My neighbor just removed a giant tree, so I think I can now get a dish. A few years ago, I remember that there was a website in which you put your lat/long (or zip code), and it would tell you the date and time and which the sun would be in the same spot as the satellite, for aiming purposes.
Does anyone know if this website still exists? I searched high and low and can't find it. Thanks.
Installation instructions come with the dish.
Good afternoon. This website has several different calculators depending on what you need.
Lee Richardson Mech-Tech
4DTV, QualiTV, DVB-MPEG free to air satellite dealer Evansville, Indiana
Which satellite?
The Clarke Belt and the sun line up twice per year (in March and October.) But what time of day the sun is in line with any particular satellite depends on the satellite.
Go to USNO and find link to Altitude and Azimuth of the Sun and Moon USNO = United States Naval Observatory. About 3/4 of a page down on the Home Page
I use this Site regularly , last time I used it and Google Earth to calculate the height of a local Cell Tower, Used Google Earth "RULER" to measure distance from tower, to where I stood when the sun was shining through the top of the tower, noted the time of day and found the altitude angle of the sun and multiplied the distance from the Tower with the TAN of the Sun Angle.
When I was Camping this Summer I used the Azimuth of the Sun to locate my satellite Dish to point through an opening between trees at 12:10 Local Time. So I am quite familiar with your situation.
Only problem to note!! If your dish is mounted "Too Low" signal reflections from the ground can cause mysterious NULLS in the Signal.
I know I had the "Right" Azimuth, so moving the Dish UP solved the Problem.
Yukio YANO
Before you go to a lot of trouble check out what you want to receive.
If you ae buying a commerical package, they will gladly come and check out exactly where the dish has to go, the size and type etc.
If you want your own dish, go to the LyngSat pages and determine which satellites carry the programs you want and then you can nose around to find how to aim the dish.
IMHO you have to price the equipment carefully, the local DBS provider here in Israel (YES) had a free installation deal. The break even point was about 9 months per receiver with a single dish/feedhorn. Since I wanted three receivers, it was not worth buying my own dish.
Since the programs I wanted to view were spread out over several sattelites, I would have had to buy multiple feed horns and possibly a wide angle dish, with the appropriate switching arrangment at each receiver, which quickly increased the cost.
In my case a movable dish to change satellites was not an option, my children would not stand for me moving the dish. :-)
Geoff.
-- Geoffrey S. Mendelson, Jerusalem, Israel gsm@mendelson.com N3OWJ/4X1GM IL Voice: (07)-7424-1667 U.S. Voice: 1-215-821-1838 Visit my 'blog at http://geoffstechno.livejournal.com/
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