[TomF]

I already had a 2x12 bolted onto the side of the house that the previous owner installed by extending the side trim of the deck past the corner of the house. This is where my Phase III is mounted. I asked the installer how he was going to mount the switch and said that there was plenty of room to mount it on the 2x12. I guess he didn't have any screws and didn't normally mount it on the wall, so he zip-tied it to the mounting post. It looked like crap, so I cut it off and mounted it on the 2x12 myself. Looks much neater now. But I'm not sure, should be switch be mounted with the ports up and down or left and right, or does it make any difference? I'm in San Diego so rain and especially snow aren't much of an issue. All unused ports are capped.

Is zip-tying how other installers are mounting the switch?

 

[bonscott87]

Mine is in my "media" closet in the basement. No way I would want my switch outside in the rain and snow all year. Heck, I have 2 inches of snow right now!

 

[TomF]

Mine is in my "media" closet in the basement. No way I would want my switch outside in the rain and snow all year. Heck, I have 2 inches of snow right now!

Haha! I grew up and lived in the Detroit area for 38 years. Been in San Diego for almost 18 years now. I don't miss the snow, especially shoveling it to get out of my driveway in the morning! But I do miss basements! My sister still lives there and with their small single-story home, they have enought room for an extra bedroom, pool table room, wet bar, bathroom, and a huge pantry. Almost as much room as my first floor!

 

[uteotw]

Mine's right on the side of my house, but there's a pretty decent roof overhang so I'm not too worried about it. Never had a problem w/'em installed that way, even here in the Windy City...

 

[litzdog911]

You can buy weatherproof enclosures that would be suitable for protecting your multiswitch from the elements. Personally I would not want one mounted outside exposed to sun and rain.

 

[k0rww]

I have my five DVRs and two multi-switches in the same room. The two Multi-switches are mounted on the back wall, end-to-end with four two-way splitters feeding the switches.

 

[Capmeister]

Mine is also in my basement, attached to one of the ceiling rafters. From there, two lines going to four different rooms. Yes, I have 4 DVRs in a house with only my brother and myself.

We're geeks.

 

[hdtvfan0001]

Personally, mounting any electrical device outside (in the elements), even though unpowered ones like the multiswitch) is a problem waiting to happen. Mine is indoors in a low voltage shielded cabinet, along with my other cale and phone connections. In almost 8 years, I've never had any problems with any connections or devices connected to anything related to that cabinet.

 

[Mixer]

My multiswitch is outside and has been for a few years. I don't see the big deal personally. Is there somewhere in the manual of the Zinwell 6x8 that says don't put it outside?

 

[AlbertZeroK]

My 3 switches are inside in my basement office:

http://www.iamjeremy.com/projects/rack.jpg

But you should be fine with a switch outside, they definately can take the beating, my mother-in-laws was set under her trailer on a brick 3 years ago and no problems since.

 

[Mixer]

I found a few install guides for the 6x8 multiswitch and nowehre in it did it say that they should not be installed outside.

 

[CorkyMuldoon]

Nice cable management, Albert!

 

[Mixer]

In fact I just found this and it clearly says on the first page indoor/outdoor

http://www.zcwc.com/zcwc/tech_suppo...itch/usermanuals/wb_68/WB68_Install_Guide.pdf

 

[bonscott87]

I found a few install guides for the 6x8 multiswitch and nowehre in it did it say that they should not be installed outside.

Very true. It's just not a good idea to expose the connectors in particular to the elements. You may be fine, but then again all it takes is one small drop of water to get in a line to force you to have to replace the whole cable run.

 

[paulman182]

It does say on dealer's websites that they can be mounted outside.

But "unpowered" is a misnomer. Since they have no separate power supply, these switches are powered by the receivers, and pass voltage on toward the dish.

I'm glad mine is on my carport wall, although if it were exposed, I probably wouldn't move it.

 

[HDTVsportsfan]

I applied a "dab", well maybe more than a dab of clear silicon caulk once all the connections were made. It was a TERK 5X8 multiswitch. It was outside for a good 4/5 years and I never had a problem before I replaced it and it was exposed for the most part. Unpowered btw.

I put my ZINwell under my porch now, out of the elements.

I read somewhere that the silicon will cause corosion though. I don't know if that's true or not. But the silicon caulk worked. Obviously there are drawbacks. Like having to dig it all off to unscrew it.

 

[mtnagel]

Seems like a good place for my question:

Can you have 2 satellite inputs into the multi-switch making 4 lines out to the receivers?

My installer put it outside and I'm kind of concerned about it. It would be almost impossible to have the 4 lines going to it and have the 6 lines to the 3 DVR's we have, but it would be easy to have the 2 lines from the satellite going to one of the DVR's and the other 2 lines going the Zinwell inside the house and the 4 lines going to the 2 DVR's in our living room. Would that work, or do you need all 4 satellite inputs in the Zinwell?

Thanks.

 

[steelr]

The multi-switch has to be fed by all 4 lines from the dish.

 

[mtnagel]

The multi-switch has to be fed by all 4 lines from the dish.

Thanks. That's what I assumed, but I wanted to make sure. I guess I'll need to figure out some other way to weather-proof it.

 

[TomF]

Very true. It's just not a good idea to expose the connectors in particular to the elements. You may be fine, but then again all it takes is one small drop of water to get in a line to force you to have to replace the whole cable run.

The connectors are weatherproof with compression fittings. I'm not clear why "one small drop of water" would force one to replace the whole cable run. Getting a connector wet will not corrupt the entire cable run. It might short out the connection at the connector but that's about it.

My existing cable runs from the previous dishes I've had are the same ones that are being used for the AT9 dish. I had multiswitches on those dishes and I've never had a problem. In some cases the multiswitch was mounted on the back of the dish and that's the way it was designed.