Here is my tvfool report:
http://www.tvfool.com/?option=com_wr...0b86e7d4ae0680
Here is my current layout:
I have a Winegard HD8200U mounted on top of my roof via a chimney mount in the center of the roof, connected to a Winegard AP series pre-amplifier, connected to a 50 foot run of RG 6 coaxial cable, which connects to my tv inside the house.
Here is my situation:
Based on the tvfool report I should only be able to get WWCP, WJAC, and WPCW broadcasting from the Johnstown, PA direction with a rooftop antenna (red or above). I am able to get WWCP and WJAC with no trouble (WPCW no longer broadcasts on 27 from that location).
On the plus side, I am actually able to get the following stations out of Pittsburgh by aiming my antenna to the northwest: WQED 13, WPXI-DT 48, WPCW 11, WINP-TV 38. This is despite the fact that they all have NM readings on my report of -20.3 or less.
On the negative side, I cannot get KDKA-DT 25, WPMY-DT 42, WTAE-DT 51, or WBGH-DT 43, which are all coming from basically the same direction out of Pittsburgh. KDKA actually comes frome the same tower as WPCW.
At first I was thinking that maybe my antenna is just much better at grabbing Hi-VHF than UHF, hence the strong signal strengths with WPCW and WQED and almost no signal reading for KDKA and others. But then I am getting WPXI coming from nearly the exact same direction and it is UHF. The other weird thing is that KDKA, WPMY, and WBGH come in very spotty if I turn the antenna around and aim it at nearby Laurel Mountain, presumably getting the signals bounced off the ridge. But this phenomenon does not happen with any of the Pittsburgh stations that I normally get when actually aiming at Pittsburgh, such as WPXI, WQED, WINP, and WPCW.
The whole situation has me really stumped.
Here are some other things to note about my location:
My house sits near the lower part of a valley with ridges on all sides. There are two tall trees to the northwest in the direction of Pittsburgh, but I seem to be able to grab a good line of sight between them to pick up the above-mentioned channels. Also, there is a thick line of tall pines to the east and northeast, which seem to restrict me from picking up any additional Johnstown/Altoona Area broadcasts (besides WWCP and WJAC).
Can you provide any advice as far as how I can improve signal reception and/or add the additional missing channels from Pittsburgh? If not, do you have an explanation as far as why I get some and not others, and why some are bouncing off the mountain and others are not?
Do I need a different antenna that might be better suited to UHF? Is there anything available that has better UHF but still could pick up the handful of Hi-VHF channels I'm getting now? Should I just replace my antenna with separate UHF and VHF antennas for improved reception? Would messing with the antenna height make a big difference? (I've tried varying the mast height by adding or subtracting 5' sections, and it doesn't seem to matter much). What about tilting the antenna upward?
Any help you can provide is greatly appreciated!