Community Forums

hewebb · 08-14-2020, 05:32 AM

The instructions on the Winegard carry out says max 40' of cable. The Box is in the front of the coach above the drivers seat. The exterior outlet is in the electrical bay in the rear of the 40' coach.
We are parked where I have to have the dish out in front of the coach so I ran a coax from the box out the drivers side window. I t is working well.

Previously when I ran a 25' cable from the rear to the dish the signal was very weak and occasionally lost.

Now I am thinking about how to run a permanent cable from the box to the front of the coach, probably out to the generator area. Have any of you tried to run any wiring down the side of the window under the trim to under the dash and out?

Craig36 · 08-14-2020, 06:14 AM

Coaxial cables have cheap crimp on connectors that frequently go bad. Before you go to all that work, I would go on eBay, and buy a new cable for your rear connection. You can get a new 25 fit cable for a very low price. If that solves the problem throw out the old cable!

Fefanatic · 08-14-2020, 06:19 AM

I've had the same issue. I plan to do the same thing to my DSDP shortly. I think I can get it down inside the windshield pillar to inside the dash and then drill a hole to the generator area.

TOM GUY · 08-14-2020, 09:12 AM

That forty foot max for cables is nonsense. Good quality cable will still work at 200 feet in my experience. BUT not going through the connector plates installed in a 20 year old coach. You will want new cable with minimum connections along the run.

Your plan to run good quality RG6 cable directly into your interior is right on, and it should work just fine. If your TV is above the windshield, then routing down the windshield pillar will work very well; I've done it.

Our TV and SAT receiver are on a living room slide. For that I used a standard cable wall plate. It's bolted to the bottom of the slide so that it's out of the weather when the slide is closed, but available when I need it. I drilled through the carpet and pushed the cable through to attach the wall plate. Be sure it all clears everything when the slide closes. The cable inside goes directly to the SAT receiver.

There are lots of ways to skin this cat, but if you are careful, it can work out for you.

Tom

Dutch Star Don · 08-14-2020, 01:10 PM

Howard, typically the two front "A" pillars have a cover over them. The manufacturer runs a lot of wiring down those "A" pillars. You should be able to fish a cable from the cabinet down the "A" pillar. Once you get under it dash, open up the front hood and look for either a rubber boot or foamed in area, where they ran wiring through the firewall. Take a metal clothes hangar, straighten it and push it through that foam or rubber. Connect the coax to the hanger and pull it through the fire wall.

If you bring the coax down the driver's side "A" pillar, you can also fish it under the dash and into the bay under the driver's window, That way you can keep the connection in a clean area, just open the bay and attach the cable.

Fefanatic · 08-15-2020, 07:40 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TOM GUY

That forty foot max for cables is nonsense. Good quality cable will still work at 200 feet in my experience. BUT not going through the connector plates installed in a 20 year old coach. You will want new cable with minimum connections along the run.

Tom

The 40' recommendation is not due to signal loss as much as voltage drop to run the aiming motors. Coax can handle signals pretty well for long distances but can't pass the voltage as needed. There has been a couple of times I had to use a short cable to get the dish to aim properly and then run the dish cable to the back cable outlet on our motorhome. It works once the dish is aimed.

TOM GUY · 08-15-2020, 08:00 AM

Hi Fefanatic,

Good point about the voltage drop. I have had good results with Tailgaters and X2 Pathway units, but NOT going through the inside wiring.

The "A" pillar covers can be removed to access the wiring. That makes it easier sometimes.

Tom

hewebb · 08-19-2020, 05:31 AM

Yesterday I ran the cable from the cabinet to the generator area at the front of the coach. It was not a very difficult job. I drilled a 1/2" hole out of the cabinet to access the side of the window where there are a lot of wires running down. There was a lot of foam insulation at the bottom of the chase. I poked a straightened coat hangar wire down through the foam. It came out at the very top of the outer area of the generator space against the fiberglass. I pulled it back out and fashioned a shape on one end that would remove the foam with enough space to allow the coax to go through. I pushed it back through with the formed shape at the top. I then attached a drill motor to the bottom end of the wire and at a slow speed and pulling down slowly, was able to create the necessary chase for the coax to go through the foam. after the cable was run I did some testing to insure the cable was not damaged during the installation. Sorry I did not think to take any photos during the process. Next time I am near a Lowe's, or similar store, I will get a can of foam insulation to re-seal the area.