Have to move dish on roof.

[Camaro68]

Due to construction and interference, I have to move my dish further up the roof about 5 feet.  I measured and put it in the same orientation as it was but now I seem to have lost alighment with the satilite.  Is there anyway to access a signal strength realtime measurement to help realign the dish?  I can't even find a signal strength in the System Control Center.  This is a HT2000W by the way.

[maratsade]

Installing and aligning the dish can only be done by a tech; you'll have to request a tech visit (I think it costs $125). 

[C0RR0SIVE · Accepted solution]

Never move a satellite dish without first contacting the company responsible for the dish.

The best information I can give you for that is to navigate to the Advanced page of your HT2000w, click Installation, then click Install, and do a Re-Install...  That is the only way to get "real-time" numbers, which are still delayed by just a few seconds.

However, I highly suggest not doing this...  Whether you point at the right satellite to get a signal is up in the air.  Even if you manage to point at the right one, if you mess up your LAT/LONG entries, or if your HT2000w was setup with a beam over-ride then it still wont work.  There are also SBC Config files that *might* need updating on your terminal that only a technician can do.

[Camaro68]

That sucks that it has to be so difficult.  I have done this before with a Dish TV reciever no problem.  I guess I will be calling a tech.

[MarkJFine]

That's because aiming a TV Receive Only (TVRO) dish doesn't have to be as accurate as aiming a dish that transmits as well as receives, especially if it's a generally low power transmiter. You have to ensure the beam is precisely pointed within fractions of a degree, as well as the correct tilt/polarity.

[Amanda]

Hi Camaro68,

It looks like you've already been given the correct information, but I would like to add that there are other issues which can occur while attempting to point a dish, such as bending the reflector or mounting equipment. I can set up a tech visit for you and cut the fee in half if that works for you. The $125 fee will only cover standard work, so if you need custom work that would be out of pocket.

Thanks,

Amanda

[Amanda]

I think that everyone's point is made and clear. 

Camaro68 - please let me know in a private message if you would still like the visit set up, this thread will be closed.

Thanks,

Amanda

[infinitytec]

Actually, it is very doable, but you should only do it yourself if you are comfortable doing so. We had a new roof installed and saved the money by setting it up at ground level ourselves. And it has worked just fine for the past few months.

[MarkJFine]

'comfortable' == technically inclined and have the appropriate aiming equipment/skills.

I really wouldn't recommend it being doable to the general public, because without the prerequisites it's just dumb luck if it works.

[maratsade]

Dumb is right.  

It's also prohibited by the subscriber agreement:  

Unless you have purchased your Equipment from Hughes, the satellite modem, power supply, and radio (outdoor transmitter) to be installed by Hughes at your premises will remain the property of Hughes and shall not be deemed fixtures or part of your realty. You shall have no right to pledge, sell, mortgage, otherwise encumber, give away, remove, relocate, alter, or tamper with the Equipment (or any notice of our ownership thereon) at any time. Any reinstallation, return, or change in the location of the Equipment shall be performed by us at our service rates in effect at the time of such service. You are responsible for preventing the loss or destruction of all Equipment provided pursuant to this Agreement.

Given that moving the dish involves moving the radio, whoever does their own relocating and reaiming, regardless of how technically brilliant they may be, would be in direct violation of the service agreement and might be liable for any problems, not to mention financially responsible.   

Edit: even if the subscriber has purchased the equipment, it would still be quite unwise to tamper with it (and they would still be financially responsible for fixing it). 

[infinitytec]

However, I would plead right to repair, although we are leasing the equipment. We were prepared to pay the service fee to get back online if I couldn't get it, but considering we had some problems communicating with the service people (one I think never got back to us) and I got it to work, it saved some money. It's also a temporary solution for us, as we will be switching to a more permanent one soon.

It would definitely be dumb for some people to attempt it; I almost couldn't figure it out, but hey, I know how now. Kind of fun to set up communication with a satellite.

[maratsade]

"However, I would plead right to repair, although we are leasing the equipment."

You would still be in violation of the agreement.  It's good you're prepared to deal with the consequences. 

[infinitytec]

Yes, I should have made that more clear. I have significantly more IT training than most.

[GabeU]

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@infinitytec wrote:

Actually, it is very doable, but you should only do it yourself if you are comfortable doing so.  

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Bad advice.  

Not only should it not be attempted due to the technical issues with doing so, it is also a violation of the subscriber agreement for a customer to attempt this type of work themselves.  

You may have succeeded, but suggesting others do the same, no matter their level of knowledge, is just bad advice to be giving on a customer support community.  A dish relocation should only be performed by a HughesNet authorized technician.

[infinitytec]

I should have made more clear that it can be done by the user, but I agree that most people should not attempt it. In my case, we were without connection. I really couldn't mess it up anymore, and the dish had already been moved, by someone else. We were already in a gray area with the terms. It would have been a week or so before an installer came out to fix it, and even then it should have only been a temporary fix. I figured I might as well try, and it worked, so good for me. And yes, as it is in a gray area, you really should think it over before doing any repairs yourself. In my case, I was attempting (and ultimately succeeded) to restore the system to normal function. This I believe falls under right to repair but not all will. As I stated previously, we were prepared to pay any maintenance fees that would have come from a botched repair.