[RBob]

We currently have a single 322 receiver fed by a old Dish 500 antenna,
and are planning on moving to a 722 and 211 (the 211 replacing the 322) with whatever sort of antenna's needed.

I'm assuming that the external antenna installation and cabling from the
dish to the house is included in the basic install, but what will the
installer do inside, as far as routing cables for the receivers? Will
they fish cables inside the walls and mount sockets on wall plates, or
just punch holes in the floor?

The house is single story with an exposed ceiling in the basement
beneath the rooms where the receivers will be located.

 

[Stewart Vernon]

A lot of it depends on the installer, what is on his work order, and how much difficulty is involved.

As you say, obviously the dish installation work is covered as would be cabling from those dishes to a common access point in a pre-wired home.

If you have exposed ceiling/floor/wall that makes running cables easy then you might find the installer willing to do that but it really does depend.

On the one hand I used to always feel that cabling from the dish to each installed receiver on the work order should be included... but then I thought about it and realized from doing the work myself... there can be a world of difference in cost, materials, and time from a pre-wired home to a home with no wires and no easy access to the insides to fish the wires.

Wire fishing is something of an art and skill... and even the most skilled sometimes get lucky and other times you could spend an hour just getting through one little area in an older home that perhaps has access sealed off inside the walls where you can't see what is going on between the studs.

 

[RBob]

...
Wire fishing is something of an art and skill... and even the most skilled sometimes get lucky and other times you could spend an hour just getting through one little area in an older home that perhaps has access sealed off inside the walls where you can't see what is going on between the studs.
...

So, if I wanted to do it myself (or rather, pay someone who knew what he was doing to do it) before the installer arrived, what?

A single run of RG-5 from the entry point to a wall plate behind each receiver and a run of RG-6 from the 722's location down to the splitter feeding the SD TVs that are currently fed from the 322?

According to the Dish Web site, RG-5 is what they're calling for these days; I've never seen the stuff myself.

I suppose I'd want to leave enough slack at the entry point ends of the RG-5 runs (with no connectors) so that the installer can do whatever he might need to do to hook up to whatever interfaces to the cable run from the dish.

It just happens that we're having some electrical work done in the house in the next couple of weeks by folks who did a nice job with some other network and cable runs in the past, so this is a well timed discussion.

 

[[email protected] Network]

If you want more information on what is covered by our Standard Professional Installation please visit http://www.mydish.com/support/standard-professional-installation.

 

[Wire Nut]

So, if I wanted to do it myself (or rather, pay someone who knew what he was doing to do it) before the installer arrived, what?

A single run of RG-5 from the entry point to a wall plate behind each receiver and a run of RG-6 from the 722's location down to the splitter feeding the SD TVs that are currently fed from the 322?

According to the Dish Web site, RG-5 is what they're calling for these days; I've never seen the stuff myself.

I suppose I'd want to leave enough slack at the entry point ends of the RG-5 runs (with no connectors) so that the installer can do whatever he might need to do to hook up to whatever interfaces to the cable run from the dish.

It just happens that we're having some electrical work done in the house in the next couple of weeks by folks who did a nice job with some other network and cable runs in the past, so this is a well timed discussion.

You need RG-6. If you plan to have your electrician do the work, they usually use Belden cable which is fine. Your Dish installer will have no problem on the ground floor, but the finished basement may pose a problem. This can get tricky and usually involves removing a bit of sheetrock, best done by the electrician. It would be best to have a complete run of RG-6 from each potential television location to the entry point to future-proof things, but going from the receivers directly to tv-2 is acceptable.
Edit: Exposed ceiling under the receiver locations? Piece of cake. Some installers do not have the necessary tools to cut your coax jacks into the walls, maybe have the electrician cut in a few low-voltage rings where you want the tvs.

 

[RBob]

If you want more information on what is covered by our Standard Professional Installation please visit http://www.mydish.com/support/standard-professional-installation.

There's this about the wiring:

DISH-approved RG-5 coax cable will be run from dish to receiver(s) up to 150'.
Once inside the home, cabling may be run through attics or unfinished basements to the receiver outlet.
Any installed exposed cabling will be neatly dressed​

Is the cable from the basement fished up through the wall to an outlet in a wall plate, or does that fall into custom work?

 

[Wire Nut]

That has got to be a type-o. RG-6 is what you need. If you want wall fishes where there are no pre-existing boxes or jacks, some installers will charge for the additional labor.

 

[tcatdbs]

I have an install coming up Saturday (new house). Do installers "tend to" use the attic for running cable from dish to wiring closet, or go through an ext wall directly to closet?

I ask because my attic is like crawl space, if he's heavy, he ain't going to make it. I just went up this AM to run a pull wire, tying it to an existing RG6 that I'm not going to use. It took a lot of force to get it pulled, but it had a connector... maybe 2 bare cable will pull... There is enough access to drill a new hole for an easier feed, but it'd be real pain. Do they tend to just wrap cable on the exterior and drill through a stone wall to avoid the hot attic? If so I may attempt to get the 2 cables run myself.. but I have no clue where he might elect to mount the dish... All cables to receivers are already fed from the closet.

 

[Wire Nut]

Generally your installer will satisfy the requirements of the basic install outlined in Ray's link, anything above and beyond that (like fishing cable through an attic for purely aesthetic reasons) may cost extra. It does get a bit more complex than that, though.
As the customer, you get an automated phone call for a customer satisfaction survey after the install to rate the technician. Hint that you will not be satisfied with cable wrapped around the outside of your home and the installer will likely see things your way, taking extra steps to make you happy.

 

[tcatdbs]

I was going to run the "hard part" in the attic. I was at HD and they have 100' RG6 rated at 3ghz, regular and quadcore. But both are copper coated steel center. Anywhere local sell 100% copper center? (does Dish use copper center)?

 

[TBoneit]

Generally your installer will satisfy the requirements of the basic install outlined in Ray's link, anything above and beyond that (like fishing cable through an attic for purely aesthetic reasons) may cost extra. It does get a bit more complex than that, though.
As the customer, you get an automated phone call for a customer satisfaction survey after the install to rate the technician. Hint that you will not be satisfied with cable wrapped around the outside of your home and the installer will likely see things your way, taking extra steps to make you happy.

Or the installer will take the easy way out and you will have instant no line of sight and away he goes.

Sometimes the squeaky wheel gets thrown out.

 

[Wire Nut]

I was going to run the "hard part" in the attic. I was at HD and they have 100' RG6 rated at 3ghz, regular and quadcore. But both are copper coated steel center. Anywhere local sell 100% copper center? (does Dish use copper center)?

Solid copper center is not required. 3ghz rated RG-6 will work fine, it's up to you on quad shield or no.

 

[CCarncross]

Solid copper center is not required. 3ghz rated RG-6 will work fine, it's up to you on quad shield or no.

But SCC is recommended for the lower DC voltage drop, correct?

 

[Wire Nut]

But SCC is recommended for the lower DC voltage drop, correct?

Solid copper is a better conductor. As long as max 200' length is maintained from the LNBF to the receiver there will be no significant voltage drop either way. Dish Network has both copper clad and solid copper core RG-6 cable on it's approved parts list.

 

[Jim5506]

Nearly all the current is conducted on the surface of the wire.

 

[Wire Nut]

Nearly all the current is conducted on the surface of the wire.

Inaccurate blanket statement, such as, "electricity take the path of least resistance". Wrong. Electricity takes all paths.
You are assuming AC. Heat loss through hysteresis does not figure into DC circuits. For signal attenuation yes, but the 18VDC on the line from the receiver will not be subject to eddy currents. The boon of solid copper center conductor is higher current capacity per cmil and possible lower voltage drop over the length of the run. Assuming the cable is free of kinks and is within 200' of the LNB, there is no benefit for solid copper vs copper clad in this case.