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Snow Shield Comparative Advantages

Walton De-Ice Kynar® Snow Shield’s construction versus CoverSat™ antenna cover construction. Information on CoverSat™ obtained on CoverSat ™ web site.

Antenna Size 2.61 to 2.9 meter Antennas CoverSat™ Walton Snow Shield
Material 12 oz. vinyl 21 oz. Kynar®
Cinch Design Standard draw string Stainless Steel Cable and Cable Ratchets
Tear Resistance Yes, Rip Stop Yes, Rip Stop
UV Rated Yes Yes UV-stable

All PTFE and Kynar® Snow Shield Covers are manufactured with the same quality and care. Both Snow Shield Covers also use the same hardware for installation onto the antenna reflector.

The competition's antenna covers compared to a Walton Snow Shield Kynar® Antenna Covers:

  • Light weight vinyl materials 12 to 15oz. (Walton uses 21 oz. Kynar® material)
  • Standard commercial thread (Walton uses PTFE thread on all covers)
  • Rope to secure cover to antenna (Walton uses stainless steel hardware)
  • Bare edges to tear cover ( Walton uses Trim Lok to prevent tears)
  • Cannot heat cover (Walton has patents to heating antenna covers)
  • Cannot vibrate ice/snow off cover (Walton Ice Quake has patents to vibrating antenna covers)

The competitions antenna covers compared to a Walton Snow Shield Kynar® Antenna Covers:

  • Light weight vinyl materials 12 to 15oz. (Walton uses 21 oz. Kynar® material)
  • Standard commercial thread (Walton uses PTFE thread on all covers)
  • Rope to secure cover to antenna (Walton uses stainless steel hardware)
  • Bare edges to tear cover ( Walton uses Trim Lok to prevent tears)
  • Can not heat cover (Walton has the patents to heat antenna covers)
  • Can not shake/vibrate ice cover (Walton Ice Quake has the patents to vibrate antenna covers )
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    Competitor’s Anti-Icing Systems can be very cumbersome to install during cold or wet days due to the lack of adhesion the tape would have on the back of the reflector.

    Older antenna reflector’s that have become “chalky” would also be difficult to adhere the tape to. The tape is used to transfer the heat from the heat cable to the actual antenna reflector and is also used to hold the heat cable in place. Some end users have found that anti-icing systems that are designed to be installed on 1/3 to 1/2 of the antenna reflector only melt the snow or ice on the portion of the antenna that it’s installed on. While other end users have found that the lack of insulation behind the heat cable allows the majority of the heat from the cable to simply be pulled away from the antenna reflector by a slight breeze.
    Competitor’s Anti-Icing System’s optional insulation kit can also be cumbersome to install during inclement weather conditions. Many pieces are required on some antennas to complete the insulation’s installation with adhesives and metal clips required to hold the individual pieces in place.

    Compare Walton Snow Shields to the competition’s anti-icing systems

    1.2 meter antenna with half reflector Ant-Icing system’s performance during a snow storm.

    Only 35 watts per square foot of power are used for this system.

    Antenna is off the air due to the wet snow accumulation

    After snow storm was over, the antenna’s half reflector Ant-Icing system was only able to

    melt the snow and ice off of the lower half of the dish.

    Antenna is still off the air.

     

     

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