Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Mario Filippi (N2HUN), who shares the following guest post:
ZIPWALL10 poles
Recently we had a remodeling job performed at the home QTH and the workers used telescoping poles to form a dust barrier. When the job ended, they said I could have the telescoping poles, a product called ZIPWALL10, which when collapsed are four feet long but extend to ten feet. This got me pondering about how handy these could be in the radio shack, especially for indoor impromptu antennas.
Close up of the ZIPWALL telescopic pole.
Indoor antennas, especially wire antennas usually have to be secured to a wall somehow, and should be as high as possible in the room. That requires using adhesive tape to attach the wire and a ladder (most ceilings are eight feet), but using the ZIPWALL10 poles it’s easier and safer. Below is a temporary random wire antenna in my shack using 26 gauge insulated wire strung between the two poles.
Random wire in shack room is a bit hard to see but it is strung between the two poles.
What’s nice about these poles is they have rubber feet to grip the floor and plastic pads on top to avoid damage to the ceiling. The top section is spring loaded to assure a tight fit. The ZIPWALL10 model extends to ten feet in three telescopic sections. No tools are needed to set these up, and they conveniently collapse for storage.
ZIPWALL10 pair along with roll of 26 gauge wire for temporary indoor antenna installation.
These poles just happened my way due to a remodeling job, but surely other types are available on the market for those wanting to experiment with indoor antennas. The price for a ZIPWALL10 pair on Amazon is around eighty dollars. Thanks for reading.
What a great use for ZipWall poles, Mario! I’ve spent the past few days at an ocean front condo and could have used two of those supports to suspend a small, lightweight passive loop antenna safely on the balcony. That’s fantastic your contractors simply gave you those poles!
Thanks for the tip!
As you mention, Amazon sells a full line of ZipWall options (links below support the SWLing Post) but these can also be found at most home improvement stores.
Single side band antenna by Dr. Arnie Koro radio Havana Cuba recommended dxs unlimited
I mount my (sometimes not very temporary) outside antenna using the extending paint roller poles from a good hardware chain store. They come in various sizes and I have used the 3 section one extending to approx 27 ft / 9m. One model has a plastic end screw for paint rollers so you can drill a hole and its already insulated for a wire antenna, or hang a egg insulator. I prop mine up next to the shed and run the wire to the guttering (another egg insulator) then through the window of the house. Works well as a random wire. Easy to put up for a while and easy to take down if a storm is forecast.
Another great support for building antennas is the Jackite pole. While designed for kite flying, folks have been using them for years to build antennas. I used to have a 6 meter vertical dipole that worked really well based upon a Jackite pole.
The manufacturer now even features information on using Jackite poles for antennas on their website!
https://www.jackite.com/antenna
Two no, three of those and two slinky “springs” and you’ll have a portable dipole; sure, it won’t beat a loop for outdoor usage, but then it will beat a lot of portable “hotel room” antennas 🙂