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How to get the most out of your attic mounted TV antenna.
Before you install Determine the following:
- Are some signals too weak to be received with an attic mounted TV antenna?
- What building materials will the TV signal need to penetrate to reach the antenna?
- Is their enough space for a suitably sized antenna?
- How much signal will be lost when compared to mounting the antenna outside?
- How to select the best TV antenna for my attic.
Building materials play a big role in determining the success of an attic mounted TV antenna. A while back I connected a TV antenna to my field strength meter. A field strength meter measures the signal strength of any individual TV signal. I Grabbed a piece of 7/8" OSB particle board and tested the signal strength of several TV channels without the board in front of the TV antenna. Then I placed the board at a distance of about 6 feet in front of the antenna. I found that on every channel the signal strength decreased with the board in front of the antenna. The closer I moved the board the weaker the signal became, as I moved it further away the signals became stronger. Keep this in mind when placing the antenna in the attic. The further you can keep the antenna from any signal obstruction the better.
Do you have a metal or masonry roof? If the station transmitter direction requires the signal to penetrate either of these materials your chances of success are diminished a great deal if not eliminated. However, if the signal direction allows the signal to penetrate a sidewall then all is not lost. A plywood roof covered by a single layer of asphalt shingles is best. Many homes have a 2-3 foot wide aluminum stripping installed under the shingles at the edge of the roof. Always install the antenna above this point so the transmitter signal line of sight to the antenna is above the metal stripping.
Do the attic sidewalls have metal siding, foil faced insulation, brick, or masonry of any kind? All of these materials are nasty signal blockers. Try to place the antenna in a position so the line of sight from the TV transmitters to the antenna is not block by any of the above mentioned materials.
Signal loss, attic installation VS. outside. By now you know that the building materials are a big factor. TV antenna elevation will also play a role in signal strength. The extra antenna elevation that can be gained by mounting the antenna outside above the roof line must be considered. Weaker TV signals and TV signals from a greater distance will be effected most by antenna elevation. Will the extra outside elevation place the antenna above surrounding signal obstructions such as neighbors homes, hills etc.
However, the the biggest factor in determining your success may be the attic gremlin. Several years back I installed an antenna in a customer's attic. They and I were tickled with the reception results. A short time later the neighbor to the customer called and requested the same work be done at their home. The new customer's home is located within 250 feet of the original successful attic installation. Both homes were two story and are constructed of the same materials by the same building contractor built within a couple of months of each other. Both were surrounded by several miles of farm land and the antennas were within a foot or two of elevation of each other. Do you think I could get the new customer's antenna to work in the attic. I tried relocating the antenna to several locations. I tried a different antenna and nothing worked. I couldn't see any reception factors that would make this difference but yet I couldn't achieve acceptable TV reception. I took the same antenna outside on the roof about 4 feet above where it was located in the attic. The difference was amazing it was almost like flipping a switch. To this day I can't tell you why this happened. I'm sure there's a good reason but I just blame it on attic gremlins.
How to select the correct TV antenna and equipment. The first thing to understand is that a TV antenna of the same kind will always work better mounted outside above your roof line. In certain areas it is possible that some TV signals may be to weak to be received with an attic mounted TV antenna but can be received with the same antenna mounted outside. However, that doesn't mean you can't have success with the antenna mounted in your attic. The first thing I suggest is that you visit the Digital TV Antenna Selector. This will help you determine the correct TV antenna and equipment for your location. Consider the topics above and if everything seems favorable for success then by all means mount the TV antenna in your attic.
Note: TV antennas mounted in the attic are more likely to benefit from the installation of a signal preamplifier or a distribution amplifier located in the antenna. All Winegard preamplifier's and distribution amplifier can be powered from below via the coax cable if an electrical outlet is unavailable in the attic.
The biggest mistake made when selecting an antenna for the attic is selecting an antenna that's to small and inadequate to do the job. If the antenna best suited for your area is to large for the attic space available it is best to go outside with the antenna. Remember there is no such thing as a tiny miracle antenna claiming to employ new breakthrough technology.
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