Saturday, April 7, 2018

Will an Over the Air TV Antenna Work in your Area?

Where you live will determine how many OTA TV channels you will get.  If you live in Calgary, Alberta, Canada and have an 80-mile radius TV antenna you will get about 6 local channels which are broadcasted from a North West location.  The best area to be in for the most OTA TV channels is the southern Ontario near Lake Ontario.  An 80-mile radius TV antenna will get you about 15 TV channels with good weather conditions.  You will be always getting at least 10 channels no matter what the weather is like.  There are 3 major tower areas in Southern Ontario and you have to decide where you target your antenna for maximum reception.  The rule is simple, move the antenna around your apartment or house.  The key things to understand are:

1.  Direct line of site with the broadcast signal.

2.  Antenna equipment/product which allows you to use an extension for a coaxial cable so you can move the antenna anywhere you want to for the best possible signal.

3.  A USB power source that uses 0.5 ma.  Do NOT use a wall USB charger it will put out too much power and can damage the antenna.  The power source would come from your TV or computer USB port.  The better OTA antennas need a small amount of power to get the range you want and you need to make sure that you have this available before you purchase an OTA antenna product.

4.  Consider the closest window to the direction of the signal tower with the best line of sight.  Walls are not the best to put the antenna on as it becomes an obstruction.  With this in mind, setting up the antenna in the basement is not advised.

5.  If you want better reception then get a longer range antenna. An indoor antenna goes up to 120 miles, but an outdoor antenna can go up to 150 miles.  Just something to consider if you want more channels or if you are further away from the signal tower.

6.  Signal strength within your home will diminish if you split the signal to 2 or more TVs.  Therefore the OTA antenna will not work.  There are ways around this so don’t worry.  Most households now have at least 2 TVs.  You will need a signal amplifier/cable splitter and you are good to go.  These devices are plug and play type of equipment so make sure you have the power outlet and extra coaxial cable to make all the connections to the TVs.

7.  To find where your signal towers are you just need to go to these sights and it will tell you what channels are possible and where the towers are.  All TV channels in Canada and the United States are over the air as well as on cable.  https://www.fcc.gov/media/engineering/dtvmaps , http://tvfool.com/ , http://overtheair.saveandreplay.com/over_the_air_channels_by_city_Canada.asp .

8.  The million dollar question!  What channels will I get in Toronto, Ontario, Canada close to Lake Ontario with a direct line of sight to the CN Tower?  To put this question in perspective.  I live in Toronto and have a 50 mile OTA TV antenna.  I aim it at the CN Tower.  These are the channels I get.  CBC English and French, CTV-CFTO, PBS, WNED, PBS Kids, TVO, Bounce, CW, Fox 29-WUTV, TBD, Charge, OMNI 1, OMNI 2, CityTV (cuts out in bad weather).  If I had a more powerful antenna I would get more channels from the United States as there are several signal antennas across Lake Ontario in Buffalo.  The antennas will require an 80-mile range for channels like ABC.

9.  Why would you even consider cutting your cable?  Now there is the new 120 mile OTA antenna will cost you around $30.00 and basic cable is about $25.00 per month.  The antenna is a onetime payment but the cable bill is monthly and $30.00 one time or $300.00 plus tax per year it’s really easy to figure out.

10.  No moving parts and long lasting use.  Just consider the saving is the years to come.  2 years $600.00 plus or 3 years $900.00 plus.  I am so happy to have one less bill to pay.  I cut my cable.

The new Indoor Over the Air TV Antenna now has a range of 120 miles (193 Km).  This will allow you to get the most of what is available from TV broadcast towers in the area around Lake Ontario.

Below are links to the best products for the project to get Over the Air FREE TV.  There are 2 antennas.  The outdoor antenna has a 150 mile (241 Km) range.





There is NO Adjustable Outdoor Antenna Mount Pole - Attic Antenna Mount in the Outdoor TV Antenna Package for $50.00 CDN (above).


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