RV's and motor homes with a fiberglass housing can present difficult installation situations due to special grounding problems. It is not impossible, but does require special considerations.

1. General Installation Notes
A. The first thing to consider (and the most important) is proper grounding.
B. The antenna should have about 2/3rds of the total length of the antenna above the roof of the RV/Motor Home.
C. RV/MH ladders are generally mounted using some type of rubberized spacers/washers. The ladder must be grounded if the antenna is mounted there. Try using a 12 (minimum) or 10 gauge stranded wire from the bottom of the ladder to the bumper (if not aluminum), then to the chassis frame. Keep this lead at a length of 4'or less.
D. Fiberglass motor home antenna performance can be improved by the use of co-phased antennas. They will compensate somewhat for the lack of reflective (counterpoise) properties.


2. Fiberglass RV's
To properly install an antenna on them, locate the steel frame on the side. Install the mount connected to this frame. Ground will be available at that point. When additional grounding is required, the following procedures have proven very successful:

After installing the mount on the side of the RV, run a length of wire (no longer than 3') to a metal point on the outside or inside of the RV.

Move an inch or so from that point, and install another 3' wire to a second metal point.

Continue in this manner until the chassis frame is reached. (Note: DO NOT use a one-piece wire to run from the mount to the frame.)

If metal points are not available, you may need to make a small metal plate, 1" X 2", with a hole in the center for mounting, and a hole at each end for connection of the wire. Use the center hole to mount the metal plate to the RV, and the outer holes to attach the ground wires. Alternately, Wilson other solutions for this, that solves this problem with ease. Read about the Floating Ground Kit at FGK or the no-ground antenna at Slide-To-Tune™ .


3. Can the Wilson 1000 or 5000 be used on my RV?
Yes it can, but there are several considerations that you may want to think about. The first is the height that this will put the antenna at. If you mount it on the roof, then the top of the antenna will be about 5 1/2' above the roof. Coupled with the height of the roof above ground, this will put the top of the antenna at about 17-18' above ground, well above the limits of some overpasses that are 13'-6". It is for that reason that the fiberglass FGT series or the Trucker series is a better choice.

If you still want to use the 1000 or 5000, there are two ways for the installation on a fiberglass RV.
1. Install a 3' square piece of steel on the roof. This can be less than 1/4" thick, as we are more concerned with the area than the thickness. Be sure to bolt it to the horizontal steel frame members on the roof. This should give you the necessary ground to the plate. Now install the W-1000 or W-5000 and tune for lowest swr.

2. Another method is with the use of the Wilson floating ground kit (see FGK). This special kit changes the antenna from a vertical type to a dipole type of antenna. It is very effective when installed properly, and will allow the antenna to tune down to a very low SWR. The key is to actually avoid the ground on the vehicle or boat and utilize a different type of ground. This is accomplished by installing a separate wire insulated from the vehicle ground. To start, insulate the bottom SO-239 portion of the mount from ground. Solder a large lug (with a 5/8 hole) on a well insulated #10 or #12 ga wire. The wire is then run into the cab of the RV or under the deck of a boat. Permanently secure with tie-wraps and/or silicon glue. (It is important that the wire does not move after tuning, or the SWR will change). After installation is complete, trim the ground wire for lowest SWR. CAUTION: High voltage can develop at the end of the wire. When tuning is completed, tape the end of the wire using black electrical tape. This is necessary as it is a voltage point for high power.

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