All posts by lm
Below are all of lm's postings, with the most recent are at the bottom of the page.
Hello JB38, thanks for getting back to me.
I am in G3, a tennament flat in a block of 8, all of which are/were connected to a communcal roof-top aerial which I understand hasn't been replaced for at least 10 years. It now appears, however all the other residents have either Sky or don't have a tv, so are unaware as to whether the old aerial system still works in their flats.
I have asked if anyone has been doing any work on the roof or aerial, but no luck (although it is possible other people could have been on the roof and we wouldn't know). I have tried to re-tune both tvs a number of times (one with freeview built in and an old one with a set-top box) but both come up with 'no channels, check anntenae' and there is absolutely nothing but static when I try and retune the analogue channels (reception was pretty poor on analogue, but it was at least watchable.) I've checked, re-checked my internal cabling system (both tvs run off a single aerial cable although I'm not sure how it enters my flat) and are connected to a signal booster box which I plug in next to one of the tvs.
I don't know what I do now. Previous re-tunings have only ever picked up Blackhill so I'm not sure if that rules the other transmitters out (if not, how do I tune in to them as re-tuning is brining up a blank!) You also mentioned checking the power to the distribution amp; how do I do that? Is it on the roof by the aerial ie a job for an aerial man? If he says I need a new aerial, is £700 as extortionate as it sounds? Can I get a little one just for my use if the neighbours won't split the cost?! Your advice is greatly appreciated, thank you.
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Thanks Mike, the website re communal responsibilities was helpful.
My concern at the minute is to find out what exactly the problem is. JB38 mentioned two possibilities: re-tuning to another transmitter or checking power to the distribution amp. JB38, thank you for getting back to me, I replied above, answering your queries with a couple more - my postcode G3 and it is a communal aerial system. How do I check the distribution amp and how do I find other transmitters when Blackhill was the only one to show when I was able to tune channels? Thanks again to both of you for your help.
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Thanks JB38. I have engineers here now and they have discovered that the close doesn't have a communal aerial system, I have been sharing with one other flat and the aerial in question was on the roof, but should have been inside the loft so had degraded considerably. The factor was very unhelpful, despite being the agent for the flat I'm sharing an aerial with (who I discovered last night had lost signal too). The factor told me it was my responsibility alone to replace it. However, afer much cajoling they finally saw the sense in sharing a new aerial and splitting the cost. Does £175 inc vat sound reasonable for a rooftop aerial split between 2 flats? Will signal strength be compromised with the split? (I'm Kelvingrove). Thank you again for your help.
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Thank you again JB - you have been a great help and very reassuring! I share the aerial with my downstairs neighbours (I'm 2nd of 3 floors) and I got the quote of £175 (inc vat - for the whole job) directly from the aerial man, which I relayed to the factors before they would finally agree to split the cost. I asked the chap about splitting/signal degredation and he said there wouldn'g be a problem, but I now know to specifically ask for a powered 2-way splitter- thank you. As I am higher up/nearer to the aerial than my sharing neighbour, does that make a difference? Thank you very much again, I really appreciate your help. One observation in whole thing - the longer I don't have a telly, the more I realise how much time I squandered watching it and how much more life I've lived without!
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Wednesday 9 November 2011 3:29PM
I live in Glasgow and have not had tv reception, analogue or digital (freeview) since Saturday 5 Nov 2011. I have the message 'No channels found. Please check antenna connection'. I have followed the delete channels/reset instructions on this website, I've checked the internal cables and I've checked the Blackhill Transmitter, which is not reporting any problems/maintenance. I live in a tenement flat, neighbours in my block have Sky and an uninerrupted service. What has happened/what can I do? I've had the vague quote of £700 for a replacement aerial for the block, the cost of which my neighbours won't share. Is an aerial upgrade/replacement really necessary when I received all freeview channels on Friday, then absolutely nothing since, and if an upgraded aerial is necessary, is £700 as ridiculously excessive as it seems and do I have the right to ask everyone who will have access to it, whether they need it right now or not, to contribute? Thank you for you help.