Sky dish query

[Deadlydan]

Hi all,
Gettin ready and nicely excited about the Ryder cup,
Noticed that my sky dish is very rusty looking,
Does this make any difference to the signal?
Need to know if I need to get a new one sharpish!can't be having any problems viewing!
Thanks in advance for input!

 

[CMAC]

are you currently experiencing a bad picture? your answer will dictate your next move I feel

 

[GreiginFife]

Yes rust will affect the signal if its bad across the concave surface of the dish. If its just slight then you will probably get away with it but will find you have to reset the box more frequently than normal.

 

[stevie_r]

no it won't as long as the curvature of the dish is unaffected

 

[Deadlydan]

Cheers lads, thanks for the info,
Reason I asked is little bro complains of poor signal for his kids channels,but I haven't had any probs with the pic on sky sport,
His progs sometimes break up and freeze tho, for a few sec. The curvature of the dish looks ok to me, it's just got a rougher surface from the rust. Hope it doesn't go belly up for the next week anyway!!

 

[stevie_r]

I really do doubt that it is down to the rust. Freezing could be down to a number of reasons.
You could try a forced software update.
Its important to note that with digital satellite the signal quality is much more important that signal strength.

 

[Deadlydan]

Ta stevie, I'll check that.

 

[stublue2701]

Its more likely to be the LNB (small receiver at the front of the dish) if it is certain channels missing. Call SKY and get an engineer out. If they try and make you pay then threaten to cancel and they will send someone out.

 

[stevie_r]

Its more likely to be the LNB (small receiver at the front of the dish) if it is certain channels missing. Call SKY and get an engineer out. If they try and make you pay then threaten to cancel and they will send someone out.

No it isn't.

Alignment slightly out - possible
Trees that have grown since installation impinging on LOS - possible
Box starting to fail - quite likely

 

[stublue2701]

Are you saying the LNB cant fail?

 

[stevie_r]

Are you saying the LNB cant fail?

Nope but never had to replace one, ever. The three scenarios I listed are the most likely.

 

[stublue2701]

Are you a SKY engineer?

 

[stevie_r]

Are you a SKY engineer?

Until fairly recently yes, why ?

Well AVC actually who do most of sky's installation work.

 

[stublue2701]

I must know you. Worked out of Coatbridge I take it?

 

[stevie_r]

No AVC were still in Falkirk at the time

 

[Deadlydan]

Alignment slightly out - possible
Trees that have grown since installation impinging on LOS - possible
Box starting to fail - quite likely

Alignment: certainly possible near sea, windy here!
Trees definitely, went out and gave a cheeky eucalyptus a bit of a prune
Box starting to fail, how long do they normally last? We've had ours eons ,any specific signs?
Cheers

 

[stevie_r]

Alignment: certainly possible near sea, windy here!
Trees definitely, went out and gave a cheeky eucalyptus a bit of a prune
Box starting to fail, how long do they normally last? We've had ours eons ,any specific signs?
Cheers

How long is string to be honest mate. My last one lasted exactly a year, I've had one last three. Typical symptoms:

Pic freezing
EPG and programme selection seems to be very slow or unresponsive (but check remote batteries).
Blue screen of death
Live pause and record start to cock up

Forced software update can sometimes clear it for a while, You may get to the stage where you need to switch off totally at the mains and reboot frequently.

If your picture occasionally becomes 'blocky' and pixellated then I would suggest that is probably due to alignment - a dish that has become slightly loose (and is being affected by wind gusts) and needs the bolts tightening up. Be careful though, if you knock your dish a bit too far out of alignment then it is an utter bitch to find the bird without a meter; it's not as easy as the old analogue days.

Sky will try to sell you insurance or charge you £65 for a service call, if you have been a customer for a while on a fairly pricey package then just refuse that and tell them you want to cancel. Chances are they might waive the service charge.

 

[Deadlydan]

Excellent thanks, very helpful.