Why self install?

[markfp-1]

I've had satellite in my home for about 5 years now, and when I first got it I had it professionally installed . When I upgraded I also chose to have it installed again. I've always wondered with both Dish and DirecTV offering free installation, why would anybody, especially a first-timer, want to do it themselves. I can understand if you do it for a living or perhaps had it done improperly and figured you could do it better or if you had to pay for it, but other than that I can't see going to the trouble. I'm not finding fault with anybody's choice, I'm just curious.

 

[korsjs]

if you have never installed wiring, i would not recommend it. however, there are alot of people that buy their equipment from ebay, pawnshops, etc that do have the knowledge to do it themselves. if someone buys from ebay etc, then installation would not be free. believe it or not, their are alot of people that could do a better job than some of the pro installers.

and by the way, welcome to the site. lots of good stuff around here.

 

[mike123abc]

In my case I have a very old house with a very complex wiring path from where the dish is installed to where the receivers are. I took the time to feed through 2 attics, down a chase to the basement into the subfloor to the room where the receivers were installed. I do not believe an installer would have taken the time to run the cable the way I wanted. I have seen it run along the outside walls of houses, etc. The installer installed the dish and plugged in the receivers. If I had a simple attic run fish down through a wall I would have let the installer do it.

 

[Claude Greiner]

It depends on the customer, most of the regular customers prefer a professional installation, however I find that most of the people here on this site who are technically inclined prefer to do the install themselves.

A matter of fact the Dishstore did over a million dollars in sales last year in receivers and accessories. There are alot of people out there who prefer to do their own installation

 

[markfp-1]

Thanks guys, you made me feel right at home since I only discovered this site a few weeks ago and this was my first post. You all made good points. I hadn't considered people who buy used equipment from a secondary market. I only got thinking about this because a guy I know tried installing his first dish and fell of the roof and broke his leg. Now, in his case, he should have known better since it's winter here and his very high, very peaked roof was covered with snow and ice. After he got out of the hospital, he had an installer come over who told him that he could get a clear shot of the satellite simply by mounting it on the side of the house and would have never had to go up on the roof. I just figure if you know what doing, it's great to do it yourself , but otherwise stick with the pros.

 

[TuxCoder]

Too bad for your friend, but I still find that story somewhat humerus.

OK, that would make more sense if it was his arm and not his leg....

Don't hurt me please.

 

[korsjs]

Thanks guys, you made me feel right at home since I only discovered this site a few weeks ago and this was my first post. You all made good points. I hadn't considered people who buy used equipment from a secondary market. I only got thinking about this because a guy I know tried installing his first dish and fell of the roof and broke his leg. Now, in his case, he should have known better since it's winter here and his very high, very peaked roof was covered with snow and ice. After he got out of the hospital, he had an installer come over who told him that he could get a clear shot of the satellite simply by mounting it on the side of the house and would have never had to go up on the roof. I just figure if you know what doing, it's great to do it yourself , but otherwise stick with the pros.

we are glad you are here.