Installing a satellite system is not complicated and can be achieved by anyone with
basic DIY skills, a bit of patience and a small amount of trial and error.
Fitting and aligning the dish assembly is like trying to hit a car the size of a Mini one
thousand miles away, but with a good secure fixing and good alignment it will give
many years of low maintenance service. If this is not for you, it will be far easier for
you to contact a local satellite installer in your area to assist you (See the CAI
Confederation of Aerial Installers http://www.cai.org.uk/asp/installer.asp for reputable
companies in your area).
You are going to need at least a couple of hours to fit and align the dish, set the
receiver and run the cabling, do not install a dish in windy conditions, always have a
second person to help with fitting, also the wind loading even on a small dish can get
very high so always make sure that the installation is stable and secure, always use a
Residual Current Breaker on any power tools and if you are working at height on a
ladder then have it secured or someone to steady the ladder also check and prepare
any tools that may be needed before commencing installation.
Fitting dishes with a diameter of greater than 90 cm and in conservation areas could
need planning permission, consult your local planning authority or refer to the
following web link
http://www.communities.gov.uk/documents/planningandbuilding/pdf/householdersgui
deantennas.pdf
Parts of the system
The Dish is used to collect the signals from a satellite situated in orbit above the
equator and concentrate the signal to a focused point; the main types of dish are
Offset where the LNB arm is fitted near the bottom of the dish and is the most
popular, Prime focus where the LNB is fitted directly in front of the dish.
The size of the dish is important as it determines the amount of signal that can be
received, for instance to view UK channels from Astra 2 in most of the UK mainland
then a 45cm dish will be sufficient, to receive the same channels in France and
Germany 60 to 100cm Dishes will be needed
The LNB (Low Noise Block) is fitted on the front of the dish by an arm, it receives
the concentrated signal from the dish and then reduces the frequency of the incoming
signal and then amplifies the low power signal so it can be sent to the receiver.
Co-axial (Co-ax) Cable this high quality cable is needed to transfer the signal from
the LNB to the Satellite receiver, Use RG6, CT100 or even better PF100 cable for the
best signal transfer.
F-Connectors are fitted at either end of the Co-axial cable to allow fitting to the LNB
and Receiver
Satellite Receiver this device acquires the signal transferred by the Co-axial cable
and converts them so they can be viewed on a Television or recorded on a suitable
Video or DVD recorder
Satellites
The satellite signals (Beam) which provide Satellite TV and Satellite Radio programs
are very high frequency and low power, the satellites are positioned in a
Geostationary orbit 22,200 miles (35,800 kilometres) above the earth at the equator
called the Clarke Belt, because they are stationary above the earth different satellites
are able to service different points on the earths surface known as the satellites
footprint, these can be found at the following web addresses:
http://www.lyngsat.com
http://www.satcodx.com
http://www.ses-astra.com/consumer/azimuth/index.php?locale=en_GB
http://www.dishpointer.com
http://www.directv.com/learn/pdf/SelfInstallGuide.pdf (Good fitting and alignment
instructions, however all the dish parameters are not applicable to the UK, so ignore
them)
You can also use the some of above websites to find out which Satellite TV/Radio
channels will be available at each of the satellite locations; these are sometimes listed
in transponder order and not in TV/Radio channel order, so you may have to look
down the entire listing to find the channel you want.
Each satellite has 80 or more transponders these are TV/Radio transmitters fitted to
the satellite and each transponder has around 10 or more TV or Radio channels which
it transmits, each transponder is horizontally or vertically polarized this is why precise
alignment is necessary for a good signal, once installed the satellite receiver box
automatically does all the relevant switching.
The footprint maps will be marked in EIRP Power in dB’s this can roughly equate to a
satellite dish size required for receiving a consistent signal, this assumes an LNB
(Low Noise Block) of 0.6dB or better (lower) which most modern LNB’s will easily
exceed.
Most of the UK and Eire will be able to receive Astra 2 (28.2E)/Eurobird (28.5E)
showing mainly English language channels of Free to Air content from Sky, BBC and
ITV, smaller dishes will be able to receive these two satellites without the need for
repositioning, Astra 1 (19.2E) shows mostly Germanic and Hispanic content and
Hotbird (13E) has Multi European, Middle Eastern and some Asian Channels.
Other Satellites available in different parts of the UK and Europe are Hellas Sat
(39E) Greek and Southern Eastern European channels, Turksat/Eurasiasat (42E)
Turkish and Eurasian channels some of these are not available over the complete UK
and Eire, Some of the above mentioned satellite are in fact a cluster of separate
satellites which from the earth appear as one single satellite.
Satellite channels cater for a wide variety of interests like sport, news, entertainment,
music, cartoons these can be saved as favourites on your satellite receiver, however
some channels are not ideally suited to family viewing these can easily be removed or
password protected.
Power dB
64
63
62
61
60
59
58
57
56
Dish Size
22
24
26
28
30
32
34
36
38
Power dB
55
54
52 & 53
51
49 & 50
48
47
46
44 & 45
Dish Size
40
45
50
55
60
70
80
90
100
Power dB
43
42
40 & 41
39
38
37
36
35
34
Dish Size
110
120
135
150
180
215
240
300
360
Dish positioning and fitting
The first step in a satellite dish installation is critical, as it will determine your
eligibility to receive satellite signals, not all locations are capable of receiving signals
because natural barriers such as trees, hills, mountains and also man-made barriers
like buildings and other structures can easily block the signals, the dish must have an
un-obstructed view of the satellite in order to receive a satisfactory signal.
Install the dish assembly on a pole as vertically upright as possible so when adjusting
the rotation of the dish on the pole the dish does not move up or down, also try to
choose a location where the dish is not going to be knocked out of position and
adjustment and maintenance is not going to be dangerous, strenuous or impractical.
If the installation is going to be permanent then also bear in mind, seasonal changes,
in particular to locations with seasonal vegetation or shrubs, so you do not install your
satellite dish in a location that will be blocked when spring comes and leaves on trees
obstruct your signal, generally in an open environment this is easily remedied, but in a
built up area the dish should be located high enough to avoid the obstructions, a small
change in location can provide a significant effect on the signals received.
All the satellites will be in a southerly direction as indicated by the White Arrow on
the Compass, position the 180 degree (S) mark below the white compass arrow and
survey the surrounding area from 120 degrees to 240 degrees.
In the UK satellites outside of 105 degrees to 255 degrees will be blocked by the
curvature of the earth’s surface.
Most dish installations in the UK will be facing Astra 2 and will be pointing between
140 and 150 degrees (SE-SSE South, East - South, South, East) so although you are
unable to see an uninterrupted view of the southern sky, if you can see in an
uninterrupted view in a SE-SSE direction then you will at least be able to receive
Astra 2.
H = Hotbird (13E), A1 = Astra 1 (19.2E), A2 = Astra 2 (28.2E)
If you are using a compass to align the dish, keep the compass away from the dish
assembly and any other electromagnetic sources, compasses do have a slight
difference between the magnetic south as indicated by the compass needle and true
south this is called magnetic declination (but can be largely ignored with this trial and
error method of alignment, find a visual marker on the horizon in the direction of the
required satellite then face the dish in this direction.
Generally in the northern hemisphere (North of the equator) the sun will be roughly
south at around noon or 1pm (Summertime), rising in the east and setting in the west,
Sky dishes in the UK are pointing at Astra 2 (28.2E)/Eurobird (28.5E) so if you can
see a sky dish in your vicinity this will be a good starting point, however in Italy
dishes are pointed at Hotbird (13E) where most of the Italian channels are situated.
Angle
B (cm)
Angle
B (cm)
Angle
B (cm)
Angle
B (cm)
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
17.63
19.44
21.26
23.09
24.93
26.79
28.67
30.57
32.49
34.43
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
36.40
38.39
40.40
42.45
44.52
46.63
48.77
50.95
53.17
55.43
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
57.74
60.09
62.49
64.94
67.45
70.02
72.65
75.36
78.13
80.98
40
41
42
43
44
45
46
47
48
49
83.91
86.93
90.04
93.25
96.57
100.00
103.55
107.24
111.06
115.04
Select the best fixing method for your location and follow the corresponding
instructions for Wall Mount, Vertical Pole, Balcony Rail, Table Top or Suction Stand,
these are either supplied with the dish assembly or available from any good satellite
dealer.
Three pieces of information will be needed: (these are all expressed in degrees) these
can be found for most major towns or geographical locations on the following pages
Azimuth (Side to Side Dish Movement) is the angle relating to the horizontal
positioning of the dish, North is 0 Degrees, East is 90 Degrees, South is 180 Degrees
and West is 270 Degrees.
Elevation (Up and Down Dish Movement) is the angle above the horizon; the angle
the dish must be tilted in relation to the horizon for a precise location of the satellite in
the sky.
Polarisation is the angle that the LNB (Low Noise Block) must be rotated so that the
horizontal and vertical fields from the satellite are aligned with the LNB pick up on
the dish, for Astra 2 (28.2E) start with the LNB at around the 8 o’clock position, this
is also known as Skew and is to compensate for the curvature of the earth.
Astra 2 (28.2E)/Eurobird (28.5E) Satellite Elevation, Azimuth and Polarization
for key towns and geographical points in Great Britain and Ireland
Location
Aberdeen
Abergavenny
Aberystwyth
Alnwick
Ampthill
Athlone
Aviemore
Ayr
Banff
Barnstaple
Basingstoke
Bath
Belfast
Berwick-Upon-Tweed
Birmingham
Blackpool
Bodmin
Boston
Bournemouth
Brecon
Brighton & Hove
Bristol
Bude
Burnley
Bury Saint Edmunds
Caernarfon
Cambridge
Campbeltown
Cardiff
Cardigan
Carlisle
Carmarthen
Cavan
Chelmsford
Chester
Colwyn
Cork
Coventry
Crainlarich
Dingwall
Dolgellau
Douglas
Dover
Dublin(Baile Atha Cliath)
Dundee
Edinburgh
Elgin
Exeter
Felixstowe
Fishguard
Folkestone
Fort William
Gairloch
Galway/Gaillimh
Glasgow
Gloucester
Great Yarmouth
Grimsby
Guildford
Hastings
Hereford
County
Aberdeenshire
Gwent
Dyfed
Northumberland
Bedfordshire
West Meath
Highland
Ayrshire
Aberdeenshire
Devon
Hampshire
Avon
Antrim
Northumberland
West Midlands
Lancashire
Cornwall
Lincolnshire
Dorset
Powys
East Sussex
Avon
Cornwall
Lancashire
Suffolk
Gwynedd
Cambridgeshire
Argyll & Bute
Mid Glamorgan
Ceredigion
Cumbria
Carmarthenshire
Cavan
Essex
Cheshire
Clwyd
Cork
West Midlands
Stirlingshire
Highland
Gwynedd
Isle of Man
Kent
Dublin
Angus
Midlothian
Grampian
Devon
Suffolk
Dyfed
Kent
Highland
Highland
Galway
Lanarkshire
Gloucestershire
Norfolk
Lincolnshire
Surrey
East Sussex
Hereford and Worcester
Elevation
19.76
23.96
23.05
21.39
24.77
20.62
19.12
20.32
19.16
24.16
25.22
24.61
20.53
20.96
23.84
22.27
24.38
24.10
25.37
23.71
25.95
24.44
24.17
22.59
25.02
22.36
24.85
19.96
24.19
23.08
21.40
23.42
20.41
25.37
22.86
22.43
21.57
24.05
19.53
18.58
22.84
21.44
26.23
21.36
20.02
20.39
18.91
24.69
25.51
23.02
26.24
19.00
18.08
20.28
20.09
24.24
25.04
23.61
25.45
26.22
23.89
Azimuth
145.17
142.37
141.46
145.06
145.24
137.71
143.34
141.85
144.87
140.96
144.29
142.91
140.27
144.86
143.83
143.06
139.98
146.10
143.19
142.02
145.16
142.68
140.33
143.95
146.66
141.52
145.97
140.89
142.06
140.69
143.56
140.98
138.52
146.21
143.01
142.12
136.57
144.26
142.26
142.81
141.78
141.64
146.91
139.47
144.02
143.60
144.01
141.40
147.27
140.32
146.76
141.86
141.56
136.52
142.45
143.22
147.96
146.25
144.84
146.01
142.79
Polarization
-10.55
-14.66
-14.84
-11.48
-13.03
-16.14
-11.37
-13.04
-10.43
-15.81
-13.92
-14.61
-14.24
-11.38
-13.57
-13.28
-16.66
-12.12
-14.80
-14.79
-13.65
-14.70
-16.29
-12.84
-12.16
-14.41
-12.56
-13.47
-15.01
-15.41
-12.48
-15.39
-15.41
-12.64
-13.63
-14.03
-17.60
-13.37
-12.31
-11.40
-14.49
-13.81
-12.53
-15.30
-11.43
-11.91
-10.83
-15.76
-11.96
-15.65
-12.64
-12.26
-11.90
-16.80
-12.50
-14.20
-11.29
-11.78
-13.64
-13.17
-14.33
Location
Holyhead
Ipswich
Kendal
Killarney
Kilmarnock
King's Lynn
Kingston upon Hull
Kyle of Lochalsh
Lancaster
Largs
Larne
Leeds
Leicester
Limerick
Lincoln
Liverpool
London
Londonderry
Ludlow
Luton
Lyme Regis
Maidstone
Mallaig
Manchester
Middlebrough
Moffat
Montrose
Newark upon Trent
Newcastle upon Tyne
Newhaven
Newry
Newtown
Northampton
Norwich
Nottingham
Oban
Oxford
Peebles
Pembroke
Penrith
Perth
Peterborough
Peterhead
Pitlochry
Plymouth
Portree
Reading
Rosslare
Scarborough
Settle
Sevenoaks
Sheffield
Shrewsbury
Sligo
Southampton
Stafford
Stirling
Stoke on Trent
Stranraer
Stratford-upon-Avon
Swansea ( Abertawe)
Swindon
Tain
Thirsk
Thurso
County
Gwynedd
Suffolk
Cumbria
Kerry
Ayrshire
Norfolk
Humberside
Highland
Lancashire
Ayrshire
Antrim
Yorkshire
Leicestershire
Limerick
Lincolnshire
Merseyside
Greater London
Londonderry
Shropshire
Bedfordshire
Dorset
Kent
Highland
Greater Manchester
North Yorkshire
Dumfries and Galloway
Angus
Nottinghamshire
Tyne and Wear
East Sussex
Down
Isle of Wight
Northamptonshire
Norfolk
Nottinghamshire
Argyll & Bute
Oxfordshire
Borders
Pembrokeshire
Cumbria
Perth & Kinross
Cambridgeshire
Aberdeenshire
Perth & Kinross
Devon
Skye
Berkshire
Wexford
Yorkshire
Yorkshire
Kent
South Yorkshire
Shropshire
Sligo
Hampshire
Staffordshire
Stirlingshire
Staffordshire
Dumfries and Galloway
Warwickshire
Swansea
Wiltshire
Highland
North Yorkshire
Highland
Elevation
22.09
25.35
21.95
20.99
20.22
24.45
23.30
18.42
22.17
19.97
20.35
22.83
24.00
20.93
23.70
22.63
25.37
19.65
23.63
24.93
24.92
25.83
18.59
22.87
22.30
20.85
20.01
23.74
21.78
26.07
20.70
25.58
24.45
24.89
23.69
19.21
24.75
20.69
23.30
21.68
19.94
24.40
19.54
19.57
24.69
18.13
25.10
22.20
22.82
22.35
25.70
23.22
23.32
19.74
25.40
23.49
19.99
23.28
20.61
24.18
23.76
24.24
18.54
22.55
18.05
Azimuth
141.17
147.08
143.56
135.57
142.13
146.46
145.98
141.37
143.40
141.80
140.47
144.69
144.74
136.72
145.62
142.99
145.48
138.93
142.89
145.26
142.04
146.07
141.16
143.85
145.38
143.14
144.64
145.24
145.03
145.35
139.69
143.72
144.93
147.45
144.81
141.36
144.27
143.56
140.27
143.70
143.52
145.70
145.63
143.31
140.59
140.90
144.44
138.93
146.12
144.00
145.72
144.63
143.02
137.48
143.80
143.74
142.84
143.71
141.31
143.95
141.28
143.41
143.28
145.07
144.11
Polarization
-14.51
-12.02
-12.77
-17.99
-12.79
-12.04
-11.82
-12.23
-12.99
-12.86
-14.00
-12.45
-13.00
-17.07
-12.26
-13.52
-13.15
-14.64
-14.12
-13.09
-15.41
-12.95
-12.47
-13.05
-11.73
-12.46
-11.02
-12.53
-11.69
-13.57
-14.75
-14.51
-13.09
-11.56
-12.81
-12.71
-13.71
-12.09
-15.84
-12.53
-11.71
-12.54
-10.16
-11.65
-16.37
-12.37
-13.76
-16.21
-11.49
-12.68
-13.13
-12.70
-13.87
-15.74
-14.37
-13.45
-12.18
-13.36
-13.56
-13.65
-15.35
-14.06
-11.08
-12.06
-10.28
Location
Torquay
Tralee (Tra Li)
Truro
Uig
Ullapool
Waterford
Watford
Westport
Weymouth
Wick
Worcester
Workington
Yeovil
York
County
Devon
Kerry
Cornwall
Skye
Highland
Waterford
Hertfordshire
Mayo
Dorset
Highland
Hereford and Worcester
Cumbria
Somerset
North Yorkshire
Elevation
24.92
20.73
24.40
17.20
18.08
21.90
25.13
19.65
25.22
18.32
23.97
21.37
24.86
22.88
Azimuth
141.31
135.45
139.56
140.31
142.14
138.12
145.20
136.21
142.51
144.51
143.38
142.79
142.45
145.25
Polarization
-15.96
-17.92
-17.00
-12.17
-11.54
-16.62
-13.24
-16.62
-15.22
-10.19
-13.95
-12.98
-15.08
-12.10
Dish Alignment for Astra 2 (28.2E) (See www.dishpointer.com for other satellite
setting parameters
1
Find the Azimuth and Elevation angles on the table above for the nearest town
(e.g. Brighton: Azimuth = 145.16 degrees, Elevation = 25.95 degrees)
2
Using a compass or any other method identify South, for places with a
elevation greater than 21 degrees then start with the dish Vertical and with the LNB
arm facing south and then turn the dish eastwards to 5 degrees less than the Azimuth
angle you have just found (e.g. Brighton 145.16 – 5 degrees start at 140 degrees), For
places with an elevation less than 21 degrees the dish start point will have to be with
the dish leaning slightly forward by 2 to 3 degrees (See elevation contours for Astra 2
(28.2E)/Eurobird (28.5E) on the map above), most dishes in the UK are an off-set
design so the front of the dish will look in the region of roughly vertical.
3
Slowly scan (Side to Side Movement) across the sky to the Azimuth angle
plus 5 degrees (e.g. Brighton 145.16 + 5 degrees finish at 150 degrees), this should
take a couple of minutes to do as the digital signal can take up to 5 seconds to lock
and download a digital signal.
4
Try to achieve an increase in signal quality, the signal intensity and sound
bleeper level will follow accordingly, having scanned between the start and finish
points position the dish where you received the highest signal quality this may still be
low at around 12-17%
5
If no signal quality increase is noted then move the elevation up by half a
degree and repeat the scan across the sky, repeat this until an increase in signal quality
is observed.
6
Now focus on moving the Elevation (Up/Down Movement) without altering
the Azimuth (Side to Side Movement) by moving the Dish and LNB assembly arm up
and down slowly, once again an optimal point will be found for the Elevation.
7
Move the Azimuth (Side to Side Movement) slowly to acquire the best
possible signal this should be 65% or more.
8
Move the LNB around in its fixing to achieve the maximum signal quality this
will adjust the polarization angle which corrects for the curvature of the earth, some
Low Noise Blocks have degree markings shown on the top of the LNB set this to the
polarization value given in the table above.