Fitting a TV aerial + 4 TV Points.

[sheldonm89]

Hi,

We are currently renovating our house; the TV aerial is fitted in the loft (how it was when we bought the house). I want to put TV points in each of the 3 bedrooms and the usual one in the lounge, so thought it’s probably best to just replace everything and install an aerial on the gable end or move the one thats in the loft. I have a few questions that I wondered if anyone here who is experienced could answer.

1) Do I need a master head amp due to the amount of splitting I'm doing? (I suspect that I will, but thought it best to check)

2) Is it better that the cable from the aerial / amp is ran along the outside of the building where possible and then directly in to the house at the point where the back box / face plate is located? Or can I run the cables part way down the side of the house through the wall and then through the ceiling / floor void space (the only reason I'm asking is that I'm not sure if the electrical cable for the ring main etc will interfere with the signal, of course if I install it this way then I would where possible route the aerial cable away from the electrical cables).

Thanks for your help.

 

[ChrisFrost]

If you don't want to do anything fancy such as pipe Sky through the the cable in to the bedrooms or feed the signal up from your PVR/DVD recorder so you can watch in bed then a masthead amp and splitter will probably be OK. The only caveat is that getting the aerial signal as good as possible will be more important if you're planning on driving 3 or 4 TVs.

TV cable crossing mains cable at 90 degrees is fine. TV cable running parallel is more of a problem. Keep a good 8~10" separation if they do have to run along side each other. It's more than likely though that your 1st floor ring main cable will be in the joist space below the floorboards.

If you're doing this DIY then make sure to get decent aerial cable. PF100 should do. Watch for the bend radius... no tighter round corners than 4-5 times the diameter of the cable. Also take care not to pinch the cable when clipping it to the walls. As for aerials, a decent Yagi will be better than one of the monstrous multi-element sails.

 

[sheldonm89]

Hi,

Thanks for the reply. We don’t have sky or plan on pumping anything like that, just plain old crappy TV. The cable doesn’t need to run that far through the floor void so think I will run it part way down the house then through the void. Thanks for the advice on the cable I wasn’t sure about that either. I was looking at a 4 way amp, rather than an amp and separate splitter.

 

[ChrisFrost]

In that case you should do all the amplifying and splitting at the aerial mast. The closer you get this to the aerial the better. This is why we use mast head amps and splitters in the trade.

For a DIY job then a Wolsey 4 Way WFAV-425 with power supply @ £27 will do fine for you. It will take the signal from your aerial, amplify it sufficiently then give four outputs to feed the various TVs around the house. The amp/splitter lives on the aerial mast. The power supply lives indoors, usually behind the main lounge TV. The power goes back up the same aerial lead that the TV signal comes down, so there's no extra wiring other than the 4 aerial down leads.

 

[sheldonm89]

Hi Chris

Yeah thats exactly what I was planning on doing having the amp on the aerial mast, I already knew about the way it was powered which I still find a bit baffling. I was looking at one from screwfix which is £26, but not very familiar with makes etc theres a link below is this any good?

http://www.screwfix.com/p/labgear-variable-gain-masthead-amp-kit-4-way/26562?_requestid=214297

I think the aerial thats currently in the loft may be usable, it looks fairly new. I will take a photo of it this weekend and if you could let me know what you think that would be appreciated.

To be honest I not really looking forward to this job, not a massive fan of ladders espically when I will need a tripe extension ladder to get high enough. Not a problem doing a skydive, but ladders......

 

[ChrisFrost]

Aerials lose a fair bit of sensitivity in a loft. If you're going to the trouble of cabling for 4 TVs then I'd seriously consider getting that aerial outside on a bracket. Give it a fighting chance to get some decent signal to noise ratio before the signal gets trampled by additional connections, amps, splitters and down-lead losses.

As for the aerial itself, don't bother with a photo; just have a look at A.T.V.'s excellent web site. There's some good info for the DIY'er there. Here's a link

 

[sheldonm89]

Hi Chris

Yes that was my plan, move the aerial outside on the gable end of the roof on a long mast, fit an amp and replace all the cabling, as I mentioned in my previous post. I'll have a look at that website this weekend, thanks.

 

[10monty]

Sorry to jump in to your thread but would you always advise a masthead amp as opposed to a simple booster box installed in the loft. Only ask because I have never used a masthead amp (although I have sky magic eye so I guess it'd be no good anyway) and am intrigued as to how good they are compared to a booster box

Thanks and sorry for the hijack

 

[ChrisFrost]

There's an order of preference based on signal to noise ratio. Weighed against that we have practical issues such as access, size, suitability etc.

A splitter has the least damaging effect on the signal. Amplified boosters create their own problems. However, each case is taken on merit and an appropriate solution applied.

 

[sheldonm89]

The time is close for me to do this job now, I'm still confused about exactly what aerial I need however while in screw fix this particular aerial was on display and it looks fairly sturdy: -

http://www.screwfix.com/p/labgear-tv-aerial-high-gain-digital/60215

Whats your thoughts chris?

Im gonna use a 4 way master head amp, and also a signal finder to make sure im pointing in the correct direction.

 

[ChrisFrost]

This is going to sound awful....but those big aerials... they are the type I supply to wide boy customers who know everything and want to show off. Don't get me wrong; they aren't a bad aerial. It's just that they are huge. When it gets a bit breezy they put a load of strain on the bracket and pole.

A good Log Periodic will work well for most people unless in a marginal reception area. They pick up a decent signal level across the widest frequency range, and they have a far slimmer profile. That means you don't need to go OTT with the bracket and pole. I think of Logs as scalpels compared to the blunt club of those big sail-types.

Incidentally, I have a Log 40 on my roof. We are 31 miles from Winter Hill and get loads of signal from the aerial despite Wolfbane 's prediction that we need an extra high gain + amps. I can chuck on an extra 36dB of signal attenuation at the TV end before getting any breakup on the weaker muxes.

 

[turanafon]

I got to agree with Chris here, that Aerial is way OTT

 

[sheldonm89]

To be honest I don’t really care what the aerial looks like and I'm certainly not looking to fit a massive aerial to show off. I just want as little hassle as possible and it to work without any problems / breakup, which we get a lot at the moment where I am currently living, so bad in fact I come close to smashing the digital box daily! I currently don’t know what the signal strength is like where our house is (where the aerial needs fitting), the aerial I pointed out on Screwfix isn’t that big to be honest, seeing it in the showroom (but I’m no expert on sizes). I am aware however of what you say about the pole etc, as my dad has a big aerial which wobbles in the wind and when pigeons land on it etc. I was planning to fix the pole to the wall and then again to the fascia board higher up to help prevent any wobbling on the pole. I've done a search for the log 40 aerial, I think I will take a photo of the current aerial that’s in the loft for you to look at as that might be suitable, from what I remember it’s like the "old fashioned" aerials only slightly longer and newer.

There’s quite an overhang on the gable end of the roof/ fascia / soffit about 12”, these are the bits I’m thinking of using, unless you think any other would be better or cheaper: -

Cranked mast from wickes: -
http://www.wickes.co.uk/a-crank-mast/invt/204705/

Galvanised bracket from wickes:-
(although I think the one in store was bigger)
http://www.wickes.co.uk/wall-fixing-kit/invt/205283/

4 way masterhead amp from screwfix:-
http://www.screwfix.com/p/labgear-variable-gain-masthead-amp-kit-4-way/26562

F connectors from screwfix:-
http://www.screwfix.com/p/philex-coaxial-f-plug-pack-of-10/17061

Digital single finder from screwfix:-
http://www.screwfix.com/p/slx-digital-signal-finder/58244?_requestid=3040411

Thanks for all your help so far by the way.

 

[Sam Gangee]

Incidentally, I have a Log 40 on my roof. We are 31 miles from Winter Hill and get loads of signal from the aerial despite Wolfbane 's prediction that we need an extra high gain + amps. I can chuck on an extra 36dB of signal attenuation at the TV end before getting any breakup on the weaker muxes.

I second that. My son's house is also about 30 miles from Winter Hill and a V10-040 works perfectly. I could add 30dB attenuation even before the power was increased at "switchover". There's no need for a flashy (expensive) "Yagi" type aerial.

BTW I'm interested to see how people automatically look straight at the big DIY stores for aerial equipment, instead of the specialist companies that will give free (correct) advice if you have a problem and probably work out cheaper as you get everything from the one shop.