Replacing original coax

I replaced my Winegard batwing with a supposedly stronger Yagi antenna. No channels at all. Previously with the batwing I had 17. Put the batwing back up. No channels.
I checked the booster(s) and it is on and working. I suspect the coax is bad.

I will test continuity when it's not raining, but my question is:

What are the odds that it would be a "free pull" of the existing coax? I was hoping to tie a new coax to the old and pull it through from the rooftop antenna to the front overhead where the existing cable(s) come in. It's a 2005 Georgie Boy Pursuit, and total distance is about 12 ft straight line, which I'm sure it isn't straight line routed?

Is it typically stapled or fastened along the way?

Dauninge said:

What are the odds that it would be a "free pull" of the existing coax? I was hoping to tie a new coax to the old and pull it through from the rooftop antenna to the front overhead where the existing cable(s) come in. It's a 2005 Georgie Boy Pursuit, and total distance is about 12 ft straight line, which I'm sure it isn't straight line routed?

Is it typically stapled or fastened along the way?

Click to expand...

Yes, it is typical to be stapled.  If there is slack in the coax, try pulling what you can, cut off about 6" and put new connectors on and see if that doesn't fix your problem.  The RV coax often had DC on it and that seems to help corrode the ends of the coax.  I fixed mine by doing this.

Before I went to the effort to replace the cable I would take a long piece of good cable, string it through the door and hook it up.

If that cures the problem then I would do the hard part of pulling it through the ceiling, etc.

First the good news.  Coax comes in multiple types but for this post that does not mastter

It also comes in multiple locations.  and with different connectors and that DOES matter.

Coax inside walls and such (NOT exposed to Ultra Violet Sunlight) lasts a long, long, long long time

Coax exposed to sun.. Not so long,

Compression connectors, which use a special tool to attach. YOu load the "extended" connector into the tool, insert the coax (NOTE: different coax different connectors) and then compress it. this makes the length of it shorter.  as opposed to the crimp on type wher eyou compress a ring to CRIMP IT.. The compresson connectors can be pulled off. but it is not easy.. Takes POWER to do it  (Wife pulled one off with her scooter once)

The crimp on's.. a good hard sneeze and they pop off.

Now the good news.
IF you need a new coax (Also the prime suspect) there is a connector at the roof line. it may stick up covererd in Caulking (Dicor non-leveling type) or it mayu be under a "Clamshell" cover. but it's at the roof line in either casde.. You may only need to replace from this connerctor to the antenna (A few feet)

Also when I lost the OTA antenna.. IT WAS this connector

I replaced the connerctor itself, and both casble ends attached to it, and operation was restored..

NOTE it was obviously this connector once I got it uncovered. visually bad.

HOW TO EASILY TEST

Use a 25 foot coil of coax and run it from the switch box antenna connection inside to the antenna via a windowe or door for testing only.. If it works, problem found

If not.. You mentioned you put on a yagi type antenna

Suspect 2.. THE FUSE that feeds the switch.. Yup. yagi's are often zero ohms at DC and may have blown your fuse.

Odds are heavy that the only problem is the connector on the end of the coax, usually at the antenna end. The chances of a failure somewhere along the length of the coax is very small.  Cut the old connector off and install a new one and see what happens.

Dauninge said:

I replaced my Winegard batwing with a supposedly stronger Yagi antenna. No channels at all. Previously with the batwing I had 17. Put the batwing back up. No channels.
I checked the booster(s) and it is on and working. I suspect the coax is bad.

Click to expand...

The booster injects 12 VDC onto the coax to power the pre-amp in the antenna.  If you replaced the Winegard batwing antenna with a Yagi, the Yagi likely doesn't have a preamp, so you don't want to send voltage up there.

A quick way to check the coax is turn on the booster and confirm there's 12 VDC on the other end of the coax.  You might have blown the fuse in the booster when you turned it on into the Yagi, which is basically a short to DC.

Another likely failure point is the length of coax that runs from the connector on the roof to the antenna.  Coax with it's solid inner conductor isn't designed to repeatedly flex back and forth, which is precisely what happens every time you raise or lower the antenna.

Unless someone drove a nail or screw into it, there's little chance of anything going wrong with the cabling inside the walls and ceiling, where it stays in a single position after installation.

Lou's comments are appropriate.  He triggered a memory for me in that when we shortened the cable in the MH for the satellite antenna we also replaced the section on the roof from the outlet to the satellite antenna.  It was all corroded internally due to the effect of the DC and water I mentioned previously.

Many Yagi antennas use a folded dipole element others a straight dipole., the folded is zero ohms at DC Dead short) and the dipole. depends on how it is fed. A transformer or Balun is often used and these too are zero ohms at DC (Dead short) which is why I also suggest a fuse check

NOW a fuse check is very easy. On the switch be it a Box of many buttons or the standard wall plate.. There is a light.. Same fuse.

Good advice from Lou. I missed the conversion to a Yagi type and it may indeed lack a built-in amp. Check the instructions.

I replaced the original satellite coax when Removed the obsolete dish and installed a Travler.
I used the original coax to pull a 1/8? cord through and then the cord to pull the three coax cables and the control cable. There was about 3? of the roof before getting to the front cap.

The Yagi came with it's own amp/booster. I used that with the Yagi. (Just connected the coax from the antenna to it). The Winegard booster didn't blow a fuse, even though I did initially try the the Yagi with it for convenience.
It's still raining here, so I'll check it all out when it's dry.
Thank you all. I'll let you know what I find. I'm hoping for the simple solution of just replacing the coax from the roof line to the antenna.