new home skytv install help

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richgamer

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#21477 28-Apr-2008 11:32

my brother just moved into a new home and it doesn't have a skytv dish there and no outdoor aerial. it is a two story house. he wants skytv upstairs in his room and downstairs in the lounge. if skytv need to put a satellite on the roof how would they run the cable downstairs if the room upstairs is not directly beneath the lounge downstairs? would they have to drill a hole in the floor to run the cable downstairs? and there is no phone line in the lounge. the phone line is two rooms away so will this phone cable have to be run along the top of the walls so the cabling will be visible to all?

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#126752 28-Apr-2008 11:55

as part of the install it is Sky's job to do all this for you, they have to set up the phone jack, plus run the wiring as part of the job. Don't get hung up on the finer detail, your bro can chat to the installer about this when they come out. In general I have found them to be pretty good.

Dingbatt

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#126777 28-Apr-2008 13:27

No, I think you are right to consider where the dish will be located and where the cables are run. I have seen some pretty horrendous installations with holes drilled right through external cladding/wall lining/skirting board and unsightly cables run externally to a dish location that suits the installer more than the look of your house. As long as the dish has a clear view of Optus D1 you should (within reason) be able to choose its location. As an example, an acquaintance had a dish on top of their steeply pitched roof (2 storied) that needed the LNB changed for current Sky Digital, so rather than climb the steep roof the installer bunged another dish on the side of the house, drilled through the wall and ran a new cable.

For the installer on a fixed price contract from Sky, he will want to finish as quickly as possible and move on to the next job. Not his fault, just pure economics. I think the Sky terms and conditions even refer to a standard install.

Depending how fussy your brother is about his new home, it may be worth him paying for an aerial installer to pre-wire or at least pre-drill his wall cavities. That is what I did, and I am happy because everything is hidden and in locations I wanted.

Sky installers out there please don't flame me. I recognise the minimal amount you are paid for the installations and that not all installers should be judged by the service provided by some.

“We’ve arranged a society based on science and technology, in which nobody understands anything about science technology. Carl Sagan 1996

andrewcnz

961 posts

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#126863 28-Apr-2008 18:39

Sky installers are quick but the end results are less than wonderful. Get the house pre wireded for sky etc by an aerial guy first!!!

richms

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#126874 28-Apr-2008 19:23

They install in the quickest way possible to get you up and running. If sky had to pay the full costs of every install and people got to dictate how cables were run etc then there would be another 0 on the end of the install price most likly.

If you have specific concerns about the installation the you may just have to bite the bullet and pay for a sparky or telecoms contractor to pull cables for you and then a painter and plasterer to do any patchup work to hide the cables. But you can spend a few 100 on it once (assuming you cant stop and paint yourself) or put up with looking at the ugly cables for the rest of the time your in the house.

Richard rich.ms

richgamer

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#127284 30-Apr-2008 12:53

is it possible to get skytv to install 2 skytv satellites so the satellites can each be directly next to the 2 rooms?

cyril7

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#127292 30-Apr-2008 13:23

Sky NZ dont own any satellites, they rent space on them from optus.

Dont understand what you are asking but presume you mean will they install two outlets so you can have either two boxs or move it from room to room, then yes.

Cyril

CYaBro

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#127349 30-Apr-2008 18:00

I think what they are trying to say is "Can Sky install two satellite dishes?" One dish outside each room where they want a decoder.

Opinions are my own and not the views of my employer.

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cyril7

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#127395 30-Apr-2008 21:12

OK, if thats case be aware that some councils no longer allow more than one dish per dwelling. There is no reason that a single dwelling like you have described would be allowed to have two dishs, and why would you want that.

There are lots of options for cleanly reticulating one dish feed to two floors, discuss it with the installer, if you are not happy with what he suggest then complain and ask for another installer or an independant to come and install as you want, but be aware it will cost over and above the normal install fee.

Be aware that the installer that comes to your home for a basic install is payed a minimal fee by sky to do so, if you want more or a cleaner installation you can negotiate with him directly and pay him directly for a more detailed install, most will be happy to comply, it will just cost more than the basic that sky pay them.

Cyril

kevthesparky

79 posts

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#127411 30-Apr-2008 22:14

Like everyone here has told you the sky installers are generally out there to earn the quickest buck there are a few of them going for the same dollar shall we say and I have seen some shocker installs over my time. Two story dwellings are also a nightmare to cable it is more than likely that you will end up with a cable clambering down the side to get to the bottom floor you could use conduit but you are only protecting the cable and not hiding it. You could get your installer to follow the drain pipe down and cable tie to that. I rekon you need to be fussy and tell the installer what you want not have them tell you!!! as some try to do. Im hoping that you may have some tv cabling in the house as you may be able to use that. Good Luck.

P.s worst cable install I have seen to date is a rg6 drilled through a sewer pipe.

ABK

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#127536 1-May-2008 12:16

Just got a logitech Harmony 525 Universal remote works on everything in the house except the Sky UHF anyone had any luck with this? I assume the Make is Videocrypt as this is on the bottom of the Decoder but remote wont read the IR signal from the existing sky remote.

richgamer

224 posts

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#127542 1-May-2008 12:41

a house in my street has 3 satellite dishes on their roof and a uhf aerial aswell. why would they have this? is it because a sky satellite dish can only support 2 sky decoders and if you want more you need more sky dishes on your roof?

cyril7: OK, if thats case be aware that some councils no longer allow more than one dish per dwelling. There is no reason that a single dwelling like you have described would be allowed to have two dishs, and why would you want that.

There are lots of options for cleanly reticulating one dish feed to two floors, discuss it with the installer, if you are not happy with what he suggest then complain and ask for another installer or an independant to come and install as you want, but be aware it will cost over and above the normal install fee.

Be aware that the installer that comes to your home for a basic install is payed a minimal fee by sky to do so, if you want more or a cleaner installation you can negotiate with him directly and pay him directly for a more detailed install, most will be happy to comply, it will just cost more than the basic that sky pay them.

Cyril

TameIti

97 posts

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#127546 1-May-2008 12:59

richgamer: a house in my street has 3 satellite dishes on their roof and a uhf aerial aswell. why would they have this? is it because a sky satellite dish can only support 2 sky decoders and if you want more you need more sky dishes on your roof?

cyril7: OK, if thats case be aware that some councils no longer allow more than one dish per dwelling. There is no reason that a single dwelling like you have described would be allowed to have two dishs, and why would you want that.

There are lots of options for cleanly reticulating one dish feed to two floors, discuss it with the installer, if you are not happy with what he suggest then complain and ask for another installer or an independant to come and install as you want, but be aware it will cost over and above the normal install fee.

Be aware that the installer that comes to your home for a basic install is payed a minimal fee by sky to do so, if you want more or a cleaner installation you can negotiate with him directly and pay him directly for a more detailed install, most will be happy to comply, it will just cost more than the basic that sky pay them.

Cyril

Are they asian? :D. Maybe they are picking up overseas signals, maybe one is an Ihug broadband dish.

richms

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#127559 1-May-2008 13:52

richgamer: a house in my street has 3 satellite dishes on their roof and a uhf aerial aswell. why would they have this? is it because a sky satellite dish can only support 2 sky decoders and if you want more you need more sky dishes on your roof?

If there are 3 units in the house, that will be why.

You cannot safely connect a dish to more then one breaker panel, since they have different ground potentials. Normally you will just start to see really bad ground loops, but in the event of a neutral fault you can end up with the full neutral current trying to go thru the wiring connecting the premisis.

A sat dish cannot be isolated, as that breaks the power up to the LNB from operating.

Richard rich.ms

allstarnz

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#127571 1-May-2008 14:06

ABK: Just got a logitech Harmony 525 Universal remote works on everything in the house except the Sky UHF anyone had any luck with this? I assume the Make is Videocrypt as this is on the bottom of the Decoder but remote wont read the IR signal from the existing sky remote.

do a search, i think this has been covered before. In short Sky UHF remotes don't work like normal remotes, hence your issue.

richms

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#127575 1-May-2008 14:08

More to the point, why do you still have sky uhf? 3.5 channels and all the good sports not on it.

Richard rich.ms

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