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HDTv on a Direct TV mount. by arte.sano on August 15, 2008

Table of Contents

HDTv Antenna on a Direct TV mount...... 1

Intro: HDTv Antenna on a Direct TV mount...... 2

Step 1: Materials ...... 2

Step 2: Antenna ...... 2

Step 3: Mounting the antenna ...... 3

Step 4: Final product ...... 3

Related Instructables ...... 4

Comments ...... 4

http://www.instructables.com/id/HDTv-Antenna-on-a-Direct-TV-mount/ Intro: HDTv Antenna on a Direct TV mount. I got my Tv converter Box (with the Government program Coupon). I hooked up with a regular rabbit ear antenna and although the signal and quality are waaaay better that the analog ones, I couldn't get all the stations and some where a bit erratic. I went on Google and start looking for HDTV antennas and I found several easy to make DIYs setups, but they can be big and ugly to keep in my living room. So, I build the antenna but and I use an old Direct TV dish mounted in my garage (I don't have the subscription and I don't want too), the dish has been in my place since I move, and the best thing, it's wired to my living room.

Note: The antenna works independently from the dish, I'm just using the dish as a mounting device and since it's already wired to the living room works great for me.

Step 1: Materials Wire , can be romex or cloth hanger wire. Screws and washers, assorted ones Standard wire mesh or similar wire screen, can use a metal rack shelves, chicken wire, etc. mine is 24" x 14" connection plug. 1 piece of wood, can be 2"x2" ir 2"x4" 14" to 16" long. and of course a used Direct Tv or similar Dish. soldier gun and electrical tape.

Note: I did mine with only 3 pairs of "Vs" (or ears if you may) but I have seen other antennas with 4 or 6 pair, which I guess incresses the reception. Step 2: Antenna The configuration of the antenna is quite simple, lumelab.com used to have a page with the plans and measurements but it's been down for a long time now. The idea is basically to have 2, 3 or more sets of pair of wires in a "V" shape interconnected together in a cross series. Make sure that the cables connecting the "V"s don't touch each other, so is better to use isolated wires. I spread my "V"so 7" apart, screwed in the piece of wood of 2"x2" and 14" long, using washers to keep them in place and as good contact point to the antennas and the bare wire. Finally I soldier the end of the wire to a regular Tv male connection. The antenna needs a "screen", I used a regular wire screen for landscaping but any type of screen will work (I have seen cardboard wrapped with tin foil as screen).

Image Notes 1. 7" apart 2. Contac point. Strip the wire 1" at least at the connection point and roll it around the screew and the "V" make sure to make a good contac and tightened up with the washer. 3. The ears or "V"s are 14" long. Bented in the middle to get 7" on each side. 4. Use isolated wires if you can, and make sure to cross the wires between the "V"s. http://www.instructables.com/id/HDTv-Antenna-on-a-Direct-TV-mount/ Step 3: Mounting the antenna I took down the Dish and rip all the wires and receivers that I wont use anymore. The mounting was quite easy, I measure the middle of the dish to make a hole for the mounting. The dish is made out of plastic or fiver glass so is easy to drill a hole in it.

After that I placed the wire screen on top of the dish and I centered. The antenna came later, to attach the antenna, basically the piece of 2"x2", I use a electrical pipe hanger, as shown in the pictures, and bolted to the dish it kept the screen and the antenna in place neatly. After that it was just to put the Dish back in place, hooked up the cable and it's done.

Image Notes Image Notes 1. Center of the Dish, drill a hole here. 1. Hole drilled, center the screen in place.

Image Notes 1. the pipe hanger as a mounting contraption. It will also keep in place the wire screen. I also put a pice of rubber between the antenna and the screen.

Step 4: Final product The only thing left was setting the direction of the antenna to get a better reception, I'm Berkeley Ca, and facing the antenna to the southwest works better for most of the channels. from almost 30 channels, some with a weak or none signal, it went up to almost 40 with noticeable improvement and quite happy that I don't need an antenna in the living room anymore.

http://www.instructables.com/id/HDTv-Antenna-on-a-Direct-TV-mount/ Image Notes 1. I was getting a Bad reception in this channel and the signal went to 3/4 to the right with way better reception.

Related Instructables

Low-cost How to get Good Digital Stylish HDTV Battery- Almost free yet Build a Large FREE HDTV antenna cheap! Antenna by powered another dtv DB8 HDTV (and all your portable antenna. by Antenna: Big by Phil B dragosurf widescreen DTV DTV questions Computothought Bertha by answered) by by Last_Liberal deceiver recneps

Comments

50 comments Add Comment view all 60 comments

Dr. dB says: Jan 15, 2010. 4:45 PM REPLY Great way to recycle those old dishes!

Not sure why the chickenwire backplane would ever be needed, unless it's to increase the overall dimensions of the reflector - although these dishes appear to be made strictly of fibreglass or other plastics, they are still required to be inherently RF-reflective, and, therefore, metallic in some regard, or they wouldn't work at all...

Most are built using one of these methods:

1. "DIY screen" - aluminim sheet is punched with a gazillion tiny holes, making a "screen" of it, then it's stamped into a semiparabolic shape and powder- coated.

2. wire-mesh "sandwich" on fibreglass "bread" - pre-made metallic screening or "wire cloth" is laminated with fibreglass and resins and stamped into a semiparabolic shape.

3. "soup mix" - metal powder is blended directly into the resins, resulting in a conductive plastic, which is then molded or stamped, etc....

timalmond says: Aug 31, 2010. 10:12 AM REPLY These Dish's are made of very thin steel and painted grey to reflect satellite signal from plate onto eye of .

arte.sano says: Jan 28, 2010. 6:28 PM REPLY good to know, I can get rid off the ugly chicken wire then!, thanks

Dr. dB says: Feb 1, 2010. 11:27 AM REPLY It's at least worth a try, since, as simple and elegant as your construction is, it shouldn't be much hassle to put back if reception goes in the dumper without it.

This assumes that, as froggyman mentioned, there's no electrical connection between the "screen" and the pickup elements. If such a connection WERE needed, you'd need the chicken wire, after all, as it can be a considerable challenge getting at the conductive part(s) of the dish's own http://www.instructables.com/id/HDTv-Antenna-on-a-Direct-TV-mount/ architecture.

I also wondered:

Would a single "V", standing-off the dish at the same "focal point" where the original LNB pickup was hung, perhaps gain enough from the dish's parabolic properties to make up for the fewer elements? Or would so few "sticks" compromise the beyond usefulness?

Phil B says: Aug 30, 2008. 7:58 AM REPLY It appears the digital converter boxes require an antenna for UHF. Some of these include an amplifier, which may not be necessary for your area. It depends on signal strength. I made a UHF antenna that worked quite well. It was highly directional and you might have to reposition it for different stations. I drew a parabolic curve on a piece of wood. A parabolic curve is a line equally distant between a point and a line. Start with a large sheet of paper or several pieces of newsprint taped together. Draw a straight line across the bottom of the paper. Make the line about three long. Find the center of the line. Make a point a foot or more above the center of the line. With two yardsticks, measure from the line at a right angle to the line and from the point. Look for the point at which the distance on both yardsticks is the same. Make a mark on the paper. Continue plotting points in this way. Some of the points will be ten inches from the point and ten inches from the line. Some will be six inches from both some will be twelve or fifteen inches from both. Many will be dimensions that end with various fractions of an inch. When you are finished, connect the dots. Cut the wood to fit this curve. Screw a piece of sheet aluminum a foot wide to the wooden curve. Make it long enough to follow the whole curve. At the center of the curve drill a hole and insert a dowel rod. Make it so it goes to the location of the original point you used in plotting the curve. Attach two strips of aluminum about an inch or so wide and six inches long, like dog ears. Connect your leads to these dog ears. The parabolic curve will gather signals and focus them at the dog ears very nicely.

zanne101 says: Oct 29, 2009. 5:32 AM REPLY Phil B Have you done your instructable? I'm having difficulty understanding - could use some pics. Thanks

(can the curve be created with a pencil compass, or the old pencil and string idea?)

Phil B says: Oct 29, 2009. 7:10 AM REPLY I have done the Instructable. It is at this link: www.instructables.com/id/Good_HDTV_antenna_cheap/ The antenna works pretty well without the , depending on how far you are from the broadcast towers. One person attempted a simple curved reflector without plotting a precise parabolic curve and got an increase in signal strength of 3x. Google "make a " for numerous pages on how to plot a parabolic curve. A compass will not do the job. There is a way to use string, but I did not find it very accurate because the string and device were not very precise.

biochemtronics says: Aug 30, 2008. 9:36 AM REPLY Phil, I can understand the concept you are talking about here but can not quite picture the process. Would you be willing to do an instructable for us?

Phil B says: Aug 31, 2008. 8:07 AM REPLY Yes, I would. I have thought about doing one on this, anyway. Right now I am traveling. I will be home in a couple of days and will try to get an Instructable done on it by the weekend. When i tried this it was back in the 1970s. No one had heard of HDTV. I used it to pull in some UHF stations. We were getting stations from more than 50 miles away with this parabolic antenna. Thanks for asking. Oops! I meant to say, "Make the line three feet long." in the description above.

lairmo says: Aug 24, 2009. 10:06 PM REPLY Ok so I built one...or my frankenstein version of one..Had everything on hand except $3.50 worth of nuts and bolts. Sorry pics are at night, but I just finished and had to set it up first. Scrapped the dish after building framework too large, but did use the mounting pole/bracket. Works great!! Getting 2 more channels than I was with the 7' Shack antenna. Thanks for the idea.

lairmo says: Aug 25, 2009. 1:02 PM REPLY Here's a couple of daytime photos:

http://www.instructables.com/id/HDTv-Antenna-on-a-Direct-TV-mount/ little wonder says: Jun 27, 2009. 12:52 PM REPLY So far, I've made at least 12 of these antennas(inside use)and my biggest expense has been for the 300 to 75 ohm balun connectors. If you're looking for these, SKIP your local "shack",which sells them for around $5.99,and order them from for ONLY $0.43 ea. in qtys of 10 or more!! I picked up 15 for the price of 3 at the "shack", and that includes shipping. Hope this helps any of you. Before I forget, after you finish the project, remember to do a rescan every now and then as some stations my be on-line, but not up to speed. you may pick up a new channel when you do this. GOOD LUCK to you all.

brandt11 says: Oct 13, 2008. 4:54 PM REPLY what kind of wire did you use for the connection between the v's. was it electrical wire or coaxial wire? how did you connect it to the cable that ran into your living room?

froggyman says: Mar 27, 2009. 7:14 AM REPLY you use a regular electric with (like romex) to connect the V's, then you get a 300Ohm to 75 ohm coaxial transformer availiable here . For that you can simply cut off the 2 little conncetors, strip the wire about an inch, and connect it to the electrical wire, by twisting them together and adding a little solder for added strength then cover in electrical tape.

You can then connect it to your TV through a regular coaxial wire!

arte.sano says: Oct 14, 2008. 10:34 AM REPLY the wire came from a lamp, but any wire will do the work, is better to use an Isolated wires, Romex will work also. As I mention in my post above: "...I build the antenna but and I use an old Direct TV dish mounted in my garage (I don't have the subscription and I don't want too), the dish has been in my place since I move, and the best thing, it's wired to my living room." hope it helps.

brandt11 says: Oct 14, 2008. 2:13 PM REPLY thanks

froggyman says: Mar 27, 2009. 6:56 AM REPLY well here is my completed antenna! I did some modifications to your design: I had 6 V's total, used aluminum foil as my reflector/filter, I soldered all of the joints(from the wire to the V's), and i put 3 sets of V's on one side and 3 on the other with the coaxial convertor inbetween them Ohh, and i found out that i needed one of those 300 ohm to 75 Ohms ocnvertor, these can be found at radioshack for a couple of dollars. It somes with a two wire (from antenna) to a coaxial cable (to TV)

michaeloshman says: Oct 22, 2008. 1:51 PM REPLY ok let me ask you this..it the v's touching the chichen wire or is the screen totally indepandant from the v's

froggyman says: Mar 25, 2009. 6:30 PM REPLY the screen is independent from the the V's, it just acts like a "filter" and sometimes isnt needed

http://www.instructables.com/id/HDTv-Antenna-on-a-Direct-TV-mount/ froggyman says: Mar 23, 2009. 10:27 AM (removed by author or community request)

froggyman says: Mar 23, 2009. 12:49 PM REPLY ohh and on step 2 does that black wire make a physical metal to metal contact or is it just touching it by the washers/srews?

rntonp says: Feb 13, 2009. 4:02 PM REPLY Questions to anyone - 1. Does the type of "metal" used for the construction of the V's matter regarding reception? I have two entire rolls of pure copper tubing that was left at my home after I had a new A/C unit installed. They are out in my garage, but one is approx. 3/8-1/2" diameter and the other is close to 1" diameter (both are hollow obviously). I also have some scraps of solid, insulated wire that I think is copper and is probably 16 or 18 guage. I probably have 10 or 15 feet of this stuff. Anyway, would either of these be better in receptive capabilities if I built an outdoor antenna? 2. Also, is there a "rule of thumb" for reception? i.e. If 6 V's are good, are 12 or 18 V's qualitatively better? 3. What about incorporating a fractal design while maintaining the overall shape? Finally, again, what about building 3 or 4 of these designs displayed in this instructable and mounting them on a segmented pole, with each "section" or "antenna" being rotatable, with ability to in essence have 3 or 4 identical antennas - each separated equidistantly when "twisted".

ken26101 says: Feb 16, 2009. 9:13 PM REPLY As for questions 1, you would want to use solid wire, i.e. electric wiring either left over from wiring a house or even going to a local hardware store that sells it by the foot. I personally used some left over 12-2 wire from when I rewired my house and just stripped down what I needed. Solid wire would be best for making your connections when putting it together and provides a much better way of transferring the signals it is receiving. Hope this helps and good luck with your project. I am getting ready to build me a bigger antenna and try a few things to see if I can get some stations from about 60 miles away.

ken26101 says: Feb 7, 2009. 10:52 PM REPLY Thanks for the info. This little project sent me on a mission to save some money. I built the basic antenna, only not as neat as yours and added it to a digital tuner and WOW. I actually picked up my local NBC, Fox, 2 PBS channels and PBS HD and another local channel, which I couldn't do before. Now I can say goodbye to the local cable company and save my family over $200 a year now. The only bad thing about this project is that I am now wanting to try a few other things to try and pick up some other channels from about 60 miles away. Thanks again!!!

uofte says: Feb 3, 2009. 6:16 AM REPLY Thanks for the project. I didn't use the dish or the grid - just made the basic antenna. It worked great! Crystal clear FREE digital channels, including about 6- 7 HD channels. Very straightforward and easy. Thanks!

jefeickert says: Oct 15, 2008. 2:41 AM REPLY Can you show me how to make a really good shortwave antenna? JIM

dsandds2003 says: Jan 15, 2009. 9:40 AM REPLY Jim...what meter shortwave antenna ya looking for? Try the ARRL website. Or google electronics projects...and look under either antennas or Ham Radio projects...Have fun, Dave

Drofnats says: Nov 27, 2008. 5:46 PM REPLY This works, I made one, put it on the roof and its great. I didnt use a Dish. I used chicken wire (.5" square) as the backing, 8 'V's, insulated electrical cable - used a glue gun to insulate the V's/connections. Its much better than the rabbit ears - all the channels come in much stronger. I got several extra channels - unfortunately they included Oprah and a local Church channel, where's a 'guy' channel when you need it. Still, highly recommended. Well done.

marwanco says: Nov 11, 2008. 1:56 AM REPLY Signal quality 92, 1080i. This is photo from 42 plasma TV. Thanks for instructions.

dacarls says: Sep 21, 2008. 9:28 PM REPLY I read this Instr.2x and still cannot find/recognize the length of the V-shaped wires. Its got to be important. Please help.

http://www.instructables.com/id/HDTv-Antenna-on-a-Direct-TV-mount/ Dodge says: Oct 6, 2008. 1:11 PM REPLY On step 2, mouse over the V in the pic... The wire is 14 inches, bent in half (7 inch legs...) Also, each of the three sets of V's should be 7 inches apart.

camp6ell says: Sep 6, 2008. 9:44 AM REPLY could somebody explain the basic science of what's going on here? i'm about to make one, but have no idea what effect changing any of the parameters will have on the signal... thanks

camp6ell says: Sep 6, 2008. 12:43 PM REPLY i guess my question was: what purpose is the wire mesh/grill serving? anyway, i made the basic antenna, but didn't mount it to the dish or wire. i ended up just screwing to the wall in my attic, and this works fine - picks up all the hd channels in the area that it should.

rdesomer says: Sep 19, 2008. 11:24 AM REPLY I did the same thing, no mesh. The difference with mine is a used a 4 foot long 2x4 and ran it 4 sets up and 4 sets down the other side so it loops over the top. I then screwed it into the rafters of my garage and tied it to the existing wiring that the dish originally used. Thanks for the inspiration.

dsandds2003 says: Sep 14, 2008. 7:51 AM REPLY How far away are you from the TV stations???

camp6ell says: Sep 14, 2008. 2:29 PM REPLY about 20-25 miles, according to the interwebs, and the antenna is on the third floor.

static says: Sep 8, 2008. 3:00 AM REPLY The mesh acts as a reflector. As you have proven, it's not always needed. The commercial products have to include it to insure the best chance it will work for the customer. Those of us in the rural are will need a more substantial antenna system.

Questor says: Sep 8, 2008. 8:31 AM REPLY there IS a difference between High Definition and Digital. The boxes are there to allow the older TV's to receive Digital . . .NOT, necessarily, High Def

static says: Sep 8, 2008. 2:52 AM REPLY As there is no such thing as a "color TV" antenna, there are nor DTV or HDTV antennas. Anyone who has the standard VHF/UHF TV antenna will be able to use it to receive the new digital signals. Your instructable does well, for those who don't already have an antenna for UHF reception. The bow tie arrays work well when your are close in to the tower. The further you are away the more UHF becomes a bear to receive. Not only is the signal weaker. The nulls in the antenna pattern, are more pronounced.

will1947 says: Sep 5, 2008. 12:36 PM REPLY You guys in the States are so lucky, we in the UK have to pay for a converter box and in a lot of cases a new aerial. You can pick up a box for about £15 but these tend to be crappy and a good one will cost £50 then another £50 for a decent aerial Plus £100 for installation of the aerial. If you want to watch one channel whilst recording another you need two boxes, and when bad weather is around forget it, digital signals only like good weather conditions.

picbuck says: Sep 7, 2008. 10:52 AM REPLY Heehee, see the advantages of being a socialist state? Of course, we pay for the converter, and we also pay several bureaucrats to first take our money and then give it back to us, but at least we have universal...TV.

MiLeXx says: Sep 5, 2008. 1:11 PM REPLY coOoOol mAn!!!!

http://www.instructables.com/id/HDTv-Antenna-on-a-Direct-TV-mount/ Jack of Most Trades says: Sep 5, 2008. 10:50 AM REPLY Nicely done! What spacing are you using between the elements and the hdwr cloth screen?

arte.sano says: Sep 5, 2008. 12:15 PM REPLY Thanks. I'm using a 2"x2"x14" piece of wood, and the mounting piece is 2" from the dish, I have around 4" in between, maybe less, but remember the dish has a concave shape so at the ends of the elements the space is around 1 1/2". You can use a 2"x4" if you need more space.

blaclie22 says: Sep 4, 2008. 7:12 PM REPLY worked well!!

blaclie22 says: Sep 5, 2008. 12:37 AM REPLY my dish is really big. its is 3 1/2 feet wide. i didnt have screen so used a really big grill rack. but it works fine.

arte.sano says: Sep 5, 2008. 12:09 PM REPLY Man, that's cool I like the use of the grill!!, I will recommend to use the grill/screen following the direction of the wood, try to cover the V's ears. looks good!! cheers.

arte.sano says: Sep 4, 2008. 11:10 PM REPLY Cool, share some pictures!!

dsandds2003 says: Aug 26, 2008. 8:55 PM REPLY I think he meant to say dtv (digital tv). It is a bit confusing because with a lot of older sets you will need a converter box to get DTV which is VERY CONFUSING with H DTV. Thats our government for ya, Keep ya confused while they stick it to ya...Where I live in order to see tv after feb. 2009 I WILL have to subscribe to satellite to get a program. My antenna will not work when the nearest TV station is 64 miles away...Unless I spent HUNDREDS of dollars on a HUGE tower so I can have a line of sight to the station. DTV signals DO NOT travel like analog signals. Great job on your idea, looks GREAT!!

Jack of Most Trades says: Sep 5, 2008. 10:46 AM REPLY YMMV, but I built a 4-element VHF Yagi, put it 15' in the air and pulled in WISH-DT from 62.5 miles away. I'm going to build one of these soon for the other stations on UHF... view all 60 comments

http://www.instructables.com/id/HDTv-Antenna-on-a-Direct-TV-mount/