.  Thanks are also due to Mahesh, Ajay and  Ashok.

 

At the fag end, the subject of the upkeep of the Matheran repeater was brought up and we are very overwhelmed by your unanimous declaration of support for funds required to maintain and upgrade the present installation.  For the benefit of those of you who were not present on the occasion, I would like to give you a little background on what was discussed and what is proposed to be done. 

 

As all of you perhaps know, the Matheran repeater was set up in 2007.  The location being an ideal one, the installation of the repeater has led to increased radio connectivity between the HAMs of Mumbai and its outlying areas and parts of Pune and Nasik. We were able to acquire the site through the good offices of Mickey, who unfortunately is no more.  All these past years, the funds required for the upkeep and maintenance of the repeater was provided by Mickey and no demands were ever made on any of the users of the repeater.  Any time there was a problem, he would drive down with a team of volunteers to Matheran and fix the problem.  In recent times, Bijoy, Satheesh and Gaurav have taken it upon themselves to keep the repeater going.  Whenever, the repeater is down, they run up to Matheran to fix the problem, so that the repeater is available to all the users without much downtime.  All expenses incurred have been borne by them.  You will all agree that the Matheran repeater is doing a great job for all its users and it should be kept going at all costs.  There are committed individuals like Bijoy, Satheesh and Gaurav who are willing to spend the time and effort required to look after the repeater.  However, It is not fair that they spend their own money for the upkeep and maintenance but should be shared between all users. 

 

In an effort to better understand the problems associated in keeping the repeater up and going without the need for constant attention, we did an analysis of the present problems and the possible solutions

 

Problems

 

1.  Distance

The site is located about 90 kms away from Mumbai.  If you have a vehicle, it takes more than two hours to reach the site.  If you use the trains, it involves getting down at Neral and then using a local cab to reach the site.

 

2. Weather

During the monsoons, it rains very heavily and the equipment is subjected to very high levels of humidity.  At the fag end of the monsoons, the area is prone to heavy lightning which can strike the antenna leading to destruction of the equipment. This has happened thrice already.  Now, to prevent a strike on the antenna, the stacked 5/8 antenna is taken down during the monsoons and is replaced by a single 5/8 antenna.  This however results in deterioration in performance.

 

3. Housing

The equipment is housed in a brick walled cabin with an RCC which has developed leaks.  The window panes are broken, resulting in rain water entering the cabin.  The internal wiring needs to be renewed to prevent discontinuity in the electric supply.

 

Solutions

1.  Nothing can be done about the distance.  The location being an ideal one, the repeater needs to stay put but the installation needs to be improved to obviate the need for constant trips to Matheran

 

2.  To counter the effects of rain and lightning, it is proposed that we house all the radio equipment in one cabinet.  Presently all of it is lying exposed on a board.

 

Secondly, we propose to provide heaters around the duplexer and the radios to drive the moisture out and keep the equipment dry, during the monsoons.  

 

Thirdly, we plan to replace the stacked 5/8 antenna with a stacked dipole antenna.  This antenna has the advantage of being completely grounded for dc and in the event of a lightning strike, the heavy currents will be conducted to ground.  The other advantages are better gain and increased reach on account  of greater height. This will, we, hope, benefit users in Pune, Nasik and some part of Gujarat. 

 

Lastly, the ground earth at the tower and at the cabin need to be checked and renewed if necessary.

 

3.  To prevent unnecessary ingress of moisture in an environment which already has very high humidity in the rains, and to prevent any further deterioration of the building, it is necessary to undertake some repairs as detailed above. 

 

All of you can understand that, funds are required to achieve the objectives outlined above.  We have estimated that at least Rs. 50,000.00 would be required initially, to be able to undertake the works described above.  We would therefore like to appeal to all, to donate any amount you see fit, to help us achieve our goal to keep the Matheran repeater working well to serve the HAM fraternity in Mumbai and its environs.

 

 

VU2GT -George,

gtcom...@gmail.com

 

 

PS : Please contact directly or fill THIS FORM

				Support for VHF Repeater at Matheran
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--
VU2WSM
Satheesh
http://vu2wsm.blogspot.com

[VU2WSM_Satheesh]

Dear All

Sub. : An update of Matheran Repeater.

In response to the contribution commitment towards maintenance of the Matheran Repeater, we are thankful for all those well wishers & supporters who have contributed towards the same.

The amount received till date is Rs.23000.
We are still falling short of the amount targeted to upgrade the Repeater setup to a optimum level.

We seek the contribution from one & all to start upgradation work as early as possible, would appreciate if the payment can be made at the earliest.

For the purpose of payment, Bank account details are as follows :-

BANK OF BARODA
Acc. NO. :- 04240100013167
Acc. Name :- GAURAV SHREESH THOSAR
IFSC CODE :-  BARB0THANAX ( FIFTH CHARACTER IS 'ZERO')
BRANCH :- THANE WEST, THANE

P.S. - Please send a screen shot of NEFT/RTGS transfer confirmation or Bank deposit slip for the purpose of accounting.

The proposed antenna is getting ready with VU2GT and scheduled to complete all the maintenance by Last week of December 2014  or First week of January 2015.

Thanks/Regards

Satheesh (VU2WSM)

On Sunday, September 21, 2014 3:35 PM, SATHEESH MENON <menonsa...@yahoo.com> wrote: