At least 16 million Americans get their broadcast television through traditional antennas. That number may be shocking to some as generations of young people don’t even know what an antenna is.
For those of you that know antennas well, however, and enjoy taking in their many benefits, you also know that antennas can go awry. This is particularly true of rooftop antennas that are exposed to the elements.
Are you experiencing antenna issues now? Is it time to call in a TV antenna repair specialist?
Below, our team breaks down common signs of antenna troubles that can get worse if you don’t have a professional diagnose and fix the issue. Keep reading to learn what common repair SOS signs look like.
1. Visible Damage
The most obvious antenna repair sign is visible, physical damage. A visibly damaged device might be displaced from its original position, it may be dented from fallen debris, or could have even had one of its parts fall off of its base.
Whatever the damage may be, physical damage, in some cases, can be fixed by a TV antenna repair specialist for less than it would cost to replace your device. With that in mind, the moment you notice damage to your antenna’s body, call in a TV antenna repair service to assess the issue and explore what they can do.
2. Reduced Range
Different antennas come with different degrees of range. An antenna range determines how many miles away it can stretch its signal to interface with broadcast towers.
What we see with a lot of antennas is that, out of the box, they can connect with towers that are (for example) 75 miles away but then see that range drop as the years go on. Range drop-offs are usually a sign of lack of maintenance and can be managed by a repair specialist in most cases.
If a signal you were previously enjoying is now not being discovered by your antenna, confirm that signal is still in service before calling anyone. If it is, let your local repair person know and get an assist.
3. Poor Reception
Even when your antenna can pull in a signal, in some cases, that signal can be hard to read. Hard to read signals could mean static-laden or soft picture quality. It could also manifest itself in the way of video/audio sync issues.
If you were able to connect to a broadcast signal in high definition before and are now running into a litany of picture problems, call in support. A quick positioning adjustment might be all that’s required to get your picture quality back to 100%.
4. No Signal
A supremely obvious sign that it’s time to call in TV antenna repair is when your antenna isn’t pulling any signal in at all.
Our first suggestion when this happens is to go through the signal rediscovery process in your TV’s settings. If that doesn’t do the trick, you could be experiencing a dead antenna or at least a cable issue that’s interfering with your antenna’s ability to work.
Whether or not these sorts of connectivity issues can be remedied by a repair specialist will depend on the issue’s severity. In any case, it’s worth calling in help to get a proper diagnosis.
5. Bad Cables
Your antenna needs to plug into power and the back of your television set. If any of the cables that enable that power or video/audio connection are in bad shape, you’re not going to get the picture quality you’re looking for and might not get any signal at all.
When it comes to checking for bad cables, you can DIY check cable issues if the cables you need to inspect are within arm’s reach. For cables that are on your roof, given the dangers involved in getting on top of your house, we recommend leaving those cable inspections to the pros.
Pros at places like installmyantenna.com.au and other community repair operations should be able to swap out bad cables with spares in minutes and have you back up and running fast, assuming that’s your issue.
6. Years Without Maintenance
Just because your antenna hasn’t experienced problems yet doesn’t mean it won’t. The best way you can ensure your antenna continues working without error is to get it looked at every so often.
How often your antenna should get inspected varies depending on manufacturer guidance. Our recommendation is to look at your antenna’s manual to review what maintenance steps are requested of you and how often.
Antenna repair specialists in your area can also opine on maintenance schedules but may offer more aggressive timetables than your manufacturer to boost business. For that reason, we recommend leaning on manufacturer recommendations first.
Are TV Antenna Repair Solutions Worth the Trouble?
As we close our TV antenna repair write-up, let’s address the elephant in the room… Is it worth your time and investment to persevere legacy technology like antennas?
When you think of how much cable subscribers spend on TV, it’s clear to us why antennas make sense. They allow light TV viewers/broadcast network lovers to watch their favorite content at no cost.
That value proposition is a wonderful one that will keep increasing in value as cable bundles continue to go up in price to compensate for lost subscribers.
We hope our antenna repair tips enable you to get the most out of your rooftop device. If you find yourself in need of more guidance, feel free to browse additional tech content on our blog.
