# How to mount dish on inside of condo?



## tony7896 (Jul 21, 2005)

I live in a condominium apartment with a clear view of the southern sky. I do not have a deck or any other exterior "private use" area that would be protected by FCC regulations, and my condo association rules forbid mounting satelite dishes on the outside of your unit. Until/unless I get the association to install a master satelite system, I am limited to installing a dish inside of my apartment.

Here is my plan. According to my master deed and association rules I own my windows and am free to modify them in any reasonable way. I plan to replace one of my glass storm windows with a plastic storm window (easy), cover it with a simple vinyl shade material, and mount my dish on the inside of my apartment by creating a frame to hold it up that would be directly attached to the inside of my window frame (which again I own and am free to modify). I understand that having your dish indoors severely restricts your ability to aim your dish at the satelite, but the window faces pretty much exactly toward the satelite(s?) I want to access (DirecTV), so this would not be a problem in my case. I believe that if I do this I would have reception pretty much as good as if the dish was outside the window. 

Can anyone confirm that this would work or point out a flaw in my plan?

Tony


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## Curmudgeon (Jul 15, 2004)

I'm puzzled why the plastic replacement window and vinyl shade. What does that have to do with anything?
Glass will not restrict the signal to any significant degree. If your dish can "see" the satellite thru your window, you'll get the signal. Simple as that.
If I were you though, I'd opt for one of the free installation deals and let the tech deal with the proper aiming..
Please take a photo of his face after you tell him what you want done! :lol:


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## tony7896 (Jul 21, 2005)

The shade is just to give me some privacy:sunsmile:. I won't be able to pull my curtains shut over this contraption.

Good to hear about the glass. I thought that it did reduce signal strength and plastic was better.

If I keep the frame real simple--like plywood mounted far enough from the window to allow the tech to work, that might actually qualify me for free installation. I hadn't even thought of that.

Thanks:allthumbs


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## BobaBird (Mar 31, 2002)

Here are a couple of tech articles over at DBSForums:

Can DSS be received through a glass window?
DBS through Glass


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## jdspencer (Nov 8, 2003)

I'd change out the window for a bay or bow window. Then the dish could be mounted partially in the bow or bay, possibly allowing you to align it better.


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## tony7896 (Jul 21, 2005)

A bay window would help, but the rules say that the appearance of replacement windows have to resemble the appearance of the original windows, so that's not an option.


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## tony7896 (Jul 21, 2005)

Thanks for the pointers. After reading about this issue from different sources here is what I've gathered:

A glass window will attenuate the signal some, depending on the type of glass, the thickness of the glass and the angle between the signal and the glass (straight out the window is better, looking to the side through the glass is worse). I skimmed through a complicated note explaining that thick glass is not necessarily worse than thin glass, but thickness can make a big difference. Someone suggested that triple-pane windows are worse and the new "low e" infra-red blocking coated glass can be a real problem.

Several sources said that Plexiglas has much less effect on signal strength. In one case someone had good reception through an open window and no measurable signal at all when the window was closed. He replaced the glass with Plexiglas and the reception was only 20 points down from the signal with the window open, which was adequate to give him very good reception.

So... I think this is one of those "it all depends" issues. Some people probably won't know if their glass window is going to be a problem until they try to set their system up .

In my case I think I'll start with Plexiglas. I'll take the storms out entirely, leave the window open year round, and cover the entire window area with Plexiglas and attach the dish to the Plexiglas. One nice thing about Plexiglas is that you can drill holes in it and if it is thick you can actually bolt things onto it. The Plexiglas would reduce the signal attenuation *and* be part of the support for the dish.

Or maybe I'll just take the easy route and suffer with cable :nono2:.


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## Nick (Apr 23, 2002)

FWIW, it's the lead content in window glass that degrades a sat signal passing through it. Plexiglass doesn't have lead.

I would suggest mounting the dish independently of the window pane itself, either mounting to the frame, or freestanding. 

Good luck in your quest to retain your sat feed - it isn't always easy. Right now I'm dealing with intermittent tree fade and hoping my apt. mgr. will cooperate with me, keeping me from having to become a midnight tree trimmer. 

Does anyone know where I can find a very quiet chain saw? :shrug:


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## tony7896 (Jul 21, 2005)

Thanks Nick. Attached to the Plexiglas might be easier, but I'm sure attached to frame would be better.

Even though I don't have a satelite dish (yet), I do have a problem with a very tall (20 feet?) shrub partially blocking one of my windows. My solution is very practical. I have one of those pruners that comes with a long extension pole. The pole is actually in two pieces for easy storage. When all is quiet I slide it out the window, pull the chord, and zip, a piece of the shrub falls to the ground.

If you do it slowly over a period of time no one will notice.

Tony


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## Nick (Apr 23, 2002)

tony7896 said:


> ...When all is quiet I slide it out the window, pull the chord, and zip, a piece of the shrub falls to the ground.
> 
> If you do it slowly over a period of time no one will notice.
> 
> Tony


:thats: That's funny, Tony. I like the way you think. :lol:


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