does rain/snow really kill the reception

[S43R80]

Hey,

I know somone who had satellite in the past; here only complaint was that moderate (sometimes less than moderate) rain would really affect the reception (sometimes to the point where you couldn't/wouldn't watch television; is this the case?

This was about 1 - 1.5 years ago; has technology changed since then? Or will I be dissapointed each time it rains (if and when I go satellite).

Thanks

 

[belawrence]

Only the hardest rain brought my service down-it's happened to me once in 5 years and it lasted about two minutes. But at the same time I do live in SoCal.

 

[thiggin2]

Hey,

I know somone who had satellite in the past; here only complaint was that moderate (sometimes less than moderate) rain would really affect the reception (sometimes to the point where you couldn't/wouldn't watch television; is this the case?

This was about 1 - 1.5 years ago; has technology changed since then? Or will I be dissapointed each time it rains (if and when I go satellite).

Thanks

Well I'm not sure were you live but in Florida "moderate" rain here would be concidered heavy rain in other places and it really affects signals but for only short periods of time. The weak 61.5 bird is really bad but it puts out a weak signal to begin with.

And the only technology thats changed that I think of is the Dish itself.(to help the rain fade that is)

 

[SimpleSimon]

If you're in most areas of the country, and have a properly aimed dish, you'll rarely see any issues. Numbers of 100 +/- on transponders 11 & 12 of 110 & 119 are about right.

The weak 61.5 bird is really bad but it puts out a weak signal to begin with.

61.5 ain't that weak - maybe your dish should be re-peaked.

 

[meoddity]

snow sitting on the dish can affect it, but it doesnt take much to wipe it off....i had that problem about a year ago when it was a really bad winter here in Illinois

 

[Martimus]

If you're in most areas of the country, and have a properly aimed dish, you'll rarely see any issues. Numbers of 100 +/- on transponders 11 & 12 of 110 & 119 are about right.

61.5 ain't that weak - maybe your dish should be re-peaked.

One of the things I really wish E* would make a tad more consistent are the scales they use to indicate relative signal strength. It seems to me that on most of E*'s receivers, the scale peaks at 125 (this is the max value listed on my old 4000 receiver). On my Dish Pro-enabled 721, however, the signal maxs out at 100.

 

[SimpleSimon]

the 921 maxes out at 125 - so it's not even the similar software there. Maybe the 100 limit is a 721 bug.

 

[Martimus]

the 921 maxes out at 125 - so it's not even the similar software there. Maybe the 100 limit is a 721 bug.

A bug?? Nah... it must be an undocumented feature!!!

It sure was entertaining last week when I was on the phone with Dish Tech Support and the tech indicated that she didn't know much about the 721's. Why you ask? Because, in her words, there were soooooo few in the field...

 

[Mr Tony]

I've lost signal due to snow 3 times in 4 years...

You can spray Pam on the dish and then it won't stick

as for rain, only lose it in the most heavy downpours...and usually for less than a minute

 

[tthomps]

I live in southern Indiana and there have been several times when severe thunderstorms are coming that the signal cuts out before the rain shows up. I have stuck my head out the door and called the boys in before they get wet. Fifty seconds or so later, the rain comes. I look at this as a "feature."

 

[bnaivar]

I had a salesman once tell me to remember that the frozen picture during a thunderstorm was "Still in perfect digital quality".

 

[Mr Tony]

I live in southern Indiana and there have been several times when severe thunderstorms are coming that the signal cuts out before the rain shows up. I have stuck my head out the door and called the boys in before they get wet. Fifty seconds or so later, the rain comes. I look at this as a "feature."

Very good idea

 

[ShadowEKU]

I had a salesman once tell me to remember that the frozen picture during a thunderstorm was "Still in perfect digital quality".

Now that is one of the funniest things ive read all day.

the other was a comic strip about the SW trilogy re re re mastered release

 

[AcuraCL]

If you're in most areas of the country, and have a properly aimed dish, you'll rarely see any issues. ...

I've had 3 dishes at 2 houses and wouldn't exactly call the loss of signal "rare." I'd call it "every thunderstorm" along with "some moderately heavy rains/snows."

Now, if it were only 1 of the 3 dishes where this happened, I'd say it was badly aimed. But all of them?

My signal loss may be 5 minutes or up to 1/2 hour.

 

[SimpleSimon]

AcuraCL - where are you? Some locations get heavier weather than others, but on a microclimate basis, maybe you've just got bad luck. In some areas storms follow fairly predictable paths. Just speculating here.

 

[thiggin2]

If you're in most areas of the country, and have a properly aimed dish, you'll rarely see any issues. Numbers of 100 +/- on transponders 11 & 12 of 110 & 119 are about right.

61.5 ain't that weak - maybe your dish should be re-peaked.

Well I normally have a 110 signal on 110 and 119.(on a clear day)
I have a 95 signal on 61.5

 

[AcuraCL]

AcuraCL - where are you? Some locations get heavier weather than others, but on a microclimate basis, maybe you've just got bad luck. In some areas storms follow fairly predictable paths. Just speculating here.

Mid-atlantic, east of the Appalachians. I don't think we get anything near as bad as Fla, or even the mid-West. But we do get some intense thunderstorms and rain/snowstorms. Occasionally some thundersnow ... that's a blast

Maybe you're right. Maybe it's a combo of imperfect dish aim and a tad of heavier-than-average storm activity ....

 

[Wishbone]

I haven't had any kind of rain fade since I've had Dish (last three months). I average around 85 for the sig strength during clear weather as measured on 110 & 119 TP 11 & 12, which is kinda low... Funniest thing is that, except for in the hardest rain, my sig strength sometimes goes up slightly during inclement weather.. Can anyone confirm this or explain it?

 

[S43R80]

Eah, the message that I just posted wasn't posted . After I hit submit I was re-directed to an error page .

Anyways, I wanted to ask if having a single, dual, or triple LNB dish made a difference when weather is a factor (I don't want HD, so I really wouldn't be using the other 2 satellites)?

Also, where are the forum acronyms (D*, E*, etc) documented? I still do not know what D* means - is it Direct TV or Dish Network TV or other?

Also, for you CT people, how has the weather been to your service in our climate?

 

[Mr Tony]

D*=DirectV
E*=Echostar (Dish Network)
V*=Voom