Snow or snowstorm?

[4DThinker]

Right now my HR20 can't find ANY sats. I was going to blame it on my last night download of version 11B until I realized my H20 and my old SAT-A4 are also not finding the saddle lights. Then I looked outside to see it snowing. Weather.com predict 6 inches, and since I don't have 1 inche yet I'm guessing there is a THICK cloud over my state.

At least my internet connection still works. Although my TVs get my local OTA channels fine, the small assortment of unwatchable content reminds me why I signed up with DirecTV in the forst place, many years ago.

So, who wants to bet? Is my signal loss due to snow on my dish, or thick snow-producing cloud cover?

[Jeremy W]

saddle lights.
Satellites.

[4DThinker]

Or was it Sad Delights?

So, is it snow on my dish, or the storm up above that has ruined my reception?

[hasan]

Or was it Sad Delights?

So, is it snow on my dish, or the storm up above that has ruined my reception?

My bet is the feedhorns are covered up...if you can reach it with a broom, be gentle and brush off both the dish itself and the feedhorns. If that doesn't do it, then perhaps the heavy precip will have let up by then.

We have 4-7 inches forecast for this evening, starting late.

[Tom Robertson]

most likely snow on dish especially if that heavy wet stuff.

Cheers,
Tom

[4DThinker]

Thanks, folks. There will be no climbing on my snow covered roof tonight. And with the dish on the steeply pitched roof over the second floor, I'll not be reaching it with anything resembling a broom. I might try banging on the attic roof, right under the dish, though. Does kinda inspire the thought of installing a skylight in the roof, right near the dish. One that would open up, that is.

Unusual. I had an old 2-LNB dish that survived several snowstorms with no apparent signal drop-out. It will royally suck if the new dish they put up is a snow collector.

[Coffey77]

You got a hose outside? I've spent a few minutes spraying from the ground and it'll clean it off in a jiff, almost like it's raining outside.

[bobojay]

Snow on dish, I may have to go out and clean mine afterwhile. 4 to 6" supposed to be here....

[veryoldschool]

You got a hose outside? I've spent a few minutes spraying from the ground and it'll clean it off in a jiff, almost like it's raining outside.
Two min ahead of me. Hope it isn't too cold or the hose will be ice.

[markrubi]

wiped mine off twice already today....

[4DThinker]

OK, I've got one spot on my rear two-story deck where I could put a step ladder and at least SEE the dish. Light glaze of snow covering the whole dish. I climbed up into the attic beneath it and beat on the roof a bit with a heavy 2x2. No change. The base is mounted right next to a ridge beam that is very solid. There will be no shaking of my dish tonight.

There IS some current up there. Some clever dish engineer should design a dish heater that warms the thing up a bit in conditions like this.

I do have a pressure washer. It relies on a water feed via hose, though, and I"m not in the mood to sacrifice a hose to this cause. It's still 30 degrees outside right now, but dropping fast. The snow is supposed to continue all night.

[Jeffro]

There is a product that melts the snow off you dish it is called Ice Zapper. Just go to icezapper.com to find out all about it.

[4DThinker]

The Ice Zapper looks like the inventor ripped out the heating elements of a heating blanket and sticks them to a dish. I've had visions of hooking up my 12v battery charger to two of the bolts that poke through the room into my attic. Of course that may only warm up the bolts, and not the dish. I could put a space heater in the attic right under the dish, maybe warm up the whole area of the roof. It's right at the peak, so the warm air would naturally rise to that point.

[4DThinker]

Well, it was probably more the clouds than the snow. My PC TV tuner with my SAT-A4 input is working now. Looking at a Radar map of the area, the heavier cloud cover has moved east. It's still snowing though. Then again the snow may have avalanched off the dish once it got heavy enough.

[bonscott87]

Snow usually doesn't effect reception much unless it's the really heave wet stuff. A snow cloud of that heavy wet stuff is just as good as a Thunderstorm.

Having said that, make sure to check to make sure your signal is peaked once you have a sunny day. The lower your clear day numbers the less fade you can take before it goes out.

[4DThinker]

All seems well with my signal now. Whatever it was, it affected all the receivers.

I've heard snow plows go by at least twice tonight. My wife will be driving back from Kansas City late tomorrow. I sure hope this storm is done and the roads are clear by then. The local news was nearly completely about the cars that had slid off the various roads this evening.