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Old 10-17-2019, 08:31 AM   #1
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Satellite antenna placement

I am look to add satellite to my motor home and looking for advice on the placement. Is it better to roof top mounting or ground based tripod? You experience would be greatly appreciated.
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Old 10-17-2019, 08:47 AM   #2
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Both have their pro's and con's. Roof mounting is great, push a button and the satellite parabolic antenna raises and finds the satellites and you're done. A problem can happen if tree's are blocking the signal where as a ground unit can be moved to a clear area. Personally I prefer the roof mounted unit, less to deal with, doesn't take up storage space and you don't have to fiddle with it to find the satellites.
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Old 10-17-2019, 08:52 AM   #3
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Depends on where you like to park the RV. Roof mount is simpler to use, more expensive, but the RV has to be in the sun. Carry out automatic has some limitation on channels and versatility, but you can park in the shade. Carry out manual can be difficult to set up for the first few times and can be a pain to store, but offers the greatest flexibility and channel selection.
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Old 10-17-2019, 09:17 AM   #4
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You need to plan for both locations! There will be times when trees block the view from the rooftop and then you need the portable.

We changed to Dish a few months ago, using the Wally receiver and the Tailgater antenna. I mounted the King MB700 quick-release mount on top of the MH that will allow me to quickly remove the Tailgater and put it on a tripod when needed! Some folks buy two Tailgaters, one for permanent mount on the roof and the other for use as a portable. You can put the portable on a tripod or just sit it on the ground.
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Old 10-17-2019, 12:24 PM   #5
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We have the roof mount and love it. If we are blocked by a tree and can't move the coach well...so be it. Not having TV for a few days is not a big deal plus our OTA antenna is quite good and there is always streaming over out internet.
Oh and nothing wrong with some good music, adult beverage of choice and a campfire at night.
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Old 10-17-2019, 04:36 PM   #6
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I've had an automatic Winegard roof mounted satellite for about 9 years. We camp primarily out west, but have been coast to coast four times. During those 9 years, I can count about 10 times that I was unable to get a signal. On several occasions, I've had to jockey the coach around in my site, but eventually got reception.

I prefer the ease of the automatic roof top unit, versus having to store, pull out and assemble, then spend time aiming and securing a satellite on a tripod. Just my preference.

Side Note:....I have DirecTV and use a receiver that records. Whenever DirecTV is showing a movie I like or offering free movie channels for a weekend, I record those movies. I have about 40 movies stored. If you get in a situation where you don't get reception, you can still turn on the receiver and watch whatever you have recorded.
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Old 10-17-2019, 04:44 PM   #7
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I have a roof mount. After sitting in a campground and hearing the beep beep of those with a tripod trying to tune the antenna , the decision was easy. Now that you have to do a couple of different settings, the auto rooftop mount is a no brainer.
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Old 10-17-2019, 05:41 PM   #8
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I purchased a Winegard Traveler from a fellow irv2 member a few months ago and installed it myself. We love it, press a button and in a few minutes we're watching TV.
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Old 10-17-2019, 07:57 PM   #9
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Quote:
Originally Posted by dons2346 View Post
I have a roof mount. After sitting in a campground and hearing the beep beep of those with a tripod trying to tune the antenna , the decision was easy. Now that you have to do a couple of different settings, the auto rooftop mount is a no brainer.
Our little rig is already pre-wired for a roof top mounted dish. However, it's not feasible to put one up there since we camp in woodsie type campgrounds 99% of the time. I can just about guarantee that a rooftop dish would work but maybe 1 trip out of 50 for us.

The portable tripod works and just takes a few minutes to get going if there's a somewhat decent view of the southern sky. Sure, there have been a few times that aiming the dish through a little hole in the trees was tough. To this day though, I've always succeeded in getting it aimed. (knocking on wood)

For us, the portable is the no brainer!
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Old 10-17-2019, 08:28 PM   #10
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For me roof mount is the way to go for ease and security but I still carry a Tailgater just incase I'm blocked by a tree. If I could only have one, it would be portable.
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Old 10-18-2019, 08:06 AM   #11
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Thanks everyone for your input. My coach is prewired for roof top, so I am leaning that way. I like the idea of quick disconnects so you can move the dish to the ground, but this fat old man isn’t cool with climbing round the roof. Having a second dish for when the roof dish cannot find the sat. is cool. It would have to a long term answer because of the $$$.

Tripod mounted seems the best to ensure access to the sat. I just worry about the dish disappearing if you don’t store it each night. Anyone have any advice of this? I guess I could use a female to female connector to extend the prewired cable down the ladder to get the signal into the coach. Again, does anyone have any input on this solution?
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Old 10-18-2019, 10:01 AM   #12
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Quote:
Originally Posted by pvancil View Post
Thanks everyone for your input. My coach is prewired for roof top, so I am leaning that way. I like the idea of quick disconnects so you can move the dish to the ground, but this fat old man isn’t cool with climbing round the roof. Having a second dish for when the roof dish cannot find the sat. is cool. It would have to a long term answer because of the $$$.

Tripod mounted seems the best to ensure access to the sat. I just worry about the dish disappearing if you don’t store it each night. Anyone have any advice of this? I guess I could use a female to female connector to extend the prewired cable down the ladder to get the signal into the coach. Again, does anyone have any input on this solution?
I plan to make a mounting plate for the Tailgater to work on a tripod, just haven't done that yet. I will probably just cut a piece of 1/2" plywood to fit the Tailgater with a flange and pipe to attach it to the tripod. I will just use toggle bolts to attach the Tailgater to the mounting plate and a setscrew to attach it to the tripod. I will stake down the tripod where possible just so someone can't run up and grab the whole thing! All this doesn't make it theft-proof, but just discourages a grab & run!
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Old 10-18-2019, 01:07 PM   #13
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What satellite you use, has a lot to do with what service you get/have. If you have DirecTV, you would have to use a manual dish on a tripod, if you don't have a roof satellite. You can't get HD in a portable (automatic) satellite with DirecTV.

If you go with Dish, you can have both a roof top automatic satellite and a portable automatic satellite, since they offer HD in a dome satellite.
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Old 10-18-2019, 05:34 PM   #14
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We had a roof mounted one. When it needed to be replaced, we removed it and went with a portable one. We have a Wingard X2. It is automatic - set it up and it finds the satellites automatically. We would not go back to a roof mounted one. We have been in too many places where a roof mounted one would be blocked. The only extra time it takes is the time to put out the tripod and the antenna, and connect the cable.
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