Satellite dish mounting standard now

[Hall]

When I was with Dish previously, my market req'd a SuperDish, and the standard method of mounting those were on poles in the ground. My market now has locals on the 129', so new installs are getting D1000 dishes.

What mounting options are "free" for that or considered a "standard installation" ??

I might need to have it pole-mounted like the SuperDish for LOS reasons. Otherwise, it would need to be roof-mounted on my 2nd story (20-24' high).

 

[Liquidforce88]

That depends on the company doing the install. For an RSP or DNSC area, all roof, wall, and pole mounts are standard installs. The only thing you would have to pay for is if the tech has to bury more than 50' of cable.

For retail installers they can charge for pole mnts. Some will even charge extra for standard mounts because they feel they give more than the standard install includes. This just depends on the retailer.

 

[Hall]

More good news... My area is served by Digital Dish, provided I purchase directly (or if I purchase through DishStore.net). I'm sure there's some benefits of a retail installer, but things like you mention are what turn me away from them.

For what it's worth, I think I'll be sure to mention that a pole-mount will probably be req'd and to make sure they at least have one on the truck, along with cement, etc, etc.

 

[Liquidforce88]

Don't get me wrong. I am not saying that retail installers will rip you off or anything like that. They just are allowed to charge for some things that RSP's and DNSC can not.

Some retailers go way above and beyond what is included in the "basic" install dish pays for. They should have the right to charge for this service.

 

[Hall]

For an RSP or DNSC area, all roof, wall, and pole mounts are standard installs.

How high will they go ??

Was there a policy in the past that they won't do a roof install that's over a living area ?? They would install on a garage roof or porch roof, for example. I know that policy wasn't written in stone 'cause I've seen SuperDishes mounted over a living area...

 

[rich88]

I'm not sure if I'm understanding you correctly.

Are you still at same house or have you moved to a different market??

If you're still at the same house - I can't say for sure without seeing your property and what kind of line of sight you have.

We know you're getting the 119 and 110 with your SuperDish. The only question is whether you have LOS for the 129 there too.

The odds are you do.

And if that is the case, then all the tech has to do is replace your SuperDish with a Dish 1000 and hook-up the receiver.

If you have moved to a different market - the Dish 1000 is only slightly heavier than the Dish 500. It doesn't even require struts when mounted on the roof. And it doesn't require the thicker, heavier poles when ground-mounted that the SuperDish required. It goes on the same pole as a Dish 500.

 

[cleve_dnsc_tech]

Ok as an recently departed tech with digital dish. I can tell you there are NO!!!! charges for a pole mount if needed or requested. Most Likely the tech will try to find a better way to do it other than a pole mount. The only fees that my come in to play is a trenching fee up to 50' is free afte that its $59/ hr. so your could always do it your self.

 

[Hall]

rich88: I cancelled my Dish service over almost two years ago and no longer have the Superdish, nor the pole it was mounted on.

cleve: My concern with the location my SuperDish was in is no LOS for the 129' satellite. If there's not, I have a roof over an addition to the back of the house that's 10-15' high that *might* work. Failing that, it's my 2nd story roof, which is over 20' high and rather steep. I'll bet most installers would want to mount the dish very near the edge so that they can stay on the ladder !

 

[webbydude]

Cleve has it completely right. If Digital Dish is coming out, then most of their installers will try to accomodate your requests within reason. At least in the Canton and Cleveland areas, all of our techs carry poles and cement in case an install won't happen from the rooftop.

If it's only the edge of a 2nd story home, then I don't see any problems developing. Yes, it can be a pain to run the lines down the side of the home to where where it needs to be grounded. But once again, most installers will do the best they can to hide said lines. Either tucking them along the siding or zip-ties to your spouting.

 

[Hall]

My previous install was done by Digital Dish and the installer was excellent ! He was very thorough, neat, and super-polite. In fact, I'm hoping he still works for them as I plan to "request" for him to do my install again.

 

[Tom Bombadil]

On my recent "install" the "installer" was hesitant to allow me to keep my old dual dish 61.5 & 110/119 setup. He said he got pressure from E* to convert everyone to the D1000. So when I requested that I merely swap out the LNBs on my existing dishes, he called his office to make sure it was allowed.

In the end I did all of the install work on the LNBs and I let him keep the D1000 dish.

But he left his number and asked me to call him directly if I encountered any problem and to not tell E* that I didn't have a D1000.

 

[Stargazer]

If someone is unsure if there is an extra charge then one should ask before the installer comes out if there would be a charge for that. You might get out of paying for an install on a pole if they want the sale bad enough if it is within a decent number of feet from the house. They would probably rather pay for a pole and a little extra time than to lose a potential sale unless they are real busy.

 

[Hall]

The installer(s) have been here and gone now.... A little over 2 hours to do everything. First thing they looked at was where the dish could go and I told them "my wife said it can't go at the front of the house" and they kinda frowned.... The next-door neighbor in fact has a D1000 mounted on their front porch roof. The spot that the previous dish was in wouldn't be able to see 129', nor would it from the back porch roof. I asked "what about up there ?" and he initally was hesitant. It's close to my incoming electric service feed and he wasn't sure if his ladder would reach. In the end, the dish is mounted on the 2nd story roof, at the rear corner.

They were able to use a lot of the existing cabling since I didn't touch most of it. In fact, the only new cable run was from the dish to the ground block directly below.

The two guys were very nice to deal with and I hope I didn't bug 'em too much !

 

[RIRWIN1983]

More good news... My area is served by Digital Dish, provided I purchase directly (or if I purchase through DishStore.net). I'm sure there's some benefits of a retail installer, but things like you mention are what turn me away from them.

For what it's worth, I think I'll be sure to mention that a pole-mount will probably be req'd and to make sure they at least have one on the truck, along with cement, etc, etc.

are you in a att/sbc service area i.e have them for home phone, if so you can get it through them w/ a disc and will still be installed by digital dish

 

[Hall]

I'm aware that SBC could "bill" me for Dish Network service, but am not interested. At most, I'd save a few dollars each month.

 

[Hall]

I have to ask now... How do the installers "peak" the dish ?? I had two guys, one being "trained", and the experienced guy did all the dish installing work. When I installed my DirecTV dish many years ago, I took a TV and the receiver with me outside so I could watch/hear the on-screen meter.

I guess he could have hooked it up to an inline signal meter, yes ??

Also, I know this has probably been covered a lot, but a couple of you are from Ohio, so it applies more, but what kind of signals should I be seeing on 110, 119, and 129 ?? It's cloudy and been raining all afternoon, so I won't check the numbers 'til later.