Can I always get a signal?

No, sometimes the line of sight to the satellites are completely blocked and you do not have an opening to any of the signals. Depending on the dish, and the number of satellites sending signals, the opening may need to be from 1 to 20 degrees wide.

Most of the time you will find a small opening to receive the signals. However, when the opening is small it may limit the number of satellites that can send a strong signal to the LNB. Sometimes it's down to only one or two out of five satellite some dishes are designed to receive.

The Line of Sight Tool (LOST) can be used to determine which satellites can receive signals.

How can I tell if I have a clear shot to the satellite signal?

The only way to be sure that you can get all the multiple satellite signals is to determine the degree spread for the satellites that the dish is receiving.

For example, the DirecTV HD SlimLine dish receives signals from satellites at 99°, 101°, 103°, 110° and 119°. That is a spread from 99° to 119°, so the line of sight has a span of 20°.

Using the azimuth from the setup menu as the center point in this spread you can calculate the beginning and ending azimuth points. Start by dividing the spread by 2 and then subtract that answer from the center point to get the beginning point. Add the answer to the center point to get the ending point.

In this case, with a span of 20°, half is 10° so 10 is subtracted and added to the center point to determine the beginning and ending azimuth points.

For example, the azimuth reading for zip code 98258 is 134. So the starting point is azimuth 124 (134 - 10) and the ending azimuth point is 144 (134 + 10).

Using the “LOST” in place of the dish, the span between azimuth 124 and 144 must have no obstacles showing in the reflection.  If an obstacle is seen then the satellite around that location will have a weak or lost signal.

To determine the satellites affected, the starting point is the lowest satellite in degrees and the ending point is the highest satellite. With that information, the number of degrees between each satellite will be the number of azimuth points to adjust to determine their location.

For the DirecTV HD dish the satellites are 99°, 101°, 103°, 110° and 119°. Using the 98258 zip code example above, azimuth 124 is satellite 99°, azimuth 126 is satellite 101°, azimuth 128 is satellite 103°, azimuth 135 is satellite 110° and azimuth 144 is satellite 119°.

Your network provider can tell you which channels are carried by each satellite. Use the above information to determine if you can accept having a weak or lost signal for a location.

Does the ground need to be level?

The stand has 4 legs that have 11 inches in adjustment for each leg.

This allows for terrain that has up to 11 inches variance within the 17 by 14 inch area that the stand covers.

With other stands, because the signals bounce into the LNB at an angle, there is always a question as to the precise location on the dish to aim with. Also, along with the small hand held compass that have very small azimuth reading, the azimuth is usually 4 or more degrees off when you start looking for a signal.

With this stand, the base is a compass with large azimuth readings. Unlike most non-GPS stands, this eliminates any question as to the direction the dish needs to be set.

With the stand having an accurate azimuth reading, usually within 1 degree and with the built-in levels, the mast can be plumbed on very uneven terrain. When setting up the dish using the values from the setup menu, you will have a signal to start the dish’s fine tuning. With multi-satellite dishes, this eliminates a lot of the guessing and lets you quickly tune in the signal.

With other stands when you have uneven terrain, making the mast plumb is not easy. With dish system’s having more than one satellite, it is becoming harder and harder to find the muliti satellites signals.

With these new satellites not having an accurate azimuth and non-plumb mast usually means that finding the signal requires more luck than skil.

Where do the settings, azimuth, elevation and skew/tilt come from?

Most providers have an antenna installation screen menu.

Consult the receiver's manual as to how to connect the dish to the TV and display the setup menu. Use the zip code of the location where the dish is being installed to display the azimuth, elevation and skew/tilt.

Does the dish fold for storage?

No, the dish that this stand was designed for is the standard antenna used by the satellite provider.

Some users have modified the arm that holds the LNB by replacing the rivets with a bolt and wing nut allowing the arm to fold or be taken off.

However, in most cases, the dish is removed from the stand, placed on the bed or other soft area during travel and then remounted on the stand when at your destination.

We have made the removal and reinstall of the antenna very simple. A quick release clip is all that holds it to the mast. The rest of the stand can be quickly separated and stored, if needed.

What happens in strong winds?

It depends on how strong the winds are in the area where the stand is located. 

There are steps that can be taken to assure better stability:

• The stand has two places on the north side where weights can be placed. Two, five or ten pound dumbbells, are recommended.
• If line of sight will allow it, remove the extension.
• Adjust the legs so the base of the stand is as close to the ground as possible.

These actions will lower the stand's center of gravity. The additional weights will work as a counter balance to the weight of the LNB.

The large DirecTV HD SlimLine dish with two 10 pound dumbbells in place was tested using a backpack type leaf blower at only one foot away. The wind did not effect the viewing of a HD show.

Because of shipping costs Delsand LLC does not furnish these weights. You can obtain them at most stores that have sport & exercising department.

Do the locking nuts have to be tight?

No. The lock nuts are there to keep the legs stable and also to keep the legs from falling off when moving the stand to a different location.  You only need to finger tighten the locking nuts after using the levels to plumb the mast.

Does the stand come with satellite dish or LNB?

No, we recommend you use the antenna and LNB that is furnished by your satellite provider.

Made in the USA
Patent Pending
Designed and Patented by Delsand LLC in Lake Stevens, WA
Tooling Designed and Made by Ideality Inc. in Stanwood, WA
Injection Molding in Nylon-6 Done in Mukiteo and Everett, WA
Assembled, Boxed and Shipped in Stanwood, WA

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