Did you no you can get free HDTV over the air broadcasts in your area? I guarantee  you can get anywhere from 15-50 HDTV over the air broadcasts from an outside Television Antenna! Depending where you are, in a valley, on a hill, surrounded by trees or whatever the case maybe, with a little knowledge you can setup your own antenna system and start receiving all your local television stations in High Definition. Most people have a Netflix account or some other means of watching movies and just watch local news and other local broadcasts in your area.

 DTV Reception and
Antenna aiming maps using your address, city, zip code.

Simply click the link below.

 http://transition.fcc.gov/mb/engineering/maps/

Add your address, city, zip code, etc to the upper section and click “Go”…it will show you a list of stations and a map with your location centered. On the left there will be a station list on a color coded background. Green for strong reception, yellow for moderate reception, etc. Now to be more accurate, zoom
the map in to your exact location marked by the “X” ..left click the marker and hold the click, then drag it to your exact location and release the click..the software will recalculate the station list shown on the left.

Now to see the direction from you to the station transmitter, simple pick a station call sign (Call letters), from the list on the left, click it and a line will appear on the map from your location to the transmitter site for that station.
This is the direction from you to the station in a straight line. Check other station directions by doing the same with their call signs. Unclick each when you
are done with them to keep the map from being very cluttered.

Look below each station call sign for “Compass direction to tower”..you should see a number..this is the direction on a compass you should use in
aiming your antenna for that particular station. Record the compass heading for many stations on the list and hopefully, they will all be within a very few degrees of each other..take the average of them and that is the direction you want to aim your antenna using a compass. Also pay attention to the “band” the tv station transmits on…If all are UHF, then you will only need an antenna designed for UHF and not a VHF/UHF TYPE. If there is one or 2 stations listed as VHF and you want to recieve them, then you will need an antenna designed as VHF/UHF. Antennas are usually measured in gain so the higher the number, the better it will perform for you.

Tip…if you are several miles “out” from the transmitter locations, then by aiming your antenna for the best signal strength for one, then they all should be very close as far as aiming is concerned if they are all within a few degrees of each other. In most metro tv areas, the transmitter sites are NOT within the center of the city on a map..they are usually outside of the center of the city sometimes many miles.

If you happen to be very close to the stations and the compass headings are “all over the place” in many directions, then to get the best reception, you may want to consider using an antenna rotor and “aim” them separately each time you change the channel.

 

What
types of antennas are available?

There are basically 3 to 4 types of tv antennas with many models and price ranges in between depending on your needs and pocket book.

We have some recommended examples below:

1. Short range, small “set top” antennas such as what are called “rabbit ears”.

These are designed as a very basic antenna for receiving very strong local stations when you live within or near the city limits and the station transmitter. Many are designed to receive from all directions by simply turning the antenna for best reception.

2. Medium range, Outdoor all directional or directional antennas. The all directional types are sometimes called omni-directional. These are the most popular rooftop antennas because of their modest size and expense. These are mounted outside your home or up in the attic as a worst case and receive from all directions or from one direction depending on their design type. Many have internal amplifiers to boost the tv signals to a stronger level than the standard set top or rabbit ear types.

3. Long range, Directional sometimes called fringe or deep fringe. These types are used when the tv signals are very weak and when they come from one direction or can be rotated or aimed at the station with a mechanical “rotor”. These types are usually very LARGE and used when the less expensive antennas will not work in your area.

Selecting which of the types above may be confusing for you, but to be able to
get free HDTV, bigger, HIGHER and OUTSIDE is always better if that is possible for you and your situation.

We’ve done lots of research for you and here are a few highly recommended and
highly rated antennas that should get you great reception depending on your situation and location relative to the stations. If you are undecided, always go a step higher in price than what you think you will need. Remember, outside tv
antennas are much better than set top types.

Indoor.Used indoors in metro and urban areas very close to the stations. Usually sets on the tv or nearby. Try them near a window facing the station. Experiment with the best inside location.

Outdoor.Used outdoors in areas from 10 miles out to about 30 to 45 miles when stations are in many different directions from you. Highly recommended. Comes with 50 feet of coaxial cable. This is an amplified antenna and should not be used when closer than 10 miles to nearest station.

 

Very powerful and very large outdoor antenna used in extreme distances out
to about 100 miles from stations and is highly directional. Usually requires a rotor to aim the antenna if stations are located in different directions. If this antenna does not work for you due to being too far from the stations, then bottom line…. you will have to go back to paying dearly for cable or satellite!

 

IMPORTANT SAFEGUARDS WHEN INSTALLING ANTENNAS

 

Remember, when working on a roof, use two or more adults. It is very handy to use a pair of FRS type walkie talkies when aiming the antenna unless you know the exact direction to aim it. Have one person inside looking at the tv and you with the other walkie talkie up on the roof turning the antenna. Never use an aluminum ladder when near power lines that feed your home…don’t be near power lines of any kind in the first place!

Never walk on a composition roof in cold weather. Do not install in high winds
or when ice and snow or wet roofs can cause you to slip and fall. Follow the instructions that came with the antenna. Don’t shortcut the procedure. People are severly injured or even killed installing antenna. Use extreme caution and get professional help if needed. Wear sneakers or crepe soles, and use a safety rope.

Always watch for power lines. Never install any antenna over, under or near power lines where they can fall on the antenna or the antenna can fall on them! If this happens then the free HDTV may not be so free!

  Hints and Tips!

 If you have more than 1 tv, you can hook the others to the main antenna using coaxial cable and multi set couplers designed to feed more than one tv. You can even attach several TVs to the main antenna by using in-line boosters to keep the signal strong to each of them.

Always use NEW high grade coaxial cable like RG-6. Never use RG-59 due to higher signal losses in it. You want the maximum signal from the antenna passed to the tv.

Although getting free HDTV off the air has it’s advantages, mainly a much clearer high definition picture than cable or satellite and no cost to you except the one time expense of getting an antenna set up, you will likely only get the major networks like ABC, CBS, NBC, FOX, PBS and a few other local non-network stations. In large metro areas, there are also many foreign language broadcasts and Christian
Tv channels.

Remember, you are not paying dearly for literally hundreds of channels you will never watch. And don’t forget about all those “music” channels” that your paying for. Free tv off the air provides
your basic tv needs so why pay for all those extra channels when you don’t need or want to?

If you already have a rooftop antenna that is not being used, then try it out first before buying another antenna. It may work just fine depending on the condition it is in. Think of all the money you will save by getting free HDTV off the air!

Follow the instructions that come with the antenna. NEVER use small thin metal tubing to support the antenna. The wind will take it down and all of your work will have been for nothing.

We are not responsible for nor liable for your installation under any circumstances!

This article should be used for educational purposes only and is not intended to be an installation guide.