cluebbe Posted October 21, 2013 Share Posted October 21, 2013 My second newbie topic is related to Mega Trees. I think I have a pretty solid grasp of what I want to do and what I think I should do, but wanted to run it by the pros to get their take. I plan to do an 8 channel 11' Mega Tree. Below are my thoughts and plans for my tree. I would welcome any feedback, suggestions and/or tips. - Each channel will consist of two sets of 25 count C7 White and Blue LED's. - I am thinking that for effects purposes that I will put each set within the same channel opposite of each other, rather than grouping them together. - For the support I plan to use 2' SCH40 PVC pipe. Total length will be 13 feet (2 feet below ground)- I plan to dig a hole in my yard about 2 feet deep. In it I will place a 2' section of 3" PVC. I will then cement in the 3" PVC. The concept is similar to having a flag pole. I'll only fill the hole about 3/4 of the way full with cement so I can put dirt and my grass back on top so that it blends in with the lawn.- When I am not using the 3" PVC in the ground I will cap it with a PVC vent cover. I'll keep the cover just barely above the ground so I can easily mow over it during summer months.- The 2" PVC pole will then slide into the 3" piece buried below ground- I bought a cap on ebay that has 16 hooks to attach the lights to, as well as 3 hooks for guide wires- I plan to stake each light set directly to the ground with tent poles or something similar Am I missing anything? Any tips or suggestions on my proposed design? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Liberty-Laser Posted October 21, 2013 Share Posted October 21, 2013 I won't use PVC, unless you also add guy-wires. Lights staked to the ground could cause CFGI pops, depending if you have much rain or very wet snow in your area. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeA Posted October 21, 2013 Share Posted October 21, 2013 Use black pipe, not PVC. You will still need guy wires with black pipe. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mcmpros Posted October 21, 2013 Share Posted October 21, 2013 Two things you might look at with your design. 1) Have someplace on the pole to attach a few guide wires or ropes 2) Check the lighted length of your lights and make sure with your 11ft pole you have enough slope to form the girth you seek at the bottom, last thing you want is an 8 channel lite pole. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cluebbe Posted October 21, 2013 Author Share Posted October 21, 2013 Excellent point mcmpros! My lighted length is only 11'. Based on that, what would you suggest the actual pole length be? 8 feet? At that stage is it even worth having a mega tree? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Santas Helper Posted October 21, 2013 Share Posted October 21, 2013 Excellent point mcmpros! My lighted length is only 11'. Based on that, what would you suggest the actual pole length be? 8 feet? At that stage is it even worth having a mega tree? For 11' lighted length, I would go with a 10' pole (length above ground. This will give you a ring radius of 4.5' or ring diameter of 9'.Here is a mega tree calculator to get an idea of what it would look like.http://www.altoonalights.com/mega/mega_calc.phpI used this calculator many times. It also helps determine the spacing of the strands. IMHO, you could use the hole in the ground for a flag pole in the off season to fly the American flag (or flag of your choice) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paralegalnc Posted October 28, 2013 Share Posted October 28, 2013 Last year I had a 10 ft mega tree with 8 channels (wedges) and it worked just fine. Mine was made out of PVC pipe. Had no problems. I constructed (well, my husband and I) used smaller pvc and constructed a whole frame. We had 5000 incad. lights. just filled in each section with strands end to end until the section was full. The year before I had one 3' pipe in the ground just like you said. didn't have any problems. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nMnPtWSavcs Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gmac Posted October 28, 2013 Share Posted October 28, 2013 I agree with the other posts, you want to use black pipe, over the years there have been many posts and pics of disheartened folks whose mega tree collapsed because of wind or other issues. If you think about it theres a lot of weight on the top of that pole with lights and maybe a star and when the wind pics up it just adds to the strain on the pole and the light strings since you plan to stake them in the ground. Putting it in a sleeve in the ground is a good idea. I've used that method for 4 yrs now and using black pipe my mega tree has withstood 60mph wind gusts and my mega tree is up there a little over 20'. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Max-Paul Posted October 28, 2013 Share Posted October 28, 2013 As Para noted she didnt have any trouble with their PVC pipe mega tree last year. She got lucky the first year. But if you hang around here as much as I and others. You will see many a horror stories about those who have used PVC pipes. I am using heavy walled galvanized pipe, others will use the black iron pipes. Mine is 17' above ground with no midway guys, just 4 at the top. Others use midway guys. Some use 3 some use 4. I got the kit with the pulley top and star mount. Also have the hook head and boat like wrench to raise up the hook head. I bought all of this at CLS and they make some good stuff. Oh and also got the pin between the two parts of pipe. Weakest point is where the threads are on the pipe. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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