wire antenna in loftspace and therefore restricted height

[midnight blue]

I have read all over that wire antennas need about 20' clearance. I only have around 8'. my loft is around 55' long. is there anything out there that might fit the bill? i know there will be some compromise and loss of performance but as little as possible would be good.

[5B4AJB]

It will still work with very little clearance (a few mm).
Be aware though, when the roof gets wet with rain etc, your SWR will go crazy and the wet layer will attenuate signals (in & out).

I had a similar setup zig-zagging my loft, was passable for receive, but quite poor for transmitting.

Make sure you use insulated standoffs (I used wire insulation over nails), if you use more than about 20W (a fire hazard!).

Try an Inverted Vee if you can fit one in - which bands are you looking for?

[midnight blue]

It will still work with very little clearance (a few mm).
Be aware though, when the roof gets wet with rain etc, your SWR will go crazy and the wet layer will attenuate signals (in & out).

I had a similar setup zig-zagging my loft, was passable for receive, but quite poor for transmitting.

Make sure you use insulated standoffs (I used wire insulation over nails), if you use more than about 20W (a fire hazard!).

Try an Inverted Vee if you can fit one in - which bands are you looking for?

To be honest, as many as possible. 80/40/20 would be good.

[John_D]

I have read all over that wire antennas need about 20' clearance.

As Demetrius says....Not True.... I have been txing with an indoor end-fed wire draped around the walls of a room in my second floor apartment. I use many ferrite rings around all the wires in the room to reduce RF feedback. Also I have a counterpoise draped out of the windo when I am txing. This is a non-resonant length of wire acting as a false earth. Make certain that your gear is well earthed, and I don't mean to the electric supply earth; try to get a wire outside somehow.
I mainly use no more than 30 watts and have made many contacts outside of EU. Try digital txing; you are less likely to cause TVI.

[5B4AJB]

You might get away with 20m, but I don't think there's enough room for anything bigger - try it and see!

A coil of ¼ wavelength with a wire of ¼ wavelength on the end of it might work as a "vertical" for 40m.

You could always try a magnetic loop if you have room, they're pretty useful for confined spaces and are multiband (also easy to make).

[John_D]

Just to really answer Demetrius', my 30 foot end-fed managed to get out on 80, 40, 20, 15 metres; however it was matched to the tx with an "L" match tuner. the MFJ 16010, which is a little beauty! At this very moment I'm running 30w digital "JT65-HF" on 20 metres and contacting PY6WJ in Brasil!