Antenna Project

I decided to take on a project this weekend that I've been thinking about for a few months. I wanted to get my local network TV channels in high definition. Directv did not offer local channels in HD when we got our HD DVR this past summer. Since we're about 70 miles from Minneapolis the stations came in quite fuzzy with rabbit ears. So I decided a bigger antenna would do the trick. So I got a 39 element outdoor antenna (144 inches long).

But in stead of installing it on the roof I thought it might work by putting it in the rafters of the garage. Since all of the stations are to the north and the garage faces north, alignment was not an issue. I spent about 2 hours putting it together and making all of the connections up in the rafters (it was about 8 degrees, but at least there was no wind). I checked the reception on a small tv first to see what kind of signal I was getting and all the networks except CBS came in perfectly. I ran the cable into the house and hooked it to the HD receiver. After going through the setup again, there they were...the networks in glorious HD! CBS was even coming in perfectly. (Evidently, the stations turn down their analog broadcast power so they can put more power into the digital transmission.) The best part about this project, other than the great picture quality, is that the project worked out exactly as planned (which rarely happens with my home projects!) I got all the right things from the store the first time; it was cheap ($60); it only took a couple hours rather than all weekend; the results are just as good if not better than expected.

I also fixed the snow blower this weekend (I think).