Help-My Dish is Stuck

[BOBHUSKER]

Hello,
I have an 8 foot BUD with DMS Int'l LNB (no cervo motor). I use a G-Box to move it. The G-Box has worked nearly flawlessly but once and awhile, it belches a bit and loses it's memory. It's usually easy to reprogram but this time, it looks like it sent my dish beyond it's limits (East). I had a limit put in but maybe it lost that memory too. After working over a year nearly flawlessly, it is now stuck in it's eastern position. I can't get it to move no matter what I do. My sat guy is not around right now so I am lost. I have tried to reset the box to avail. I am now getting that E-2 error (I saw the post on that) and can't seem to re-set the limit. Do I have to reset the actuator? Any suggestions would be appreciated.
Bob

 

[dougruss]

If it "Dumped" all the way to the East, you'll need to Disable the Limits Setting in the G-BoPress and Hold the "Limit" button on Remote, count down from 10-0 ). Then you'll need a Second person to gently lift on the dish while your hitting the West button on the Remote until it gets moving on it's own. Then you'll have to Reset the East and West Limits.

 

[BOBHUSKER]

Thanks Dougruss! I will try that this evening. Thanks for posting.

 

[stanleyjohn]

If all fails you can try a factory reset of the G-box and see if that helps

 

[BOBHUSKER]

Thanks everyone. Yes, I did reset the box too. My friend stood outside and said her heard a motor trying to work but the dish wasn't moving. Looks like a broken gear of some kind. Or, perhaps I need a new actuator. What do you guys think?

 

[Magic Static]

Sounds like a broken connection to the sensor. Check the wiring at the actuator and the G-Box. You will get the "ER2" if ther sensor came unhooked when ever you try to move it. Moving the dish all the way to one side may have put stress on the wire and pulled it loose. If not then I would say bad actuator.

 

[gabshere]

if its a west mounted actuator and it went as far as it could east (and this is just my guess) "dish flop"

have someone push the dish toward the west , while you are telling it (v box / g box ) to go west , this should allow the arm to reconnect

 

[Lone Gunman]

This is why I ALWAYS set the East and West LIMIT SWITCHES on the dish motor itself rather than depending on the limits set in the V/G Box controllers. Those limit switches in the dish motor housing are almost as good as a hard stop only they don't break anything when you hit them. They are also very accurate! That East limit also comes in handy when those V/G Boxes hiccup and loose all your position settings as you can run the dish manually back to the EAST limit switch then re-zero the counter and start putting positions back in from numbers you've previously written down for each sat location. ;-) You did do that, didn't you?

 

[BOBHUSKER]

Thanks for everyone's suggestions. I got ahold of my sat guy and he is going to come out to my house. I really like the idea of setting the limits with the motor. I will talk to him about that. As for my settings, my dish guy has all of that. Thanks again to everyone trying to help. I am about to buy a new FTA receiver and I am chomping at the bit to get my dish back up and running.

 

[Lone Gunman]

Bob it would be a real good idea for you (and everyone else) to put your FTA hardware setup in your signature. That way those who look to help you with problems can see what you are working with.

FYI, once set, the East and West hardware limits in the motor housing are a CONSTANT, ie, they will never change unless something works loose or breaks! "Software" East and West limits in a G or V Box are "ever changing" in that if you use an AZBox to blind scan, then the East numerical limit in the G or V Box will change too. Then you have to "erase" that East limit to be able to move back East past where you did your last blind scan and unless your East hardware limit switch is set, you really don't know where you are. Not all receivers have this issue but still, depending on G or B Box limits isn't a good idea IMHO especially since it depends on "counts" from the reed switch, which doesn't always work like it should either. For that reason I NEVER use the G or V Box limit settings any more!

 

[SatScanner]

Hello,
I have an 8 foot BUD with DMS Int'l LNB (no cervo motor). I use a G-Box to move it. The G-Box has worked nearly flawlessly but once and awhile, it belches a bit and loses it's memory. It's usually easy to reprogram but this time, it looks like it sent my dish beyond it's limits (East). I had a limit put in but maybe it lost that memory too. After working over a year nearly flawlessly, it is now stuck in it's eastern position. I can't get it to move no matter what I do. My sat guy is not around right now so I am lost. I have tried to reset the box to avail. I am now getting that E-2 error (I saw the post on that) and can't seem to re-set the limit. Do I have to reset the actuator? Any suggestions would be appreciated.
Bob

I have a new GBOX V3000 that gave me the E-2 error message about a week after I started using it. I had it outside with me at the dish sitting on a card table while I have been trying to align my dish. I believe my problem was that the GBOX got too hot. If you turn the box over you will see a square off to one side that is the only vent on the box that I can see. The rubber feet on the box are very thin and probably don't allow enough clearance if the air around the box gets too warm. As a temporary measure I got a roll of masking tape to set the box on to raise it up off the table an inch or so. So far I haven't had anymore trouble with the E-2 error. I may try to find thicker rubber feet to replace the thin feet that are on it now to allow for better air circulation.

 

[BOBHUSKER]

Thanks for the suggestions Lone Gunman. I have updated my signatures. My friend came out and discovered a broken actuator. The motor inside is broken so I will need a new actuator. He put my dish on the 99 for me so I could at least get some TV out of it. He asked me how you set the limits on the dish. I believe you said inside the dish motor housing so I will tell him that. Meanwhile, he is searching for a used actuator to save me money. If you can give any more details on setting the limits, that would be great. Otherwise, thanks to everyone for their helpful comments.
Bob

 

[dougruss]

Thanks for the suggestions Lone Gunman. I have updated my signatures. My friend came out and discovered a broken actuator. The motor inside is broken so I will need a new actuator. He put my dish on the 99 for me so I could at least get some TV out of it. He asked me how you set the limits on the dish. I believe you said inside the dish motor housing so I will tell him that. Meanwhile, he is searching for a used actuator to save me money. If you can give any more details on setting the limits, that would be great. Otherwise, thanks to everyone for their helpful comments.
Bob

This may Help:

TA24 and TA18 Limit Switch Adjustment


.

 

[KennyR]

[ Didn't want to start a new thread] Lost signal today while changing sats, wife was outside heard the dish slam down to the west extreme, went to investigate and the screw in the actuator arm came out, the threads worn off about halfway out. (venture 24") noticed a bit of slack in it, thought it was normal wear, I kept it greased - has a grease jerk on it, less than 1 year use.Wife's aunt bought it with her 10' bud in the mid '90s and used it less than 3 months.I put it on my 92" unimesh this spring for a greater span of the arc. Glad I had an extra one just like it off another bud i had rescued. Just though It should have lasted longer. Anyone had this happen before, whats the normal lifespan to expect on no2.( It dosn't have any slack at all in it)

 

[crackt]

the slack is developed when rust shale cuts the threads out of the nylon acme nut inside the arm. an actuator with 5 minutes use that has been parked in the rain for 10 or so years would probly last a month. any longer is luck. all used actuators should be overhauled and the threads polished and greased to prolong whatever life it has left. alot of the actuators ive come across were actually seized solid and were pretty much useless.

crackt out,.

 

[Lone Gunman]

And then there's those "brass" replacement nuts! ;-)

 

[BOBHUSKER]

Guess what everyone? My dish is stuck again!! Because my G-Box gives me constant E-2 errors, I moved it to far westward tonight and now my dish is stuck. My buddy could not figure out how to set the limits with the actuator and even if he could have, the E-2 error would probably override this. I am a big Raider fan and our game on Sunday here is blacked out. NBC Wyoming is carrying the game on Sunday and I have to get my dish back to the 99 before Sunday evening. My buddy told me to remove the bolt on the top of the actuator which I did tonight but I could only get my dish to move a little. Afterwards, it is still stuck. I fear I may have damaged my actuator but even if I did, I want to at least move it back to the 99 and worry about that later. Any suggestions? I am trying to get someone to assist me tomorrow but there is no guarantee on a weekend. Thanks Bob

 

[Phottoman]

I don't know if you have fixed your problem yet or not, but here is a suggestion that may prove helpful in the future.

There may be either one or two bolts holding the motor on to the end of the actuator. Loosen these bolts and twist then remove the entire motor housing.

Inside you'll see where the motor connects to the worm gear. You can attach a wrench or a vice grip to this and manually turn the screw or worm gear and get your satellite dish back to where you want it, but you'll have to have a receiver there with you to see what you are doing.

I thought for the past year that the entire insides of my actuator were broken, so this is the way I have been turning one of my dishes for a year. I bought an V Box X and connected it to the motor, and guess what, it's working. All that trouble for over a year and to think the entire time it was nothing more than a disconnected or broken wire.

All is good now.

Photto

 

[gabshere]

well i had that type of luck when i went west all the way a few times myself. my dish and motor would get itself into a slight bind and hang at the end of the arc. usually a slight push on the dish would solve it . but Er-2 code could be for other reasons , poor connections , actuator not counting ...

i made a short jumper set that i use out at the dish when tuning or repairing , makes it easier to work on plus lot less hassle when the other setup is 120 ft away.

hope you find a fix soon