DBS Chimney Mount

[PSB]

Can anyone tell my where I can get a chimney mount in a hurry, do any of the large nationwide hardware/home improvement stores carry them? I can get one on Monday but could use one sooner. I am in St Paul, Minnesnowta!

[boba]

I don't use chimney mounts on brick chimneys I use the standard mounting foot and Tapcon screws in the brick. Mortar is too soft to hold screws.

[PSB]

Boba, is that the blue screws for stone that drill right into the brick? I dont like the chimney mounts my self but sometimes the houses here have the chimneys with sideing on! The chimney mounts take alot of work and time to put up and they mean working on roof, and thats a bad idea at this time of year here in the frozen tundra.

[boba]

Tapcons are blue but you need a hammerdrill and bit to predrill the holes. If its a wood framed chimney I use standard lag screws into the 2x4's.

[Nick]

PSB, to answer your question, try RS, HD Lowes or local DBS dealers. A couple of calls should do it.

[Bob Haller]

If its brick inspect it close up and from the top EVERY year. Chimeys werent designed for the load of a vibrating dish in the wind. This can cause cracking, interior damage that can kill from CO2 poisioning. My cap cracked and I got CO2 poisioning, fortunately I recognized the symptoms before dying. It could oif been a killer.

Only put your dish on the chimney if there is NO OTHER WAY.

My neighbor thought I was making it up. He lost the top 2 or 3 feet in a storm. His is now on his deck where it should of been from day one.

[PSB]

Thanks guys, the customer that was asking me for the chimney mount had to get another installer to this job for him, he wanted me to put the dish WAY up there, but there was snow on the roof and my 28' ladders were not long enough to get up to where this guy "wanted" his dish. I told him the best place to put it but he would not hear of it, seems he knows better than a licensed, certified installer. What is it with some folks they seem to think the higher the dish the better the signal : ) In the past two weeks I have had to do about 5 service calls to go up and brush the heavy wet snow from the dish! THE ROOF IS THE "LAST" PLACE to put your dish, some people dont learn until they have to pay for a service call!!!!!

[boba]

I usually explain to the customer there are 5,280 feet in a mile, the satellites are 22,300 miles out from the equator so ten feet higher up on the house makes little difference in signal it is not a TV antenna.

[Ryan]

I'm just wondering if you really told him the best place to put his dish? ;)

[xgrep]

Originally posted by Bob Haller
If its brick inspect it close up and from the top EVERY year. Chimeys werent designed for the load of a vibrating dish in the wind. This can cause cracking, interior damage that can kill from CO2 poisioning. My cap cracked and I got CO2 poisioning, fortunately I recognized the symptoms before dying. It could oif been a killer.

Only put your dish on the chimney if there is NO OTHER WAY.

My neighbor thought I was making it up. He lost the top 2 or 3 feet in a storm. His is now on his deck where it should of been from day one.Good advice, Bob. I unnecessarily installed my first satellite system on a chimney, and a gust of wind blew the chimney down. It smashed the roof tiles and miraculously bounced off a rafter and onto the ground instead of falling through the kitchen ceiling (where my wife was at the time).

Even so, my current installation is also on a chimney! But this time, I had no choice - there was absolutely no clear line to any bird from anyplace else due to trees. Not even another location on the roof. What a pain. I check it every few months, but still worry - you can't see those hairline cracks, so I try to push the chimney over with my hands!

x

[Mike500]

It's amazing how someone continues to have ideas on how strong the chimney is. It's easy to find the rafter next to the chiminey to screw in the mount foot for the mast. Forget RTV silicone. Use something call "duct seal" at $2 for a one pound block from Home Depot. Put it under the holes of the foot, and drive in the screws. Cover the heads with the same stuff. If you ever have to remove the dish, this stuff peels right off, without taking the shingles off with it.

Unless the lookangle is less than the pitch of the roof, the preferred place to mount the dish is right above the physical corner of the house. This is the strongest place in the structure of the house. The rafter is always fastened to the top plate of the wall, either with nails or hurricane straps. The rafter is easy to find, since it is about an inch from the siding or or 2-1/2 inches for the center. Point the dish over the ridge of the house or anywhere withn the 360 degree circle.

[apc1]

Pete, try these. These are the best type of anchors for concrete/masonry I have found for this type of application.
http://www.us.hilti.com/holus/modules/prcat/prca_navigation.jsp?OID=-12150
Home Depot carries something like it if you don't have a Hilti nearby.