[Mike109]

I would like to re-route my satellite coax. It was installed going into the attic & diplexed with my OTA antenna coax. This connects to a whole house splitter then to the Dish triplexer and another 4-way splitter. Short story - the installer explained I could then watch satellite on any outlet attached to the whole house 4-way splitter. It does work, but I hardly ever watch TV other than the main HDTV. Problem is I’m losing OTA signal strength going through the splitters.

So I want to run the sat coax down the outside of my 2 story townhouse & have it come in where the pre-existing entry point was that was used by Comcast cable. It would then bypass everything inside the house. The downspout is nowhere near this area, so I’d have to somehow attach the coax to the siding on the upper half and to brick on the lower half.

I’ve seen coax clips for siding, but for brick all the attachments that I find on the Internet require drilling & screwing. Since this is a townhouse I don’t want to drill holes in the brick. Has anyone ever epoxied clips to brick?

I called the previous installer & since it’s been a while this would be like a new install & would cost about $150 to do this. So I figured if I had a long enough ladder perhaps I could rearrange things myself.

Any suggestions on doing this & how to fasten the coax to the building?

 

[harsh]

There are a number of solutions that use hardened brads to stick in the mortar.

Your other option would be to use some sort of adhesive but that may be even more difficult to repair.

The key words are "masonry clips".

 

[P Smith]

I don't want to drill holes in the brick.
Has anyone ever epoxied clips to brick?

You could patch these holes after if you'll need that ...

I've seen sort of plastic squares (what has a small post with a hole) glued by some sort of black cement/glue (?). It's hold the squares for years here, but we don't have much rain as Oregon.

 

[Mike109]

I was at Home Depot & saw masonry clips but was not sure how to use them. The nails did not look very long & it seems that if a little bit of mortar got chipped away the nail would not be long enough to grab onto anything. Do you just hammer the nail into the mortar? How does the mortar compress in order to make room for the nail, or do you have to drill a pilot hole first?

The grounding block from the old cable installation is attached using a small screw into the mortar. I also looked at my neighbors Dish install & there were a couple screwed on clips. Obviously the screws work but I hate to experiment on a townhouse wall that does not belong to me.

I also saw little plastic squares that looked like they had double sided foam tape on the back. But I don’t know how well those would stick to brick.

I thought a little dab of epoxy might hold a metal cable clip for years. If it comes off just re-glue. If you need to remove it just carefully grind it away.

 

[Wire Nut]

If the mortar is more than 25 years old you should be able to drive the screw clips right in with a good drill. I do it all the time, mortar is not too tough to patch if need be. The nail clips you saw will work fine in the mortar, it is much softer than structural concrete. No need to predrill, they just hammer in. Please do wear safety glasses. Other than that, good 'ole super glue will hold for awhile. No need to get crazy, just a dab every few feet.

 

[Al Fischer]

If the only signal level being affected it the OTA then why not just install and antenna booster amp? Cheap. Easy. No coax to rerun.

 

[harsh]

If the only signal level being affected it the OTA then why not just install and antenna booster amp? Cheap. Easy. No coax to rerun.

The use of "dummy loads" or "terminators" may also improve the situation if they aren't already being used. Their use is even more important if you stick an amp in the system.

 

[Mike109]

If the only signal level being affected it the OTA then why not just install and antenna booster amp? Cheap. Easy. No coax to rerun.

How do I send the amp power up the coax when the Dish DVR is already sending its power up the coax to the LNBs?

 

[harsh]

Insert the pre-amp power uphill from the diplexer.

 

[Mike109]

Insert the pre-amp power uphill from the diplexer.

The diplexer is in the attic with the antenna.

 

[SayWhat?]

I also saw little plastic squares that looked like they had double sided foam tape on the back. But I don't know how well those would stick to brick.

Not very well. They don't even hold well on smooth, dry surfaces like the side of a metal desk.

You can find the same type of mounting blocks without the double-stick tape and use clear RTV adhesive. Done right, it will bond to the brick and won't be visible.

 

[harsh]

The diplexer is in the attic with the antenna.

Then you have two options:

1. Install the amp in the attic

2. Move the antenna outside where it will do more good

 

[Mike109]

Then you have two options:

1. Install the amp in the attic

2. Move the antenna outside where it will do more good

I thought about using an amp in the attic. There is no power close by but it could be done using a long extension cord.

I would like to move the antenna outside. I'm in a townhouse & they were all built with attic antennas. That might be a long fight to get it done, especially since the antenna signal strength appears OK if I eliminate that extra Dish splitter.

I think about how nice it would have been if my Dish was installed like my neighbor's. Right now I'm checking to see if my friends have a 2-story ladder. If so I would consider dropping the sat coax down the outside.