How can this be possible

[slls]

My sat tv works great. When I went to remove over 12 inches of heavy wet snow from my yard, I noticed the sat dish had over 2 inches of snow completely covering it. How could the sensor pickup a signal? It is a slimline setup.

 

[HDinCincy]

My sat tv works great. When I went to remove over 12 inches of heavy wet snow from my yard, I noticed the sat dish had over 2 inches of snow completely covering it. How could the sensor pickup a signal? It is a slimline setup.

1.) You're darn lucky 2.) the LNBs have a little heat so if the reflection from your dish matches the original contour, that's a possibility. 3.) You're darn lucky

 

[foobar12]

LOL. I agree just count your blessings and hope that when the snow does affect your picture it's low enough to the ground that you can clear it easily. (Snow and ladders are a recipe for disaster!)

 

[shibby191]

You're not lucky, it's normal. Heck, I've had more then 2 inches of snow on the dish and it's just fine. On a properly peaked dish that is. Ice is the main reason for signal loss and sometimes the really wet slush. Other then that I've had a blizzard and never lost signal.

 

[slls]

I did clean it with a long pole, nice to know it is not as sensitive as cable companies would have you believe.

 

[HDinCincy]

You're not lucky, it's normal. Heck, I've had more then 2 inches of snow on the dish and it's just fine. On a properly peaked dish that is. Ice is the main reason for signal loss and sometimes the really wet slush. Other then that I've had a blizzard and never lost signal.

Ice = NOT nice. After the last ice storm here in Cincy, I did something stupid and did go up a ladder with a hair dryer on a pole. Bad deal, man.(it did work though)

Next time I will take the advice posted here and fill my kid's supersoaker with windshield washer solution.

 

[Aurora]

Same here, i've had the entire dish covered in both dry and wet snow and haven't had any issues. I also always believed the claims that the signal goes out easily but I never had satellite until this past fall

 

[JosephB]

It's not the thickness so much as the amount of water. If it's fluffy and light then it'll be better than if it's wet and heavy or even worse ice.

 

[Carta]

3rd party info from a rookie: I was told by an experienced tech from DN, that the "dish" is not affected by snow or rain;;; It's the LNB......... Don't shoot the messenger!!

 

[JosephB]

3rd party info from a rookie: I was told by an experienced tech from DN, that the "dish" is not affected by snow or rain;;; It's the LNB......... Don't shoot the messenger!!

Well, technically yes it's the LNB. The issue is that the water gets between the satellite and the LNB, but usually the bulk of the water is between the reflector part of the dish and the satellite. If it's raining hard enough between the dish and the LNB to block the signal, it's raining enough outside of it to block the signal from getting to the dish in the first place.

 

[HDinCincy]

Well, technically yes it's the LNB. The issue is that the water gets between the satellite and the LNB, but usually the bulk of the water is between the reflector part of the dish and the satellite. If it's raining hard enough between the dish and the LNB to block the signal, it's raining enough outside of it to block the signal from getting to the dish in the first place.

... and if the water is HARD enough (ice) to distort the signal focusing capability of the dish toward the LNB, then you get zippo.

 

[JosephB]

... and if the water is HARD enough (ice) to distort the signal focusing capability of the dish toward the LNB, then you get zippo.

Water doesn't reflect the signal, it absorbs it. So, if there is enough water/ice/snow on the dish to affect the signal it isn't that the shape of the ice is causing the beam to go off in a weird direction, it's just that it's absorbing the electromagnetic waves. Satellites broadcast in the same general range as microwave ovens, so the same principle that causes a microwave oven to cook your food causes rain fade.

 

[spaceghost]

Satellites broadcast in the same general range as microwave ovens, so the same principle that causes a microwave oven to cook your food causes rain fade.

So satellite signals should melt the water?

 

[JosephB]

So satellite signals should melt the water?

In theory yes, but if we are being bombarded by microwaves that are intense enough to melt the water, then this week's episode of House is the least of our worries

 

[Aurora]

So satellite signals should melt the water?

Given a perfect vacuum, with a long enough time, at zero heat transfer from the water to the dish... yes

 

[HDinCincy]

So satellite signals should melt the water?

I guess we can all agree though that enough water, frozen or otherwise, will impede one's ability to effectively view digitally compressed microwave signals from an geostationary orbiting reflecting/amplifying objectoid.

 

[markfp-1]

I live in Upstate New York and have had DirecTV for ten years. We get a lot of snow here, so far this year we've had over 12 feet and I can't remember ever having an issue because of snow. I've had rain fade during the summer, but never a snow related problem.