Help with 8 & 10 (ABC CBS) San Diego area 91977

[hikinlady]

Thanks for having this forum, it's extremely helpful. I have two questions below, about the HVAC and the amp left by Cox, and would appreciate any further suggestions.

I read through several San Diego area posts and purchased a Winegard 1080 and a Radio Shack FM trap 15-024. Trying to get 8 & 10 (ABC, CBS). Antenna is currently pointed away from the ABC CBS stations with no reception (used a real compass, back of the antenna aimed at 283). All stations east are good.

http://www.tvfool.com/?option=com_wrapper&Itemid=29&q=id%3d46aef3f49ea846

Antenna is approx. 5 feet from (above) an HVAC compressor; would this matter?

Cox left an amp, pctvc2pt, which has been installed on downlead after FM filter, tried it both with and without power, didn't make any difference. Can you tell me if this is the correct type of signal amp?

http://www.pctstore.com/RF_amplifier_CATV_amp_2_port_amplifier_PCTVC2PT_p/pctvc2pt.htm

Our next step will be to experiment with the height...

[GroundUrMast]

Worst case, given your UHF (real CH-14 through CH-51) reception is acceptable, you may need to add a High-VHF antenna. If you can't find a 'sweet spot' for the Winegard 1080, then add an Antennacraft Y10713 pointed at azimuth 283° magnetic. Looking at the path profile links (KFMB Path Profile (http://www.tvfool.com/?option=com_wrapper&Itemid=29&q=id%3d46aef3f49ea846%26t%3dALLTV%26n%3d14), KGTV Path Profile (http://www.tvfool.com/?option=com_wrapper&Itemid=29&q=id%3d46aef3f49ea846%26t%3dALLTV%26n%3d16)) embedded in you TVFR it looks like there is a hill to the west of your location, fairly close. Not surprising that the 1080 is a bit small for the job.

But yes, experiment with height and lateral location... Low cost and fairly easy (I presume). Close proximity to HVAC ducts or equipment might be a problem and would not affect every channel the same way. I hope you find a 'sweet spot'.

The pctvc2pt should work just fine as a distribution amplifier. That means it will help you overcome the effects of loss in cable and splitters connected to the output port. No amplifier will 'pull' signal from the antenna or from the air. The pctvc2pt has a unique feature that allows it to switch to bypass mode if power fails. This is used in cable service applications where phone service is considered 'essential' and must continue during power failures. Without this feature you would expect to lose most or all reception if you lost power to the amplifier.