Mobile Sat Dish anyone?

[Maximo]

My parents just bought a new 5th wheel and they are Dish subscribers. Anyone have any experience with buying an aftermarket sat dish and then just pulling a receiver from the house for when they go on vacation?

 

[Towen7]

I have friends that do it all the time. All you need to know is which direction to point the dish. If you have some idea that your in the right direction, you can use the STB's signal strength meter in the set-up menu to get it set right. There are also small handhelp meters that you can plug connect to the LNB to get it set.

 

[Maximo]

Are those flat ones I see on top of suv's any good?

 

[Towen7]

I can't say. The only portable rig's I've been around was at tailgate parties and campgrounds. They were all just regular rooftop dishes on a portable stand or tripod.

 

[yromj]

I've done some work with the automatic ones (the ones which power on, determine where the satellites are and "lock on"). Those seem pretty cool.

They mount on top of the RV in a dome and the "dish" is inside. The dish is small and therefore actually moves when switching between satellites. The biggest downside is that moving parts are involved; but, they aren't moving far or a large percentage of the time. However, if someone is in the habit of constantly channel surfing, I could see where that would wear on the system.

John