Any thoughts out there about pros and cons? I believe that I could gain some terrific performance.
The best counterpoise for an elevated vertical like yours is a resonant radial system with a at least a couple 1/4 wave radials per band, arranged symmetrically around the base of the antenna. It's also a good idea to put a good choke on the feedline see here:http://www.w8ji.com/ground_plane_verticals.htm . Tying random stuff into the "counterpoise" system is pretty likely to make other stuff act as an active radiator, which, believe it or not, is usually not what you want. You especially don't want it when it's mounted on your house If your downspouts have a lot of RF current on them, and they pass near noisy stuff inside, you'll get more noise on the bands.
If you think you need more counterpoise, install a proper one.
http://www.dxengineering.com/TechArticles.asp?ID={A46FA56A-2E82-4AF9-9427-6592FC5CFCB7}That's what will give you more performance if you have a poor counterpoise. "A bunch of random metal things" can work in a
pinch as part of an antenna, like if you can't do anything else. But if you have the option to use whatever you want for a counterpoise for your 5BTV, a bunch of tuned radials is the way to go. If you already have 1/4 wave radials, and are just thinking of putting in the gutters to make it work better, don't. It won't. You'll just be wrapping part of your antenna more intimately around your house, which is not a good thing.
