Sky + DIY Cable installation help

[videoman]

Any low loss cable will do Maplins sell it as well as most electrical shops and DIY what you must do is fit a "F" plug on it uses the inner strand as a centre pin so cut it carefully and if you can check for any short circuit between the inner and outer wire

[Robbo]

Originally Posted by videoman

Any low loss cable will do Maplins sell it as well as most electrical shops and DIY what you must do is fit a "F" plug on it uses the inner strand as a centre pin so cut it carefully and if you can check for any short circuit between the inner and outer wire

Not for satellite use it won't. Low-loss coax cable does not have the bandwidth capability or sufficient screening.

[high.pressure]

I see that the cable supplied by TLC and screwfix has been recommended on other threads, as screwfix are out of stock was thinking of getting the TLC cable as per this link.

Digital Satellite Cable - ideal for Sky+ Installation

Would this be ok, thought I could flog what I dont use on flea bay

Steve

[Robbo]

Yep, that's the stuff, a bit cheaper than screwfix as well, it is CAI approved and thus equivalent to the webro foam wf100 etc.

As for Maplins, give them a wide birth, their equivalent is way overpriced.

[Rick]

Very nice cable bodge there Robbo. Must say though have done the same myself (temporarialy though) and got things to work the way they should. I wouldn't dream of calling something like that a finished job !

Do use a good cable as has already been said. I use CT100 as it is the easiest and cheapest sat grade that I can get.

Myself and my Electrician friend rewired my parents house, they were planning on having sky installed and scrapping cable. I ran all the cables 2x to living room, 1 to parents bedroom and 1 to 2nd bedroom. I used CT100 and it was all put into the wall chases. I made sure I was there and spoke to the engineer. He told me that strictly speaking he should run his own cable, but that would have been thrown over the roof etc. After a nice chat though he agreed to use my cable. Really depends on the engineer. At the end of the day though the engineer gets paid the same for the install whatever and he just saves time by not running his own. Besides sky will not go to any effort to hide cable. Mine was only visible right behind the dish where it came out of the wall.

A word of advice though. If you want to run your own cable do a proper job of it. If all looks tidy and proffesionl the engineer is more likely to agree then if it looks like a dogs dinner.

[stevo25]

and make sure the bend radius isnt too tight

[high.pressure]

Thanks for all the comments, I am going to pick the cable up today and plan to have a go at the install over this and next weekend. The Sky+ install is booked for the week after.

I have a problem with my aerial cable as well, so will use this as an opportunity to run a new one of the those in as well. The repair guy reckoned it is kinked somewhere (to tight a bend !)

Steve

[Robbo]

The foam cable is good for avoiding kinks, because the di-electric is solid. As long as you don't try and make sharp 90 degree corners but use a curve instead, it will be fine.

[chris217]

One other tip I found useful: Mark a line on the handle of your hammer the distance apart you want your cable clips (from the handle end, not the head end). This can be used as a quick guide to ensure that the clips are evenly spaced (which looks so much nicer and professional).

Also, don't forget to loop the cable down below the entry hole and then up into the hole in the wall. Any water running down the cable drips off the end of the loop rather than going into the hole.

[FlyerUK]

Originally Posted by chris217

One other tip I found useful: Mark a line on the handle of your hammer the distance apart you want your cable clips (from the handle end, not the head end). This can be used as a quick guide to ensure that the clips are evenly spaced (which looks so much nicer and professional).

Also, don't forget to loop the cable down below the entry hole and then up into the hole in the wall. Any water running down the cable drips off the end of the loop rather than going into the hole.

I always tend to loop the input to the lnb for the same reason