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Topic: My Satellite Dish in Blowin' in the Wind (Read 3 times) previous topic - next topic
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My Satellite Dish in Blowin' in the Wind
Yahoo Message Number: 87252
My 2005 30' LD came with the optional Winegard RV Digital Satellite System (RM-DM46) factory installed.  It is the standard dish (antenna reflector) that you crank up and down manually. It is not covered by a protective dome.  When the wind blows the dish rocks back and forth. I can hear it blowing off its rest and then coming down onto the rest again when the wind abates.
 Sometimes I will temporarily lose contact with the satellite when this happens.  Contact will return as soon as the dish settles back on its stop and remains there for a few moments.

I got up on the roof and measured the free play at aprroximately an inch and a half.  It does not blow side to side, just fore and aft.

Are other people experiencing this? If so, what have they done to remedy it?

Nate Walker Tacoma Wa 2005 30' TB
Re: My Satellite Dish in Blowin' in the Wind - to Nate
Reply #1 –
Yahoo Message Number: 87255
Quote
"My 2005 30' LD came with the optional Winegard RV Digital Satellite System (RM-DM46) factory installed.  It is the standard dish
(antenna reflector) that you crank up and down manually. It is not covered by a protective dome.  When the wind blows the dish rocks back and forth. I can hear it blowing off its rest and then coming down onto the rest again when the wind abates.

Quote
Sometimes I will temporarily lose contact with the satellite when
this happens.  Contact will return as soon as the dish settles back on its stop and remains there for a few moments.

Quote
I got up on the roof and measured the free play at aprroximately an inch and a half.  It does not blow side to side, just fore and aft.

Are other people experiencing this? If so, what have they done to remedy it?"

Nate Walker Tacoma Wa 2005 30' TB
Nate, go to message 77125 for a complete report and a fix.  Mine does the same and I intend to fix it when it gets warmer.

Chris Horst
Arvada, CO
2002 30' IB
Formerly: 2002 30' IB
Re: My Satellite Dish in Blowin' in the Wind
Reply #2 –
Yahoo Message Number: 87270
Quote
Are other people experiencing this? If so, what have they done to remedy it?

 Yup.  That's why we've eventually changed to a dome on every RV we've had, including the LD.  Winegard apparently has a fix for the side-to-side wobble, but as far as I am aware, there is no fix for the movement you describe other than bungee-cording it to something else on the roof so it can't move.

Linda Hylton http://map.datastormusers.com/user1.cfm?user=1167 http://earl-linda.blogspot.com/
Linda Hylton
Re: My Satellite Dish in Blowin' in the Wind
Reply #3 –
Yahoo Message Number: 87275
Quote
Are other people experiencing this? If so, what have they done to remedy it?

Bungee cord
Re: My Satellite Dish in Blowin' in the Wind
Reply #4 –
Yahoo Message Number: 87279
Quote
I got up on the roof and measured the free play at aprroximately an inch and a half.  It does not blow side to side, just fore and aft.

Are other people experiencing this? If so, what have they done to remedy it?

Nate Walker Tacoma Wa 2005 30' TB
Refer to the referenced message.  Some small amount of free play is ineveitable, but an inch and one half at the top of the dish is too much.
 If you go to the Winegard website you can also find information about it.
 In my case, tightening the allen (if I remember correctly) set screw on the shaft is all I had to do.  My original plan was to use some "locktight" brand thread cement to hold the set screw once tightened. However when I took it apart I saw that the set screw was way down in there. I feared that if I took the set screw out to put the locktight on it that I would never get the set screw back in there.
 If you point to a satellite before you take it apart, then write down that Az EL, then when you put it back together you should be at the same reading for the same sat when on signal.

Glad that I took the trouble to fix it.  Bungee cord is a temp fix but a pain to climb up there after aiming.

The Winegard site will tell you that if their plastic shaft is cut too short during installation that there will be excessive play (shaft length depends on roof thickness.)  I bought an extra shaft kit just in case but found that I did not need it.  I think that we can figure that LD knows to install this correctly and that most problems are caused by the set screw working loose.  It works well when first tried from the mothership, but gradually works loose.
Maybe Winegard could (or has?) improved the design.

Ken In San Diego.
Re: My Satellite Dish in Blowin' in the Wind
Reply #5 –
Yahoo Message Number: 87283
In a message dated 12/16/07 10:14:52 PM, no_reply@yahoogroups.com writes:

Quote
However when I took it apart I saw that the set screw was way down in there. I feared that if I took the set screw out to put the locktight on it that I would never get the set screw back in there.
If the set screw is "way down in there," would it make any sense to install a backup set screw behind the existing one and load both against each other like a backup nut? ? ? ? ? Having not seen the situation I may be off base but it makes sense to me. Locktite would be too permanent for me, that stuff is really tough. However, if permanence is not an issue, a couple of drops on top of the set screw would probably do the trick.
Todd

See AOL's top rated recipes (http://food.aol.com/top-rated-recipes?NCID=aoltop00030000000004)

[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
Re: My Satellite Dish in Blowin' in the Wind
Reply #6 –
Yahoo Message Number: 87292
Nate,
 Although we don't have a satellite dish on the roof, and thus don't have your problem, I have noticed lately a fair number of RV's in CG's with bungey cords securing their roof-mounted crank-up dishes.  Yeah, you gotta get up on the roof to put them in place, but apparently it works.

Ted H.

'02 FL  NE-12

Camp Hosts at Gamble Rogers SRA, FL
--
www.toad.fobria.com
 See where we are: http://map.datastormusers.com/user1.cfm?user=6079

Posted by: "nlwalker4802"

When the wind blows the dish rocks back and forth. I can hear it blowing off its rest and then coming down onto the rest again when the wind abates.

Are other people experiencing this? If so, what have they done to remedy it?

Nate Walker

[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]