If you’re the type of person who depends on a TV antenna for most or all of your programming, you’ve no doubt run into the following scenario at some point in your life. You’ve invited some friends over, ready to watch the big game that’s about to start in a couple of minutes. You’ve already got all of the snacks and drinks out and everybody is excited. You turn on the TV and instead of that sporting event that you’ve been looking forward to all week long, you find… nothing. In the best-case scenario, you get a screen filled with static.
It’s happened to all of us, but the good news is that troubleshooting a TV antenna installation is easier than you think and you can usually have most problems fixed in just a few minutes.
You’re Dealing With a Bad Cable
Many TV antenna installation problems have nothing to do with the antenna at all, but rather with the cable that connects the antenna to the TV. Audio and video signals are sent over a coaxial cable in most cases, which is great because it allows for fully uncompressed audio and video.
If you run into signal reception issues, the first thing that you should do is always check the cable. Look for signs of corrosions, a loose fitting, tears in the cable shielding and more. If you see any of these warning signs, swap it out with a new coaxial cable as soon as you can.
The Weather Outside is Frightful
One of the major reasons why TV antenna installation issues occur actually has to do with the weather outside. This is just one of the trade-offs that you have to make for such convenient and ultimately high quality wireless programming in the first place. If you’re having signal issues and there is a big storm going on outside, wait for that weather pattern to pass. If the problem is fixed, the weather was your issue. If it isn’t, continue to troubleshoot until you get to the root of the problem.
Your Coaxial Cable is Too Long
One thing that many people don’t realize is that, when it comes to TV antenna installation, the length of the cable you’re working with absolutely makes a difference in the type of images that you’ll receive. If the coaxial cable that you’re using is longer than around 30 metres long, as much as 1/3 of the signal can be lost during transmission from the antenna to your TV alone. Always make sure that you’re measuring the distance between your TV and your antenna properly and use the shortest possible cable that you can.
Your Home is the Problem
Sometimes over the air broadcast signals have a hard time penetrating the materials that were used to make your house in the first place. For the best possible results, always install your antenna as high up on a wall near your TV as possible. If you can purchase an outdoor antenna to be installed on your roof, that will be even better.
For a swift solution to all your TV antenna reception problems in Brisbane, Caboolture and the Sunshine Coast, contact the experts at Picture Perfect Aerial Installations. Our expert team can diagnose and solve all TV reception problems and install clear viewing in no time.