Station diagnostics

[Levi Souza]

We have a dual frequency CTT sensorstation that doesn't seem to be picking up tags at anything beyond 0.5 km. We know there are 166 tags in the area because they are being picked up readily with a handheld yagi. Both 166 and 434 test tags are picked up when very close to the station but we have not done extensive testing to understand detection as it relates to antenna directionality and distance.

We are new to station building so are not sure where to start in terms of isolating the problem. How do you discern environmental interference vs poor reception due to a bad install or poorly tuned antenna? Can this be sorted with an antenna analyzer or will we have to pull the antennas down to further diagnose the issue? Can the raw data be analyzed to determine individual antenna performance?

Thanks!

Levi Souza (CDFW)