22
votes
Accepted
Using old vent pipe as TV antenna
There is a LOT that goes into making an antenna work properly. That's why the old-school TV antenna has so many little rods sticking out the sides - they have to be certain fractions of the wavelength ...
- 40.5k
12
votes
Why is there copper wire from a tv splitter to a water pipe in my house?
It is a ground wire. If you are removing the TV wires then you can remove the ground wire as well.
There is a larger ground wire from your main breaker panel to a ground rod (or two) and/or to water ...
11
votes
Why is there copper wire from a tv splitter to a water pipe in my house?
To answer your question as to why, all signal cable digital or otherwise are susceptible to electrical interference. For this reason the majority of signal cables, coax included, are screened with an ...
- 381
8
votes
Why is there copper wire from a tv splitter to a water pipe in my house?
That wire is being used to ground the tv wires.
If removing all the wires it will not be needed anymore, no wires no need for grounding air.
- 21.9k
7
votes
Accepted
Grounding tv antenna in attic?
Good choice on the antenna. Lots of high quality reception for free. In fact, OTA (over the air) TV signals are often of better digital quality than TV through cable distribution. Cable TV is ...
- 15.7k
6
votes
Should I ground my TV antenna?
A metal mast should be grounded. At a minimum, use 10 gauge solid or stranded wire run directly to an 8 ft. ground rod. No sharp turns in the wire.
You should also have a good surge arrester on ...
- 61
5
votes
Can I enhance Wi-Fi with a parabolic reflector?
Maybe, but there are lots of details about digital signal processing that are more complicated than just using a reflector.
Luckily, one of them is a simple off-the-shelf solution: your antenna. Most ...
- 9,351
5
votes
Accepted
Can I enhance Wi-Fi with a parabolic reflector?
It can work. It works much better if there are no obstructions in the beam path - using a reflector or other beam-concentrating antenna does not make "the problems with trees and buildings in the ...
- 190k
5
votes
Using old vent pipe as TV antenna
If you want to try this and see what happens, all you need to do is take the end of your coax and touch the center part of the connector to the pipe, while making sure the outer sleeve of the ...
- 4,044
4
votes
Accepted
Cable TV, Antenna, Coaxial - what is this thing?
It's an antenna / satellite combiner. Appears to be an aftermarket add-on.
It takes both LNB feeds from the dish, along with the antenna signal, and combines them onto one wire. In this case, it ...
- 23.4k
4
votes
Accepted
Who installs a satellite dish if the original company won't?
Would try another roofer or a general contractor.
Try to get recommendations from friends and neighbours, they should know the good locals.
Installation itself is not rocket science and should be able ...
- 21.9k
3
votes
How to turn a cut component video cable into coax?
OTA DTV antenna cable is commonly RG6 (replaced RG59). This is a 75 ohm coaxial cable with an F or BNC termination (probably F). The better quality component video cables use 3 separate RG6 cables ...
- 1,539
3
votes
Can I use this old ChannelMaster antenna wallplate with Digital Antenna?
There is a lot of miss information out there concerning TV antennas and it mostly caused by marketing hype. Rabbit ears tv antennas made 50 years ago will pick up broadcast from a TV tower ...
- 13.4k
3
votes
How can I prevent my computer from interfering with the TV signal?
Okay, I was having this issue and found the problem if your using a Leaf style antenna. I tried lots of things but sometimes you just gotta Keep it simple.
I wrapped tin foil around the antenna part ...
3
votes
How can I prevent my computer from interfering with the TV signal?
Your TV, sadly, has what is referred to as a susceptibility problem -- it's vulnerable to being confused by electromagnetic trash generated by other gizmos, like air pumps and desktop PCs. From the ...
- 80.7k
3
votes
HD Antenna Specs / Distance
I wondered the same thing when I shopped for an antenna. Unfortunately, I couldn't find a set of specs or a way of comparing antennas from different manufacturers. All I found were reviews but they ...
3
votes
Which cable to use for Antenna?
It looks like you have a common RF 4 way cable splitter, with cable coming into through the green wire and 4 TVs (the other cables). You should look at the splitter closely (is this RF or digital; one ...
- 6,212
3
votes
Ota antenna on cable coax with internet on line
No, you will need to isolate the two systems from each other. They cannot exist on the same coax.
Unplug lines one by one from the splitter until you locate the modem. That line must be connected ...
- 4,210
2
votes
Accepted
How Do I Bond My Antenna to Home Electrical Ground?
The purpose of an earthen ground is not to direct lightning. It's unlikely that you'll have lightning running down a wire routed through your walls, unless you have other more severe electrical ...
- 10.5k
2
votes
Accepted
How to run coax to 10 sites at RV park
If your system is analog and not digital, the following will apply. If it is digital video transmission, it's out of my league.
Analog cable television systems transmit radio frequencies into coaxial ...
- 10.5k
2
votes
TV signal high but quality dips
With antennas there are a lot of check boxes to tick. First it has to be installed and adjusted properly. Most TV antennas are directional and need to be pointed toward the TV station. If they are not ...
- 397
2
votes
Grounding a TV aerial
You haven't mentioned where you live, so I'll answer according to National Electrical Code.
First, the lead-in cable from the antenna, must be connected to an antenna discharge unit. This unit is ...
- 131k
2
votes
Accepted
Grounding a TV aerial
You can ground off the electrical ground. Cable companies do this all the time. I would only ground off a pipe if no other options existed.
Note: When cable companies do this, they attach a new ...
- 23.4k
2
votes
Best way to divide TV roof antenna to several rooms
For that many outlets, you should invest in a "TV distribution amplifier". A search using that phrase brings up many suitable products.
You'll be much happier with the results compared to a "tree" of ...
- 1,295
2
votes
Accepted
Possible causes of a loss of TV signal after reorganising masthead amp and splitter
So it turns out that this wasn't a signal or hardware issue, it was an air-gap issue. I'd incorrectly labelled one of the cables and ended up thinking both ends of the same cable were different cables ...
- 123
2
votes
How do i properly use conduit across roof shingles?
If there's a solar equipment distributor near you, check with them. Products like this
exist for this very purpose.
Ironically, because you're just grounding the equipment, the conduit itself, if ...
- 2,180
2
votes
How to turn a cut component video cable into coax?
Coax Cable has a particular shielding and is designed for the frequencies that will be carried on it. Your Composite wire does not have that design so your signal will be degraded and quite possibly ...
- 5,343
2
votes
Accepted
What is the difference between a coaxial grounding block, an antenna discharge unit, and lightning arrestor
Antennas can build up a sizeable static charge which needs to be dissipated. Unfortunately the obvious solution of grounding the antenna also removes the signal from the wire. A coaxial grounding ...
- 3,430
2
votes
What is the antenna connection on a European TV called?
The photo you posted of connection on the back of your TV is odd. I do not recognize the connector labeled antenna, the connector for the satellite is a coaxial F connection and that is what typical ...
- 13.4k
2
votes
Accepted
How do I renforce a cardboard antenna for outside use?
At the risk that it might alter the properties of the cardboard in some way that might matter at radio-frequencies, I'd slather it in epoxy resin for waterproofing and follow up with a coat or two of ...
- 190k
Only top scored, non community-wiki answers of a minimum length are eligible