Outdoor antenna
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That's where mine is. It's a powered antenna. I have shingles, and it works great.
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Not 100% true. Depending what direction the towers are from your house and if you have a side of the house open to that direction it can work just fine. Majority of the time it will not work though.
My current roof is tile and it works fine. In a previous house I had asphalt shingle and it worked fine there too.
It depends on the strength of the signals, whether you can point the antenna, and the type of roof. As stated, a metal roof will act as a shield and will likely block the signal. Asphalt shingles over plywood sheathing will lower the signal level by at least 10 dB. It will lower it further if there is snow on the roof. Bottom line is that if you are near the towers, have a 'normal' roof and everything is pretty much in the same direction, an attic antenna is OK. However, it likely will be questionable if you are 50 miles away, if there are obstructions, or if you are in an area where there is a heavy snow load.
Metal will stop radio waves so a metal roof will definitely degrade TV signals now if it is a gable roof and the ends not covered by the metal roof point in the direction of the broadcast then the antenna can work. Now cover those open ends with aluminum siding and again there is no signal. Tile roofs made out of concrete will weaken the signal but usually isn't thick enough to kill it. Also how far are you from the broadcast towers at 1 mile the signal would be strong at 50 miles it would be quite a bit worse and would not pass through as much roofing.
8 miles from the TV towers you should be able to get good reception with a rabbit ear antenna next to the TV.
You never mentioned what type of roof you actually had...
Another place you can put it is in a closet. If you are 8 miles from the towers you should work as mentioned with rabbit ears, but you might not want to have them poking up behind the set.
If you can keep your antenna indoors it will be much more reliable in the long run.
If you are still thinking about getting an antenna like my OTA antenna as per our PM, here are a couple of tips for you. If you do not have a pull down stairway to your attic like my house doesn't have, if possible try to make it easy for yourself to adjust the antenna. If you notice my antenna is mounted on a 3/4” piece of plywood that is not bolted down and also it is located close to an attic access hole. So if small sideway adjustments are required it is easier just to stick your head up in the attic and move the plywood without having to go up into the attic. But of course this all depends on where you mount your antenna in the attic. Also, you never know if an antenna is going to work or not, there are lotsa variables as you can see in this thread. Check the return policy before you purchase in case you have to return it.
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I'm curious as to the brand & model of your antenna. If it works well it seems to be a fairly compact design.
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It is a Terrestrial Digital DB4. But I think it is sold now under Antenna Direct DB4e name and model.
Well, something else to consider there is the type of siding on the house. My house is a '50s brick ranch. The brick has a high metallic content and I am actually better off in the attic. Especially true because the house next door is also brick and between me and the towers.
Some of the window mounted flat antennas are pretty good. I've had luck with the winegard flat mount amplified one when it is pasted onto a window.
My antenna is under asphalt roofing and works just fine. Been there 13 years. Looks brand new. I get great signals on all channels. No amp needed. Transmitter is about 15 miles away. I have an antenna for high gain on VHF hi and UHF at around 50-70 miles. So I figured the extra gain under the roof would work out just fine. In every day use, it does.
