# What type of RG6 for underground application?



## Hansen (Jan 1, 2006)

I need to bury underground a run of RG6 (about 200 ft). Can I use standard RG6 Quad or do a need special rated RG6 for underground?

Thanks


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## captain_video (Nov 22, 2005)

Standard RG6 should be fine, although they do have RG6 rated for direct burial. If you use regular RG6 just make sure it's buried below the frost line (usually about 30 inches in most areas) and that the free ends are above ground with no splices in between.


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## Cap'n Preshoot (Jul 16, 2006)

*TWO HUNDRED FEET???*

Lets assume for the moment that since you've posted this question in a satellite tv discussion forum that your plans are to use this for satellite TV.

I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but at satellite frequencies of 1~2 Ghz you're not going to have much signal left at the other end of that cable. It's not like a water hose. What goes in at one end does not all come out the other end.

Never mind the burial issue, lets first get the right cable for this long of a run. The correct cable for this distance is RG-11. This will require special connectors and a special tool to install them. You can bury it so long as you dont nick it.

Direct burial coaxial cable (called "flooded" cable or "icky-pic" cable) is the right stuff tho.

You'll likely need to go somewhere like Graybar Elect to find RG-11 and direct-burial (flooded) cable. Radios Hack and the home improvement stores will not have it. RG8 (common for CB radio use) is absolutely the wrong stuff. You want RG-11


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## paulman182 (Aug 4, 2006)

My installer told me it was OK to bury about 30 feet of his regular RG-6. I specifically asked him if burial required special cable, and he said no.

I am suspicious that he did not know what he was talking about, but if problems develop, it will not be hard to replace it for such a short run.


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## Cap'n Preshoot (Jul 16, 2006)

captain_video said:


> Standard RG6 should be fine


No offense, but I strongly disagree.

I don't know captain_video's qualifications and I admit to being an old fart, but I've been in communications for over 40 years and held a broadcast engineer's license (FCC First Class) w/radar endorsement for most of those years until it became called the "General Radiotelephone" license. I spent almost 10 years as a Region Engineer for Cox Cable back in the '70s.

RG6 (any of it, quad, flooded, etc) is not the correct coaxial cable for a 200' run for a DBS system. At that length it's even marginal for Cable TV (750 Mhz)

Let me try to put the cable loss in simpler terms perhaps more people can understand; If instead of a 1 Ghz receiver we had a transmitter and the power output of our transmitter, as measured at the output flange, was 100 watts:

1) at the end of 100 feet of RG6 our measured power would be about 24 watts
2) at the end of 200 feet of RG6 our measured power would be about 3 watts
3) at the end of 300 feet of RG6 we'd be down to about 1/4 of a watt

See where this is headed?

RG11 is also very lossy at satellite (LNB output) frequencies, but only half as much as RG6. In our hypothetical situation above we're still going to loose a lot of our signal in 200 feet of coax, but would you rather end up with 24 watts or 3 watts?

Hansen is going to go through a lot of effort and some expense to do this, so lets point him in the right direction so his money and effort isn't wasted or doesn't yield disappointing results. Let's give this thing a fighting chance of working. Do it right from the beginning and it won't have to be redone.


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## ajwillys (Jun 14, 2006)

Cap'n Preshoot,
You seem to know what you are talking about. What would be the consequence of too long cable runs? For instance, I have a long cable run, but about 30-40 feet could be eliminated. If I made this shorter, would I notice any difference in the picture quality. The only problems I ever see is the occasional rain fade.

I was under the impression with digital satellites you either got the signal or you didn't. Does signal degradation affect picture quality at all?


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## carl6 (Nov 16, 2005)

There are two factors to consider on coax runs, especially if you are going to go hi-def with the 5-LNB dish.

First is signal strength from the dish to the receiver. As has been noted, there is certainly going to be signal loss in that long a run. You are correct - you either have it or you don't. But, "having it" includes use of forward error correction that is embedded in the signal. If you are loosing some percentage of the data bits, but fewer than the error correction can handle, you still "have it". But your margin is lower, which means you will be more subject to such things as rain fade.

The second issue is DC voltage drop from the receiver to the dish. There are 13 volt and 18 volt DC signals, as well as a 22KHz tone signal, that are sent TO the dish. These are also subject to attenuation over distance. The 5-LNB dish draws more power than the single or triple LNB dishes, which results in more voltage drop. When your runs get too long, the LNB assembly simply won't work.

For your specific application, how long is the actual portion that will be burried? From dish to building entry point? Put a powered multiswitch at the building entry point and you will solve at least part of the length problem.

Also, for a run that length, I would highly recommend conduit. That way if you ever have to replace a piece of coax, you can simply pull it through and not have to dig up the yard.

Carl


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## skyboysea (Nov 1, 2002)

I have just replaced the old regular RG-6 that the previous owner had buried with direct burial double shield. I have four 180 feet runs and the signal is in the 90s for most tranponders. Just for the sake of trying, I moved the dish in a temporary position and connected it to the receiver with just 30 feet of RG6 and the increase of signal was marginal. 
From other similar posts I have read in the past, long runs can cause more problems with the signals sent from the STB to the LNB than viceversa so it is advisable to use copper cable rather than clad steel.
Hope this can help.


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## Cap'n Preshoot (Jul 16, 2006)

ajwillys said:


> What would be the consequence of too long cable runs? For instance, I have a long cable run, but about 30-40 feet could be eliminated. If I made this shorter, would I notice any difference in the picture quality. The only problems I ever see is the occasional rain fade.
> 
> I was under the impression with digital satellites you either got the signal or you didn't. Does signal degradation affect picture quality at all?


I think Carl's response above said it best.

True with digital it's either there or it isn't, but with a lot of lossy coax you reduce your "buffer" (for lack of a better word) and thus reduce your fade margin. Any reduction you can make in the length of your coax will help, but a 30 or 40 ft reduction may not be very noticeable unless we put the meter on it.

Just because 200' of RG6 may very well work, the inherent losses will very likely have your receiver operating dangerously close to its threshold. This also works the same for non-amplified multiswitches that split your signal 6 or 8 ways

The signal strength meters in the various receivers operate off the limiter current or agc current, etc in the receiver and so the readings are only relative and will not be linear. In other words, cutting your cable length in half will not be seen as a doubling of your signal strength on the S-meter of the receiver. It would take something like a spectrum analyzer or a Drake 1000A meter to show you the measurable change.


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## AllieVi (Apr 10, 2002)

captain_video said:


> ... If you use regular RG6 just make sure it's buried below the frost line ...


Frost? What's that?


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## AllieVi (Apr 10, 2002)

Whatever you bury, put it in a generous-sized conduit. Black (ABS) plastic pipe @ 1 1/2" diameter is relatively cheap and easy to install. One-inch PVC water or electrical conduit works well, too, of course.

Replacing cables or adding new ones in a conduit will be much easier if the need ever arises.


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## bonscott87 (Jan 21, 2003)

100 feet is about the max for sat cable runs. After that the signal strength really drops off. You can buy signal boosters to put in the cable runs.

I have quad sheilded RG-6 buried about 40 feet in some PVC pipe.


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## Cap'n Preshoot (Jul 16, 2006)

bonscott87 said:


> 100 feet is about the max for sat cable runs. After that the signal strength really drops off. You can buy signal boosters to put in the cable runs.


True, but..... there's another sword out there waiting to cut you. The name of the sword is slope also sometimes called tilt

At the output of the LNB your satellite frequencies currently cover a range of 950 to 1450 Mhz, or 0.95 to 1.45 Ghz. That's a frequency spread of 500 Mhz. The attenuation (loss) in coaxial cable is proportional to the frequency of the signal passing through it. At the bottom end (950 Mhz) the attenuation in 100 feet of RG 6 is close to 7 db (6.65 db to be exact) but at the top end (1450 Mhz) the attenuation in the same piece of coax is somewhere around 10 db per 100 feet. Reduced to common terms, that's twice as much signal loss at the high end as you have at the low end. Adding the amplifier boosts the signals, but it doesn't address the tilt problem unless you purchase an amplifier with slope/tilt compensation.

In 200 feet of RG6 the tilt problem is twice as bad. True, you've got 14 db of cumulative loss at 950 Mhz but now your loss at 1450 Mhz is 20 db, or 6 db difference between your low and high end. (signals are 4 times stronger at 950 Mhz than they are at 1450 Mhz.)

All of which takes us back to my original reply to Hansen's first post. RG6 is absolutely the wrong cable for a 200' run, with or without an amplifier unless you can find a slope-compensating amplifier, such as the $470 Spaun SBK5503NBF
(link) http://www.solidsignal.com/prod_display.asp?PROD=SBK5503NF


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## bobnielsen (Jun 29, 2006)

Cap'n Preshoot;636878 said:


> True, but..... there's another sword out there waiting to cut you. The name of the sword is slope also sometimes called tilt
> 
> At the output of the LNB your satellite frequencies currently cover a range of 950 to 1450 Mhz, or 0.95 to 1.45 Ghz. That's a frequency spread of 500 Mhz. The attenuation (loss) in coaxial cable is proportional to the frequency of the signal passing through it. At the bottom end (950 Mhz) the attenuation in 100 feet of RG 6 is close to 7 db (6.65 db to be exact) but at the top end (1450 Mhz) the attenuation in the same piece of coax is somewhere around 10 db per 100 feet. Reduced to common terms, that's twice as much signal loss at the high end as you have at the low end. Adding the amplifier boosts the signals, but it doesn't address the tilt problem unless you purchase an amplifier with slope/tilt compensation.
> 
> ...


Surplus ~3/4-in. diameter aluminum coax from a cable company's junkyard is often available for the asking. When our local cable company was bought by ATT (just before they were acquired by Comcast) they replaced many miles of the stuff. I don't know what connectors might be available/required, however.


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## skyboysea (Nov 1, 2002)

bonscott87 said:


> 100 feet is about the max for sat cable runs.


That's just not true. As I said above I have 180 feet and I have no signal problem at all without using any signal booster. It might depend on the quality of the cable and connectors you use but saying that 100 feet is the max is wrong.


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## Cap'n Preshoot (Jul 16, 2006)

bobnielsen said:


> Surplus ~3/4-in. diameter aluminum coax from a cable company's junkyard is often available for the asking. When our local cable company was bought by ATT (just before they were acquired by Comcast) they replaced many miles of the stuff. I don't know what connectors might be available/required, however.


That's called *"seven-fifty"* cable for mainline trunk use (between trunk amplifiers) and is something of a chore to work with. You would also need special reducing type connectors to get it down to "F" fittings and a coring tool. It is also pretty common to use heat-shrinkable sleeves where it meets a connector (for weatherproofing).

Biggest I've ever seen used in commercial buildings where we would provide CATV service for the entire multi-story building is *five hundred* (1/2") aluminum cable. But again, these installations were all for a 750 Mhz baseband and what we're talking about with DBS systems is twice that frequency.

I think people just need to use some common sense and follow reasonable guidelines. DirecTV (and I'm sure E*) tell you in the installation manual that you should not exceed 100 feet. What's so hard to understand about that? I understand folks thinking they can go further because they do not (nor should they be expected to) understand the technical reasons behind the 100-foot recommendation. Still when told, you still have the usual batch of idiots who come out of the woodwork to argue with you. If you enjoy rain fade, then fine, do it your way and I apologize for trying to help.


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## Cap'n Preshoot (Jul 16, 2006)

skyboysea said:


> That's just not true. As I said above I have 180 feet and I have no signal problem at all without using any signal booster. It might depend on the quality of the cable and connectors you use but saying that 100 feet is the max is wrong.


Of course *skyboysea* here is the expert.

As a retired broadcast engineer and former CATV regional engineer I have given you all the technical engineering reasons why 100 feet is the maximum recommended cable length of RG6 for satellite service.

I will say no more. My sig line applies.

We now resume with your regularly scheduled programming.


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## captain_video (Nov 22, 2005)

> No offense, but I strongly disagree.


You are correct. I missed the part about the 200-foot run. If you have a run of that length you should have some sort of amplification to boost the signal to compensate for the loss. Perhaps a powered 4X4 cascadeable multi-switch would fit the bill but that's just supposition on my part. In any case, runs of that length make powered multiswitches an absolute must. I'd recomend checking with a local satellite dealer to see what they use since BUD installers have been doing this for a lot longer than DBS has been around.

Cap'n Preshoot seems to have a handle on the cable specs but I think 3/4" coax for a backyard run is overkill for your application, unless you plan on installing a trunk line to feed the entire neighborhood. If you were designing something to MIL-spec staandards then I'd be in full agreement with what he's saying but the fact is you're not. Some sort of signal booster every 100 feet should be adequate for your needs, but don't take my word for it. You may be able to run the cable 200-feet with no noticeable degradation if you are using a quality powered multiswitch, but don't quote me on that.

Run the cable on top of the ground and try various configurations until you find one that provides the signal strength and clarity of picture that works. Perhaps you could install a junction box above ground in the middle of the run where you could access the cable splices for troubleshooting and maintenance. Just make sure it's a waterproof housing of some sort.

The recommendation for using conduit is an excellent suggestion. You can buy coils of plastic conduit (usually 3/4" to 1" in diameter) for a reasonable price from many home or electrical supply outlets. Rent yourself a trenching tool for about 1/2-day and you'll be up and running in no time at all. Make sure you have the utility company send someone out to mark any underground cables before you start digging or you could find yourself in a world of trouble. The local utility companies don't take kindly to having their cables cut by homeowners. It may actually be illegal to do any digging of this type without getting clearance from them first so check your local laws.


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## Cap'n Preshoot (Jul 16, 2006)

captain_video said:


> You are correct. I missed the part about the 200-foot run.


Jeeze, that was the operative statement in Hansen's post and what started all of this.



captain_video said:


> If you have a run of that length you should have some sort of amplification to boost the signal to compensate for the loss.


And what do we do about the slope?



captain_video said:


> Perhaps a powered 4X4 cascadeable multi-switch would fit the bill but that's just supposition on my part. In any case, runs of that length make powered multiswitches an absolute must.


Not if he uses RG11



captain_video said:


> Cap'n Preshoot seems to have a handle on the cable specs but I think 3/4" coax for a backyard run is overkill for your application, unless you plan on installing a trunk line to feed the entire neighborhood. If you were designing something to MIL-spec staandards then I'd be in full agreement with what he's saying but the fact is you're not. Some sort of signal booster every 100 feet should be adequate for your needs, but don't take my word for it. You may be able to run the cable 200-feet with no noticeable degradation if you are using a quality powered multiswitch, but don't quote me on that.


1) The amplifier addresses only the loss. It does not correct the slope. In 100 feet of RG6 the slope is bad but still a tolerable number. In 200 feet of RG6 the slope is twice as bad and a large enough number to begin causing problems in the receiver. The amplifier does not correct the slope unless you spend $500 for the Spaun amplifier which does corect it.

2) RG11 is not 3/4" diameter; it's not even 1/2", though it is larger than RG6 it is not even twice as large. RG6 = 0.272 OD and RG11 = 0.400 OD

3) The RG11 has a #14 ga center conductor (good for 15 amps). No stinking powered multiswitch needed. RG6 center conductor is #18 ga, i.e., doorbell wire.

At Ku band satellite LNB frequencies *200 feet of RG11* will exhibit approx similar loss and slope characteristics (within 1~2 db) as *100 feet of RG6*, making it ideal for Mr. Hansen's project.

The biggest problem with RG11 is you can't buy it at rat shack or Lowes and commercial jobbers (Graybar, etc) are going to be very reluctant to break a 500' spool.


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## dave1234 (Oct 9, 2005)

I have 350 ft of RG6 in my installation plus a radio shack DBS amp. at the Dish 500 end. I've had no problem with this installation. My setup works without the amp. but I leave it in for insurance plus because coax deteriorates over time.

Dish's max. spec. is 200 ft. At that distance you'll have absolutely no problem. The Dish LNB has plenty of gain to make up for the loss in 200 ft. of RG6. FWIW the older Dish legacy systems had a max. lenght spec. of 100 ft. but that was not because of RF loss, it was due to DC loss and the current requirements of the older system.

Back to you original question: Cable rated for direct burial has different materials to prevent water from entering the cable over time. Regular RG6 would likely work for quite some time, but would eventually become more lossy.

The coax I'm using was purchased at home depot. It is Carol C5775 cable. This is not direct burial cable. Spec. can be found here:
http://www.generalcable.com/NR/rdonlyres/55F61B9E-9619-4C50-9093-2DED4E2238E3/0/Pg57_60_RG6Utype.pdf

At 2Ghz. the loss is approx. 10 db per 100 ft. In my case the total loss is approxiamately 30db., which is a large amount of loss, but it works!!!


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## AnonomissX (Jun 29, 2006)

Uhm....

How about just installing another dish at the end of that 200 feet away????

/ducks


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## captain_video (Nov 22, 2005)

> 1) The amplifier addresses only the loss. It does not correct the slope. In 100 feet of RG6 the slope is bad but still a tolerable number. In 200 feet of RG6 the slope is twice as bad and a large enough number to begin causing problems in the receiver. The amplifier does not correct the slope unless you spend $500 for the Spaun amplifier which does corect it.


I'm not disputing there's an issue with slope, just that the end user may not be able to see its effect on the picture, which is why I suggested he try it above ground first.



> 2) RG11 is not 3/4" diameter; it's not even 1/2", though it is larger than RG6 it is not even twice as large. RG6 = 0.272 OD and RG11 = 0.400 OD


Sorry. I got your post mixed up with the one from bobnielson. I knew that someone had mentioned the 3/4" coax and the posts all started running together after a while.



> 3) The RG11 has a #14 ga center conductor (good for 15 amps). No stinking powered multiswitch needed. RG6 center conductor is #18 ga, i.e., doorbell wire.


To each his own. I'd prefer not using a passive switch for any long runs of cable, particularly when cascading multiswitches that require the 22kHz switching frequency.

Here's what I'm getting from this thread:

Cap'n_Preshoot is quoting chapter and verse from an Engineering manual about slope and loss and is missing some of the target audince in the process. He is probably 100% correct in his assessment of these things and I'm not disputing them at all. This just reminds me of an Engineer trying to explain that all audio amplifiers sound the same back when I was a diehard audiophile. He could quote me all sorts of reasons why there should be no difference but he couldn't explain the psychoacoustic affect of the components on the signal.

Others are chiming in with personal experiences of using long runs of cable. Chances are they are seeing degradation of the signal but just don't have the knowledge or experience to notice it (i.e., no reference point to a quality transmission). These are the folks that probably live with misaligned TV sets right out of the box and mediocre audio systems (I wonder how many of them think Bose Lifestyle systems are state of the art) because they don't know what a good signal is supposed to sound or look like.

If the end user sees no discernible difference in the signal then who cares about slope and such (besides the good Cap'n, I mean)? I've spent too much time trying to convince people of the correct way of doing things but the bottom line is that thay'll do what they please in the end. You know what they say about leading a horse to water.


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## paulman182 (Aug 4, 2006)

I'm the try-it-and-see-what-happens type.

I understand why slope is important in an analog system, such as the cable I used to be on. Low channels bleeding all over each other when high channels were good; low channels good, high channels snowy.

But I really don't see what effect slope would have on digital DBS, as long as the higher frequencies were above the noise threshold?


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## Hansen (Jan 1, 2006)

Thank you to all for the advice and suggestions. It sounds like RG11 is the correct solution but RG6 might work. If I understand the comments correctly, the risk of RG6 is the potential for degradation of picture quality or rain fade in bad weather. It does not look like I will have enough time to get a spool of RG11 before I need to drop the cable in the trench (the cost is also up there a little given I have not been able to find a 250' or 500' spool of cable; only 1000'). It may be possible to get the run down to about 160 or 170' depending on where they cut the trench for the gas lines and electric lines going from the house to the pool pavilion/cabana. Since building is open to the air on the sides and we're not likely to be out there watching tv in rainy weather, perhaps the rain fade will not be too much of an issue...especially if I can cut 30' to 40' off the run. 

Thanks again.


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## captain_video (Nov 22, 2005)

Actually, rain fade has no direct bearing on the type of cable being used. It's more of an issue with the amount of signal your dish can collect. Any interference from trees or thick clouds (hence the term) will attenuate the signal to a point where the receiver can no longer detect it. Long signal runs will also attenuate the signal and make you more prone to rain fade but there's more than one aspect to the problem. 

A larger dish will provide more gain and may make up for the loss due to a long cable run. It will also make your system less susceptible to rain fade. Unfortunately, I don't know of any dish manufacturer that makes a multiple-satellite dish for DTV that will provide the extra gain to compensate for this problem. I used to have a 30" dish for the 101 sat and never experienced any rain fade except under extreme weather conditions. The current dishes I've seen are all pretty much standard sizes and comparable in gain to the Phase III dish that DTV offers.


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## samrs (May 30, 2004)

Hansen said:


> Thank you to all for the advice and suggestions. It sounds like RG11 is the correct solution but RG6 might work. If I understand the comments correctly, the risk of RG6 is the potential for degradation of picture quality or rain fade in bad weather. It does not look like I will have enough time to get a spool of RG11 before I need to drop the cable in the trench (the cost is also up there a little given I have not been able to find a 250' or 500' spool of cable; only 1000'). It may be possible to get the run down to about 160 or 170' depending on where they cut the trench for the gas lines and electric lines going from the house to the pool pavilion/cabana. Since building is open to the air on the sides and we're not likely to be out there watching tv in rainy weather, perhaps the rain fade will not be too much of an issue...especially if I can cut 30' to 40' off the run.
> 
> Thanks again.


It'd be even cheaper still to put a little round dish on the back side of that cabbana.


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## paulman182 (Aug 4, 2006)

Channel Master makes a triple-sat antenna called the Gain Master. It is 35.3 X 26.2 inches, designed to reduce rain fade, it says.

It is available at www.solidsignal.com, but would be pretty costly compared with the (usually free) Phase III dish by the time you bought the package with a switch.


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## dave1234 (Oct 9, 2005)

From DirectTV's manual:

"• For installations where the RG 6 cable runs from the
receiver(s) to the LNB far exceeds 100 feet (150 feet or
more), as encountered in a commercial or multi-dwelling
building, you need to use an AC power booster module to
bias the LNB.
• You will also need an additional RF signal amplifier to
compensate the signal amplitude loss. Otherwise, your
antenna and receiver may not work properly and be subject
to frequent outages in adverse weather. Contact a
professional concerning such installations."

Since your install does not "far exceeds 100 feet" you'll have no problem without using additional amplifiers or RG11 cable. Even then an added booster amp. would compensate for the longer cable run.


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## captain_video (Nov 22, 2005)

> Channel Master makes a triple-sat antenna called the Gain Master. It is 35.3 X 26.2 inches, designed to reduce rain fade, it says.
> 
> It is available at www.solidsignal.com, but would be pretty costly compared with the (usually free) Phase III dish by the time you bought the package with a switch.


Thanks for the link. The cost for the dish and LNBs isn't bad considering that I paid almost the same price for my original double dual LNB dish plus a SAT-C kit. I've only experienced limited rain fade with the stock dish, although I believe the original dish may be slightly larger than the current Phase III version. A larger dish is definitely a worthwhile upgrade if your signal levels are in the low 70's or you regularly suffer from rain fade.



> Contact a professional concerning such installations.


Unfortunately, far too many of us have had bad experiences with DTV's so-called "professionals" that couldn't find their butts with both hands and a flashlight.

Hansen - I'd have to agree with samrs. It would be much cheaper and simpler just to install a separate dish on the outdoor cabana that have to deal with the long cable run from the house.


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## AnonomissX (Jun 29, 2006)

captain_video said:


> Thanks for the link. The cost for the dish and LNBs isn't bad considering that I paid almost the same price for my original double dual LNB dish plus a SAT-C kit. I've only experienced limited rain fade with the stock dish, although I believe the original dish may be slightly larger than the current Phase III version. A larger dish is definitely a worthwhile upgrade if your signal levels are in the low 70's or you regularly suffer from rain fade.
> 
> Unfortunately, far too many of us have had bad experiences with DTV's so-called "professionals" that couldn't find their butts with both hands and a flashlight.
> 
> Hansen - I'd have to agree with samrs. It would be much cheaper and simpler just to install a separate dish on the outdoor cabana that have to deal with the long cable run from the house.


Yeah, what I said...5 posts previous


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## captain_video (Nov 22, 2005)

I saw your post but it didn't click because I didn't understand where you were coming from at the time. It wasn't until I read about the cabana installation that it all started to make sense. All this time I had been assuming that the dish was being mounted 200 feet away from the house and never considered that the cable run was being installed for another receiver outside the main house. I guess it would have helped to read the previous posts more carefully. This tends to happen when I don't follow a thread from the beginning or miss a lot of interim posts.


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## Hansen (Jan 1, 2006)

samrs said:


> It'd be even cheaper still to put a little round dish on the back side of that cabbana.


Thanks. That's a good idea. Unfortunately the structure is located under large trees with no unobstructed view for another dish.

Thanks


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## JLucPicard (Apr 27, 2004)

After reading Capt_video's post (I was another that missed the whole deal with this being a cabana feed), here is one thing to make sure you've considered. If you plan on running this off the same dish as you run everything else, and there is a chance of you connecting more than four receivers (or your current set up already does), this feed would have to come off a multi-switch and not the dish itself. You will not be able to use one of the four feeds off this dish for this, then connect the other three to a switch. My apologies if this is a real "well, duh!" statement.


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## Hansen (Jan 1, 2006)

JLucPicard said:


> After reading Capt_video's post (I was another that missed the whole deal with this being a cabana feed), here is one thing to make sure you've considered. If you plan on running this off the same dish as you run everything else, and there is a chance of you connecting more than four receivers (or your current set up already does), this feed would have to come off a multi-switch and not the dish itself. You will not be able to use one of the four feeds off this dish for this, then connect the other three to a switch. My apologies if this is a real "well, duh!" statement.[/QUOTE
> 
> I should have provided more information on the appplication in my original post. Sorry about that and thanks to all for the advice.


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## ApK (Mar 6, 2006)

captain_video said:


> Actually, rain fade has no direct bearing on the type of cable being used. It's more of an issue with the amount of signal your dish can collect.


I think the idea is that with a given dish, if you're already giving up a lot of your signal strength in cable loss, then just a little bit of degradation from rain might be enough to reduce it to the point where you can't get a picture, where if you had a more efficient path, then it would take a lot more rain to bring the signal down to where it fades.

Also, might I offer that engineers are often fairly conservative in published figures and tolerences. If you have to stake your job/reputation/life on a recommendation, you're going to give a recommendation that you know will work. For an individual doing his own thing, there no reason not to push the limits and see how it works for you. If it works, great, if not, you change the cable, no big deal.

ApK


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## Schyler (Sep 8, 2006)

What effect would frost have on RG6 if it wasn't direct-buried deep enough? 

Could the freezing ground crush the cable?


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## cybrsurfer (Sep 17, 2006)

Schyler said:


> What effect would frost have on RG6 if it wasn't direct-buried deep enough?
> 
> Could the freezing ground crush the cable?


Go to Home Depot or Loews and get some plastic conduit and insert your RG6 thru that to protect the cable from the elements.


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