[bb37]

OK, let me state at the outset, I'm not looking for information about wiring from the low voltage distribution panel to the rooms. I have an handle on that. Sorry for being up-front about this, but we all know how these threads diverge.

I'm meeting with my builder on Friday to have a pre-construction kick-off meeting for my new house. This will be a one-story house with a full basement. The south wall of the house will be sided with Hardie Plank fiber cement siding over Tyvek house wrap over 1" styrofoam over the studs. The house will probably be ready for move-in in January.

One of the options I've selected is a "satellite pre-wire" which consists of:

Includes 4 RG6 lines ran from panel to attic above main or second floor. No termination on runs.

I currently have an HR21 and a slimline dish. I'm assuming they will move to the new house. Down the road, I will likely add additional receivers, both DVR and non-DVR. Assuming that I add an SWM-8 to the initial installation (either purchased by me ahead of time or maybe the installers in my area will have them by then), my understanding is that the four lines from the dish will go to the SWM inputs and the SWM1 output will run to the PI and then to my initial receiver. Is that correct? For now, let's assume that I bypass the low voltage panel.

The SWM and PI can go anywhere as long as the distance from the dish to the SWM is less than X feet, right? In other words, the SWM doesn't have to be just inside the house from the dish and doesn't have to be at the low voltage panel, right? I will need to ask the builder exactly how they plan to route the four cables I paid for.

What about distances from the SWM to the receivers? Eventually, I'll need to split the SWM outputs.

What preparations should be made for mounting the dish? I'm assuming that the dish will go on the south wall and that I will have LOS near the west end of that wall. Would adding blocking in the studs behind where the dish will go be a good idea?

What other issues is my installer likely to have with my plans?

Thanks!

 

[BattleZone]

With a Mover's Connection, they will install a NEW slimline dish at the new house; you just take your receivers and remotes with you.

I would recommend 6 lines, just in case you ever need anything else going to the box.

As long as you can get 4 lines from the dish to the SWM, you're good to go. Since the signal from the receivers to the SWM only needs SIGNAL, and not the DC voltage to switch the multiswitch, you should have no distance problems inside any reasonable house. It should work acceptably at least 150-200 feet away.

It would be hard for us to give you advice on where/how to mount the dish on the new house without seeing it. In particular, you'll need to make sure it will be mounted somewhere that Line-Of-Site won't be a problem anytime over the next 20 years or so. You can use www.dishpointer.com to get an idea of the angles. For now, assume you'll need to see from 99 to 119. You can zoom in and put the pointer exactly where the dish would be. Really think about your future landscaping plans.

Assume you need an 8x12" "base" for the mast foot, plus you'll have two support arms to the sides. Using Dishpointer, I'm sure your builder can work with you on placing some solid, supported-from-behind wood that will be a good mounting point. If you can figure out the location in advance, you can have the cables run to that point (be sure they leave an extra 10' or so on the outside of the house, so that you have uninterrupted runs to the dish).

While you do have some flexibility with the SWM-8 switch location, the PI for it needs to be indoors, and preferably not in an attic, where it could overheat. Ideally, you would want power in or near your network box.

Hope that helps.

 

[2dogz]

Dishpointer might be a little tough to use if the house hasn't been built yet. Maybe use a close neighbor's address if you have one.

 

[bb37]

Thanks for the tips about trying to figure out dish locations and sight lines. I really didn't expect you guys to locate the dish for me sight unseen.

Unfortunately, this is a new part of the subdivision and my new street doesn't appear in any of the online mapping programs yet. Once the foundation is in, I can probably take a GPS reading at the wall and plug that into Dishpointer. It won't be perfect, but that should give me a rough idea.

The low voltage panel will be in the basement. If they run the cables across the attic and then down a chase to the LV panel, it will be about 40-50 feet of cable before I can get the SWM in an accessible location. On the other hand, if they run the cable down the wall from where the dish will be and into the basement, I can put the SWM and PI pretty much anywhere down there.

Regarding the new dish with the Mover's Connection package, what happens to my old dish? Will they take it down or will I be responsible for doing that?

 

[BattleZone]

Regarding the new dish with the Mover's Connection package, what happens to my old dish? Will they take it down or will I be responsible for doing that?

They won't take it down. You can if you like. Both Dish and DirecTV prefer you leave it up, so that (hopefully) the next owner will see that the house is already wired and be more likely to sign up.