Installed Winegard HD Satelite (Long)

[Diplomat Don]

I thought some might be interested in how simple it was to install the new Winegard Trav'Ler HD Satelite. (Other than getting it on the roof.) My coach is parked on the side of my house and the coach roof sits a few inches below a bedroom window and three feet away. I took a ladder, placed it on the window ledge and over to the coach roof. I placed a sheet of paneling on top of the ladder and slid the satelite from the bedroom to the MH roof.

My coach had a KVH dome satelite that needed to be removed. I used a heat gun to melt the Dicor that sealed the feet of the old satelite to the roof. The Dicor quickly melted and turned to butter. I disconnected the cables, removed the screws and lifted the old one off. Camping World had installed the dome and ran the cabling along the roof and then drilled into my cap. I removed the 4" x 4" cover that sealed the cables and pulled them down from inside. I added a 32" flat panel TV several years ago and found it much easier to just remove the TV and have easy access to the front cap and all the wiring.

The Trav'Ler comes with 30' of control cable and two 30' lengths of coax cable. I installed both for future use. I was able to fish a wire tape through the hole and toward the center of the front cap. I attached a piece of string cord and pulled it back to the roof. I tied the string to the three cables and pulled them through. This was the part I thought I would have the most issue with, but it went smoothly.

The next step was to secure the satelite. I have the two piece aluminum roof so there is a bulky seam down the center. The Trav'Ler wouldn't seal correctly to the roof if I put it over the seam. I moved it to the driver's side of the coach. You place it so it's facing straight, outline it with a pencil and then move it. I used Dicor and placed to wide beads of sealant inside the line that was drawn. I placed the satelite back over the outline and secured it with the provided screws. I replaced the cover over where the cables entered the cap and sealed everything. The manual says to start the satelite up and then install the dish to the base. It was easier to install it it while it was in the down/travel position.

The main reason I did my own install was to move some components and to run the wires where I wanted them. I have a Home Theatre system in the cabinet above the driver's seat. It use to have the Winegard switchbox there. I removed the switchbox and eliminated it.

I stacked the DirecTV HD box over the Home Theatre unit and then mounted the Winegard control box (for the satelite) on top of the DirecTV box.

Here's where/why I eliminated the switch box. I wired the DirecTV receiver directly to the front TV with an HDMI cable. I also plugged a red, white and yellow RCA jack cable into the back of the DirecTV box for the rear TV. You plug this cable into a modulator ($20.00) that converts the RCA plugs into a coax connection. I then plugged the rear TV coax into the modulator. This was an issue I was trying to resolve before I bought the new satelite. I wanted to run the front and rear TV's off of the same DirecTV receiver. By connecting it this way, the front TV gets HD and the rear gets a digital signal. By running the second cable down from the roof I can add a second receiver some day and run the rear TV on a separate channel and in HD if I choose.

Once everything was connected, I turned on the TV, satelite receiver and then the satelite. I was pleasantly surprised when the satelite began it's search, locked on and the DirecTV receiver brought up several steps that I just walked through. I called DirecTV and then turned on my new HD receiver and I was done.

I took beaverjim's advise and bought an RF remote for the DirecTV receiver and it works great. I can now change the DirecTV receiver from our side aisle bedroom when watching the rear TV.

I know this was long, but I thought it might answer some questions otheres might have.

My neighbor helped me fish the wires through and bought my old satelite dish for $200.00. The new Trav'Ler I picked up while at Quartzsite for $1600.00. The DirecTV receiver and RF remote was $150.00.

Installation at Quartzsite wasn't that expensive $200-$300, but I'm really anal and there was a lot of cabling and power supplies that I wanted hidden and installed a certain way.

[MonacoMama]

Nicely Done, Diplomat Don! I am sure you took some photos, didn't you???

[nodine]

Good job Don, our Winegard Trav'Ler is also off center toward the street side to clear the batwing antenna. So far the Trav'Ler HD has been great and I love being able to receive our home stations many miles from home. We can sit in the campground in Birmingham, Al near our daughter's house and watch our home stations here in Knoxville. While coming back from Florida earlier this month we were in a campground just South of Perry, Ga and watching the weather from Knoxville.

Bob

[hardy1000]

Good write up Don..thank's

[nutensteve]

Don....Impressive as always. I'm thinking that sometime in the Spring would be a good time to bring up my coach to Don's Satellite Installation Service.

[ShapeShifter]

I'm looking to do the same install this spring/summer. I don't have the luxury of an adjacent roof like you, so do you have any suggestions on how to get it up there? (Actually, I do have a roof that's about a step or two away, but it's so steep that it doesn't help!)

Also, any suggestions on running wires? I'm debating leaving the existing factory installed in-motion dome in place, but I suppose I could replace it. If I replace it, then the coax is easy, but I have to figure out how to run the power/control cable from the mount location to the front and into the cabinet.

But rather than replace it, I'm thinking of mounting it more in the center of the rig, in front of the rear air, kind of over the center split bath. My thoughts for mounting it there are to to protect it more from low branches (rather than being the first thing on the front of the roof to be caught) as well as to improve the look from the front when it is stowed (won't be so visible.) Also, might be nice to keep the in-motion capability of the existing dome (although we haven't used it in-motion yet!)

If I mount it back there, I'm trying to figure out how to run the wires. I could drill down through the roof near the center, and into the bath cabinet or into the central wall that has the master control panel. Or I could run the wires to the vent stack and drop into the washer/dryer cabinet. From either location, I could drop down into the wet bay, follow the chassis forward, and up to the cab and the A pillar to where the receiver is located.

Does any of that sound feasible, or do you have any alternate suggestions (either for mount location or wiring runs?)

Any tips to offer on the installation?

[nodine]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ShapeShifter I'm looking to do the same install this spring/summer. I don't have the luxury of an adjacent roof like you, so do you have any suggestions on how to get it up there? (Actually, I do have a roof that's about a step or two away, but it's so steep that it doesn't help!)... ?

Of course this will depend on your physical ability, but you could strap it to an old back pack and carry it up on your back.

Bob