Need grounding options

[gryphon]

Ok, my Voom installation appointment was scheduled for today. Guy doesn't show up until afterwards, but does a site inspection. I live on the third floor of an apartment building. He immediately tells his HQ he can't do it because there isn't a ground.

Now, I'm a little curious how he knew this right away, but I take his word and I call my apartment complex about it, and I have the installers call my apartment to speak to the maintenance guy. Well, the installers call me back saying they won't let them. So I call the apartment and talk to the maintenance guy. He's very cool and basically says he's never heard of such a thing before, needing to ground a dish. Plenty of people here have dishes and don't ground them. He says the installer was wanting to install some 20' grounding rod or something. I dunno. He dir said the grounding block (rod?) was on the other side of the building from my apartment.

Anyways, so now I'm stuck. I called Voom, they won't budge. They'd rather lose a customer? I just don't get it. Do I have any options besides moving? Now I have this great TV and no content! I don't want to pay the same amount from a few HD channels. Can anyone help? Can they use a different ground?

 

[TYORK]

Ok, my Voom installation appointment was scheduled for today. Guy doesn't show up until afterwards, but does a site inspection. I live on the third floor of an apartment building. He immediately tells his HQ he can't do it because there isn't a ground.

Now, I'm a little curious how he knew this right away, but I take his word and I call my apartment complex about it, and I have the installers call my apartment to speak to the maintenance guy. Well, the installers call me back saying they won't let them. So I call the apartment and talk to the maintenance guy. He's very cool and basically says he's never heard of such a thing before, needing to ground a dish. Plenty of people here have dishes and don't ground them. He says the installer was wanting to install some 20' grounding rod or something. I dunno. He dir said the grounding block (rod?) was on the other side of the building from my apartment.

Anyways, so now I'm stuck. I called Voom, they won't budge. They'd rather lose a customer? I just don't get it. Do I have any options besides moving? Now I have this great TV and no content! I don't want to pay the same amount from a few HD channels. Can anyone help? Can they use a different ground?

First of off where are you located? And yes there is other option. If there is not ground on the outside it can be hook to a surge protector inside it has to be a approve surge protector which mean that the coax has to be hooked though the surge protector or at least a inline surge protector.

please let me know where you are at and i can help you .

tyork

 

[gryphon]

I'm in the Dallas TX area - I do have a surge protector (RCA Model PS83202C) and planned on using it. I have no problem purchasing a higher quality surge protector.

Is Voom's stance on grounding for their protection (their equipment) or for their legal protection?

Thank you for your reply!!

 

[TYORK]

no they are required by NEC to be grounded not sure why the maintenance guy in your area didn't know this but it required to be ground in some sort of way
1. Bonded ground such as electric
2. Copper water pipes
3. surge protection.

and this installer should have give you this option if you didn't have the right surge protector he should have had them on his truck for you to purchase or asked you to go get what ever you needed.

I will pm you with info on what you need to do to get this done.

tyork

 

[gryphon]

Thank you very much! I will call them tomorrow. Neither Voom nor the installer seemed very inclined to help or provide alternatives, and I was at a loss to do because I have very little electrical knowledge. I will see what they say and update the thread.

Thanks again!

 

[TYORK]

no problem i sent you a pm on what you need to do.

 

[gryphon]

Still no luck as of yet. Voom is adamant about grounding and the installer is adamant that there are no grounding options (even though they never went up on the balcony at all). I've got an escalation going with Voom and I'm going to request a new installer come out and do a site survey and talk with maintenance. I'm also going to talk to maintenance myself. This is ludicrous, especially with Voom's financial situation, to have to go through all of this JUST to get service. I am sorely disappointed at the lack of official help I have received from Voom and the installer.

 

[rvsixer]

Voom is adamant about grounding and the installer is adamant that there are no grounding options (even though they never went up on the balcony at all).

Wow, you are unlucky you got one of the few "pro" installers that knows the dish should be grounded . My VOOM installer did not ground ANYTHING (I had to redo the whole install properly myself), and 95% of the dishes in my neighborhood aren't grounded either.

Rob.

 

[joncom]

Same Exact Problem

Hey gryph, I am having the exact same problem, and the best part, I too am in Dallas TX.

Currently staying in an apartment in Las Colinas area, You in a different part of Dallas? Wouldn't that be funny if we were in the exact same apartment!

Anyways, I too was told by DISH that I required a grounding source and was told it had to be on the exterior of the building. They said I could install it myself and a technician would come back out and hook up the rest, but I would have to phiscially install the dish and run the cable to the interior of the building.

He also told me that I could find a contractor to install it without a grounding wire but him being a DISH employee could not.

So I canceled DISH and I am going to try VOOM and now I here from you that grounding may be required on their part. Well hopefully they will do it with the surge protector grounding. Let me know how it goes.

Jon

 

[gryphon]

rvsixer: Yea, that's what I figured - I'm going to try to get a different installer. It's not that I'm OPPOSED to having it grounded. I just wish we could sit down with the apt complex and figure this out. I'm not the only person who has a 3rd floor apartment!!

joncom: I'm in Lewisville. I guess it just depends on the installers you get. They scared off the maintenance manager at my apartment by saying they needed to install a grounding rod. There has GOT to be alternate points to ground to - water pipe or SOMETHING. I think the installer is mad because I had to cancel by the time he arrived (40 minutes late for a 4 hour window?) because my roomate had to go to a doctor's appointment.

As far as the surge protector goes - I called the installer, they talked to the project manager - project manager talked to Voom - Voom called me and said no. I'm escalating it, and like I said above, I'm not giving up on it.

 

[joncom]

At my complex there are plenty of 3rd floor dishes mounted with no external grounding wire and I don't see why a surge protector isn't good enough for the installers.

I guess if push comes to shove I will do a self install and have the technician come over push a few buttons, call the account setup line and be done with it.

If you make headway with voom get a name or something of who might approve it so I can send the people to the same person to get mine setup.

On the same line I don't think i have ever not placed coax on a surge protector. I spent a good amount of money on a descent surge protector to cover, RJ45, coax, and CAT5 protection...you can never be too safe.

This all might be pointless anyways depending on the outcome of the voom/cablevision situation anyways.

 

[rvsixer]

I don't see why a surge protector isn't good enough for the installers.

There is no assurance that every outlet the surge protector might be plugged into is grounded (and the small detail it doesn't meet NEC ).

 

[joncom]

Called my apartment complex and they asked the head maintainance guy what has been done in the past. He stated that there is a exterior light on my porch, which there is, and that the installer could use that as a grounding source

Would this meet the NEC? If so where could I find info on it meeting the code.

it is a porch light coming out of the wall of the apartment.

 

[gryphon]

I found <a href="http://www.mikeholt.com/mojonewsarchive/GB-HTML/HTML/GroundingSatelliteDishandLead-InCables~20020303.htm">this</a> to be helpful. I don't think that satisfies the NEC. Is the NEC law? Can an apartment complex be fined for non-compliance?

 

[gryphon]

Wow, I guess this is a moot point now.

http://www.voom.com

What timing.

 

[joncom]

not really, cause DirectTV and DISH also require Grounding wires so it may be moot for VOOM service but not any other satellite service

I just ordered a really nice 3 coax input surge protector as a hopeful final option. We shall see how that works for the Voom Install on the 8th.

My hopes are that just because voom may stop doing business, maybe someone else will pick it up and continue the service until they decide what they want to do with it.

 

[TYORK]

not really, cause DirectTV and DISH also require Grounding wires so it may be moot for VOOM service but not any other satellite service

I just ordered a really nice 3 coax input surge protector as a hopeful final option. We shall see how that works for the Voom Install on the 8th.

My hopes are that just because voom may stop doing business, maybe someone else will pick it up and continue the service until they decide what they want to do with it.

he should just make sure you let him no first thing that you have a surge, and you will take full respondiblity for the grounding part of it.

 

[joncom]

at this point I am desperate...my only other option is sbchomeentertainment with no HD at all and no plans to get it.

I will be willing to sign my life away if i have to, to get HD programming and the satellite installed.

 

[gryphon]

Well, because of all the hassle Voom has put me through, not that I can blame them if the NEC is law, but I have no grounding options that would satisfy them, plus they're really appearing not to be around. I'm going to go with DISH and get a shady underhanded installer so I can have 5 friggin' HD channels. Gee, I'm so glad I bought an HD TV so I could have such variety and go through all the hassles of dealing with people who just don't want to seem to help (not talking about you guys, but Voom/installers).

I would think this is common enough that they might actually try to talk to my apartment and help instead of just saying "Nope! Sorry! Bye!". If this is true ( plus the fact that I had to go out and GET a land line JUST for Voom), it's really no wonder why they're going under, sad as it is to see