Homemade HD Antenna...

[JeffreyWilliamson]

Cost about $13.00 and an hour to build. It sits almost at ground level on my front porch and receives all digital channels in Houston, (about 50 miles away). This is the second antenna I built, and used parts from the prototype, which was built from old plywood, hangers, and tinfoil. For this model I had to dole out for screws and washers, better wire, and tin shingles for the reflector.

It's un-amplified and gets the major networks in HD. I can't order satellite in HD because there are trees in the way. Unbelievable.

[NightWatcher]

1. dude, can you build me a bong that gets XM radio?

we're going to start calling you The Professor from now on, cool?

[JeffreyWilliamson]

2. "The Professor" is too pretentious...

MacGayver will work just fine, thanks.

[NightWatcher]

3. how about MacGruber?

http://www.nbc.com/Saturday_Night_Live/video/clips/macgruber-jonah-hill/229853/

[RandomThoughts]

4. Did you know MacGyver tipped me off on a big secret.

episode written by John Shepperd gave me one of the big clues.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xp7H25NYGNw

[ghostsofgiants]

6. But you totally didn't make that out of a teabag and a rubber band.

:P

[Oeditpus Rex]

19. Dude, you can't say 'teabag' in Teh Longue!

:scared:

[ghostsofgiants]

20. Get your mind out of the gutter, fool.

:P

[JeffreyWilliamson]

23. Stop it...

I literally forced myself to turn off the computer and walk away earlier in order to resist the temptation to make a teabag remark here.

[Inchworm]

5. I'll be needing the schematics

I'd LOVE to make one!

I'm getting 1-2 channels over analog and zero digital with an ooold outside antenna.

Would be fun and possibly worth it :)

:yourock:

[JeffreyWilliamson]

8. It's totally worth building one...

I have an HD set and got tired of watching only SDTV on it, so I tried to order up HD through DirecTV. When the installer came out he measured the signal and told me that the surrounding trees were blocking the signal to the extra satellites needed for HD, so he had to pack up and leave.

A few months later, a friend in Houston got a new HD set, and bought a small indoor amplified antenna for $30.00. We hooked it up and he got most of the channels in HD. On the way back home, I stopped and bought my own, but when I got home it only picked up a couple of analog channels because I was too far away.

Just on a whim, I googled "Homemade HD Antenna", and found this:

http://uhfhdtvantenna.blogspot.com/

I knew I had most of the junk lying around that I needed to build this, and put one together in about half an hour a few evenings later. That antenna was much larger than the store bought antenna, but even without amplification it picked up about half the digital signals from Houston. Those few channels worked so well that I decided to build a better antenna, add a more durable reflector backing than tinfoil, and more antenna spikes. The resulting antenna picks up ALL the stations now, without any signal dropout. It blew me away how well it worked.

I measured it out as I went and didn't really use any blueprints, but if you are interested in putting one together, I highly recommend starting at the blog above and working from there.

I had the HD package a few years ago through Time Warner Cable. Back then, they only offered the major networks and a few cable channels in HD. The package was about $20.00 a month extra plus the cost of the HD box. Considering this gives me the networks in HD, and cost $13.00 one time only, it's something I would definitely recommend.

Even if you end up needing to amplify the signal, a decent amplifier will only run you about $20 - $25.00 depending upon where you buy it. I originally looked into doing that for the first antenna, but decided to start over instead.

[Inchworm]

9. I'm amplifying signal now

to get 1 clear and 2 snowy over analog.

I didn't think HD would help with picking up regular digital.

I've boycotted satellite because it creeps up on me. I start with $30.. then add.. and add.. soon I'm paying $90 a month. It's a trick :D

I also know a few people around here who will be losing all TV if something isn't paid for. Old people really don't have the coin to toss $40 a month away just to watch the news at 6 before bed :rofl:

I'll be testing this for sure. Thanks!

:)

[JeffreyWilliamson]

10. Just make sure you have a digital capable tv or converter box...

I discovered that this antenna will not pick up any analog broadcasts--only digital. Not that it will matter in a couple of weeks anyway, as there won't be anymore analog broadcasts.

Interesting thing was, as tech-saavy as I am, I never looked into the digital changeover. I had no idea that each network was broadcasting 2 or 3 channels in digital, some HD, some not. Several networks are broadcasting their main channels in HD (ie 13.1), an SDTV counterpart (ie 13.2), and a weather, entertainment, or 24-hour news network on the third channel (ie 13.3). Plus the indy channels are broadcasting 1 - 2 similar digital feeds. I probably get 30 channels off air in a mix of HD and SD, (and a good deal more if you count Spanish language, religious, or other channels that I didn't program in to the TV).

[Inchworm]

11. I got the converter

After I got off the telephone with closest TV station after he told me the same thing.

I was a sad panda when I got zero signal. My closest station is 80 miles away.

It's rather funny because 2 of the people I plan to help with this live by my dad's old property in the superboonies and their closest station is only 50 miles away... Bluefield, West Virginia.

:)

[mwooldri]

27. oh btw... maybe you replied Inchworm or not...

... were you able to get any UNC-TV signal from that translator site I pointed out? (Jefferson) ?

I don't know if they're switching that to digi or not, I've emailed UNC's viewer services but no answer yet.

Mark.

[trof]

7. That's why I never underestimate American ingenuity.

Good on ya.
:thumbsup:

[rug]

12. Can you get Macgyver reruns?

[JeffreyWilliamson]

13. I'm working on that now using a bag of old rubberbands, a paperclip, and a pack of Skittles. n/t

[graywarrior]

14. I swear to god. Obama needs to hire some DUers just for bing ballsy

[Inchworm]

15. I'mmmm back

About wine time, but before I lose all this crap bouncing around in my head...

A few questions :P



On the link you gave he had X spaced at 7" inches. It looked like he was particular about where the "bow ties" crossed at 3.5"

Is 7" what you used, and does the exactness of the bow tie matter?

Does the distance of Z, Y, or D matter?

I have lots on 2-strand antenna wire. (Like from the 60s but new) I convert to cable at the amplifier. From amp. there is a 5 foot piece of coax that goes into TV. Any errors that you see doing it this way? If no fix, how do I do what you did at the "?" ?

If I am able to use the 2strand at antenna, where does each wire connect to the center bow tie?

Yours doesn't look like hangers. Does the wire type matter? Also.. tin shingles? They appear translucent. I'm not familiar with these. What are they? :D

Probably more questions after I get it out of my head.

I'm doing this tomorrow :rofl:

Well, as long as an asteroid doesn't hit or something.

:applause:

[JeffreyWilliamson]

21. Okay, here we go...

The antenna "spikes" are actually hangers. More specifically, they are the metal bar from the lower part of this type of hanger, although any hanger wire should work:



I bent the actual hangers in half to break the plastic, slid out the metal bar, and bent them at the center to create the "V" shape.

To measure where to place each "V", (or rather the location for each "X" on your picture), I took the length of the 2x4 after I cut it to the size of the plywood backing and starting at one end divided it equally by 8, and marked the innermost 6 places for each screw and washer that would hold it down, (on each side). When the antenna was finished, I bent the "V"'s so that there was about 1-inch between each separate "V"'s spikes. That's how I determined the gap. In between the four innermost set of washers, I screwed in smaller washers closer together to hold the transformer.

The antenna wires never connect, instead run them along those smaller washers at the center on each side, (Note the very small washers at the very center of the antenna where the cable connects). Then attach an Ohm transformer at the screws:



"D" only matters in spacing each "V" from the next "V" on the antenna. As I said above, I simply measured the 2x4 and marked out where to put down the screws and washers that would hold the spikes, and then when they were set, I gave about 1-inch between each separate "V"'s spikes.

"Y" was not measured specifically, but rather by shaping the "V" by picking the center of the hanger bar and bending where I thought that center was.

"Z"'s distance matters only in that the washers should not touch one another, or the signal will get crossed. In fact, if you look closely, you will see that the wire connecting all of the "spikes" has electrical tape insulating it at two points on either end where the antenna wires cross. This is to ensure that the signal will not get crossed.

As for the backing on the plywood, I went to Home Depot and bought tin roofing shingles and nailed them into the plywood backing to create the reflector. It serves as a mirror to capture any signal that passes through the antenna spikes and reflect it back on a second pass, doubling the signal. This reflector essentially serves as the onboard amplifier.

[JeffreyWilliamson]

22. Here's what I mean...

[Inchworm]

28. Gotcha

I'm on it. Thanks for giving the time to detail it out :)

:woohoo:

[MilesColtrane]

16. Looks like a Red Greene built SETI device.

[Inchworm]

17. He did do well converting to electric windows

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dgMheL7dGu0

:rofl:

[friendly_iconoclast]

18. Yes, you *can* build your own HD antenna, and here's some protips

If you can solder, you can do it.

I've heard the following from various electronic magazines and sites.

1. Use bronze welding rod or #10 copper wire for the elements (corrosion resistance)

2. Use silver solder for the same reason

3. Hit it with a couple of coats of clear acrylic spray

[JeffreyWilliamson]

24. Here's a step-by-step on YouTube...

...describing how to make an antenna like this, for anyone interested:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EWQhlmJTMzw

[mwooldri]

25. You're getting KUHT (Houston PBS) and Ion TV on that?

If you are then that's good :)

That looks suspiciously like a UHF antenna.

There's no such thing as an HD antenna BTW... that antenna will pick up the UHF stations quite well in analog, but should in theory be crappy for VHF. But then if the VHF signal is strong enough, even a piece of wire would do the trick.

I mention the above because KUHT is going to be on Channel 8 - VHF - after transition, they're on 9 right now. Ion TV is on Channel 5 until 2/17, it flashes to 32 so if you're not getting Ion now, you should after 2/17.

Good job BTW - and it doesn't look that bad either.

Mark.

[NJmaverick]

26. Impressive

I admire your ability to produce something like that.