9/21/09
Erecting a TV Antenna
If you have been told that you may not
erect a small outdoor TV antenna, that is probably
wrong. The Telecommunications Act of
1996 has a provision that preempts (overrules) nearly all local restrictions such
as deed restrictions, home-owners association rules, renters
contracts, and so on. For more details
see FCC Fact Sheet.
Late
news: Note that now is not a good time to buy a Yagi antenna. Present Yagi antennas are optimized for
channel 69. But in the
U.S. 51 is now the highest
channel, and a new generation of Yagi antennas cut for channel 51 will be the
most desirable. For the next few years
Yagi buyers must pay close attention to the frequency specs.
Many people
live in areas where TV signals are strong.
Even if these people know nothing about selecting or installing an
antenna, they will probably succeed anyway.
This website is written mainly for people in areas where reception is
nontrivial to very difficult. A trip to
the website www.antennaweb.org will
tell you quickly into which group you fall.
If your must-have stations are in the yellow or olive-green range then
there is not much reason to study anything.
(But if your present antenna is disappointing then read on.)
If you are
not a do-it-yourself type, you can find an installer in the Yellow Pages under
Antennas (or possibly Televisions Dealers & Services). The total cost (parts and labor) will range
from $100 for an easy install to $800 for a difficult install, with $300 being
the most typical bill. If you do it
yourself, you will pay almost $200 just for the hardware. (Antenna: $70, amplifier: $70, 50 feet of
RG-6: $30) You might be able to get some
free advice or a free rough estimate over the phone or by visiting the installers
shop. If he comes to your home, the
estimate will not be free but it will be accurate.
There is a
chance that the first antenna you install will not meet your expectations. Once an outdoor antenna has been installed,
the seller will rarely take it back.
Even Radio Shack will not take back an installed outdoor antenna. The cost of a second antenna might wipe out
any savings you hoped for by doing it yourself.
An installer will never charge you for two antennas if he is wrong on
the first try. Generally, indoor
antennas can be returned if in the original packaging.
Proceed at your own risk:
Every
year people get killed while erecting antennas.
There
are places within the stations broadcast radius where reception is not
possible.
There
are places where reception is so difficult that the challenge might outwit the
installer.
Although
the dollar cost of an antenna system is modest, a lot of your time might be
required.
The author
will not accept responsibility for any unexpected losses.
The following
antenna sections, like the rest of the primer, assume only a high school
education. But you will find them to be
slightly more technically challenging.
Antenna Issues:
Antenna Projects -- For Do-It-Yourselfers in very weak signal
areas
Encyclopedia of TV Antenna Terms
and Topics
(including satellite dishes)
Actuator
Adjacent
channel interference
Antenna
Antenna
amplifiers
Antenna
aperture (capture area)
Antennaweb.org
Attenuator
Attic antennas
Az-el dish mounts
Balun
Balun wire
positioning
Bandwidth
Beam width
BNC connector
Bowtie antenna
(Fan dipole)
Broadside antennas (see Stacked
antennas)
CATV/MATV (Community
Antenna TV, Municipal Antenna TV)
Capacitance
hat