What's a good roofmount antenna? And how do I install it?

[oblivion2888]

I'm thinking about droppping catv. Any tips on buying and installing a good antenna?

 

[d0ofy]

Drop cable? How can you go back to local tv? Anyway, Terk indoor antennas are good if you're in an urban area. If you're in a rural area, you'll probably need one of those huge antennas on the roof. I don't know anything about them though.

 

[etech]

Take a walk around the neighborhood and see how the other houses have their antennas mounted and what size they are.

Normally you will mount them on top of a pole beside your house. Plan on pouring some concrete for the base and a mounting bracket to attach to your house. Tripod mounts for your roof are also available. Depends on how skilled you are and may depend on local building codes.

As for size it all depends on how far you are from the stations and their locations in respect to your house. A higher gain antenna is more directional then a lower gain one and can actually hurt reception if the stations are close but separated. You won't be able to point it at all of the stations, an antenna rotator is the solution to that but an extra expense and must be turned in to tune in a station.

If the stations are close; I mounted one in the attic one time. Just used some nylon rope and hung it from the rafters. It wasn't ideal but a lot easier then mounting an outside pole.