Posted 2 years ago
Matt B, Viasat Employee
Bev, Champion
I may move as well, further west would leave me trimming a smaller oak tree than the giant sweet gum tree I have to keep trimmed now. I'll have to get my compass out and see if that looks like enough to get off the sweet gum or, if I'd end up trimming both trees. (Said tress are on railroad property but, in the way of my dishes - DTV and Exede or, I'd simply remove them)
Try using http://www.dishpointer.com/ - just estimate azimuth and elevation (and skew if interested) using 70 W Star One, ViaSat-1 is already there in the drop down list provided.
Depending on whether your on east or west coast elevation will increase or decrease - in my case it actually will increase to about 44 degrees from 31 degrees.
The satellite imagery there is at a high enough resolution that I can make out the trees that may be an issue (but with a roof mount it appear I'll clear them when I enable the obstacle checker feature).
Depending on whether your on east or west coast elevation will increase or decrease - in my case it actually will increase to about 44 degrees from 31 degrees.
The satellite imagery there is at a high enough resolution that I can make out the trees that may be an issue (but with a roof mount it appear I'll clear them when I enable the obstacle checker feature).
Bev, Champion
Yep, slight move west that would get that tree out of the way and, the oak is probably short enough to not be in the way at all for a few years.
That site is really neat Old Labs.
(my little island of paradise)
(my little island of paradise)
(Edited)
Bev, Champion
I'm jealous, no trees to argue with. I have this satellite installer's nightmare to deal with.
xode0000, Champion
Said tress are on railroad property but, in the way of my dishes - DTV and Exede or, I'd simply remove themPossibly you could mount your dishes on a 30 foot tall or thereabouts structure, much along the lines of a windmill, and, in that manner, have them clear those trees? Or would some local government agency try to prevent you from doing that.
(Edited)
Bev, Champion
Who is paying for this tower, it needs to be hurricane proof, not affected by extremes of heat or cold, need rather deep concrete footings because this is clay, it rains, it turns to mush.
One fool tried a HAM radio tower out here, a week after he set it up, it rained, one leg sank 24 inches. He fixed that, a month later, hurricane took it out entirely. A satellite dish can catch wind better than that radio antenna and tower did.
For the first 5 years I lived here, house being a new build, I had to jack the foundation up here or there every time it rained until the house finally got settled, now once every 7-10 years, like everyone else out here.
Out here things aren't done with heavy equipment, hand tools and equine power mostly (mules or horses with a block and tackle for heavy lifting.) Ground, even dry won't support a crane or anything bigger than a small farm tractor, wet, even riding lawnmowers sink and get stuck. Took 4 dump truck loads of gravel just to get a safe place to park 2 cars.
One fool tried a HAM radio tower out here, a week after he set it up, it rained, one leg sank 24 inches. He fixed that, a month later, hurricane took it out entirely. A satellite dish can catch wind better than that radio antenna and tower did.
For the first 5 years I lived here, house being a new build, I had to jack the foundation up here or there every time it rained until the house finally got settled, now once every 7-10 years, like everyone else out here.
Out here things aren't done with heavy equipment, hand tools and equine power mostly (mules or horses with a block and tackle for heavy lifting.) Ground, even dry won't support a crane or anything bigger than a small farm tractor, wet, even riding lawnmowers sink and get stuck. Took 4 dump truck loads of gravel just to get a safe place to park 2 cars.
Those aren't trees... these are trees (60+ foot tulip poplars, white oak, etc) as I shoot the gap between them ;)
Thankfully, they're downhill and the roof mount (actually a reinforced chimney mount now giving me about 3 more fee of elevation) gets me over the smaller ones - a couple have been taken down since that imagery was captured since they were infringing on my gap ;) .
Thankfully, they're downhill and the roof mount (actually a reinforced chimney mount now giving me about 3 more fee of elevation) gets me over the smaller ones - a couple have been taken down since that imagery was captured since they were infringing on my gap ;) .
(Edited)
Bev, Champion
Like that here in summer, Oak, Pine, Sweet Gum, Magnolia, Mulberry, Cedar mostly around here. I shoot a gap too, and trim a sweetgum to do it - those darned things grow branches FAST.
Gorgeous place to live, by the way.
Gorgeous place to live, by the way.
xode0000, Champion
Is there another spot on your property where you could put the dish and that is far enough back from those trees such that the beam going up from the dish would clear those trees?
You talking to me? (in my best De Niro voice). If so, nope, But with Viasat-2, the line of sight shifts about 45 degrees to the south of where it is now just about due south (south is the bottom of the image) and the elevation goes to about 44 or 45 degrees which will clear everything between here and 22000 miles above the Columbia/Brazil border. Right now it's pointed at 22K above the Pacific some 2000 miles west of Ecuador with an elevation of around 31 +/-degrees.
(Edited)
xode0000, Champion
You talking to me?My suggestion was to Bev, who appears to have be constantly fighting tree overgrowth.
xode0000, Champion
You talking to me?My suggestion was to Bev, who appears to have be constantly fighting tree overgrowth.
Bev, Champion
Nope, any further back would put the dish behind the trees closer to the house that prevent a roof mount. just across the railroad form my home is solid trees for the entire length of my property and then some. Only way to that would be to but dish out past pool, then need over 300ft of cable to reach the house - not a good idea.
Markgc, Champion
The view to the South from my house is blocked by 100 foot pine trees. The best option for me would be to mount the dish on the other side of these trees where there is an open view to the South. This would require about 100 foot of coax. Is this feasible and would I need a much better grade of coax usch as LMR400 or LMR600 ? Right now I am running on about 10 foot of coax.
Markgc, Champion
Update - http://www.dishpointer.com/ is a useful tool. I just have to move the dish to the North side of the house to get further away from the tall trees. If I move about 60 feet away from the house then I am 115 feet away from the first tall tree and am at 126 feet and am clearing the 100 foot tree by about 26 feet. I wonder how much taller these pine trees will grow, I imagine at 100 feet they are probably fully grown.
Markgc, Champion
Update - http://www.dishpointer.com/ is a useful tool. I just have to move the dish to the North side of the house to get further away from the tall trees. If I move about 60 feet away from the house then I am 115 feet away from the first tall tree and am at 126 feet and am clearing the 100 foot tree by about 26 feet. I wonder how much taller these pine trees will grow, I imagine at 100 feet they are probably fully grown.
Bev, Champion
If those are sugar pines (smell like vanilla if you chip of a piece of the bark) they can grow to 200 ft tall. I've got one in my yard that is nearly that.
Markgc, Champion
Wow that is tall. I don't think mine will get that tall. Hopefully not anyway
Brad, Viasat Employee
Markgc, Champion
I've looked over this site, http://www.dishpointer.com/ and have a question... Since the line showed up in green rather than red, does that mean the site considered mountains that might be in the way?? I have a mountain about a mile to the east that is 3,000' high. My house is already on a hill but it might not be enough. I can put the dish on the mountain and relay the data using Ubiquity dishes if necessary. The installer won't enjoy the road getting up there (dirt, steep, cliffs, etc.)(most people get scared and want to go back down). I think the guest house roof can stand one more dish but it's getting cluttered.
I suspect the color is meaningless and the light green was chosen because it typically offers a better contrast against satellite imagery (probably not the best choice if one lives in the desert however). If you check the "show obstacle" line of sight checker option, it will display a red marker that you can position along the green line of sight which will then give you the distance and maximum height of any object at the red marker (not the actually height of the obstacle but rather how tall it would have to be to be an obstacle relative to the height of the dish itself - it's all a manual calculation). Zoom out on the image and place the red marker on the mountain...
But their iPhone App is a visual tool.
But their iPhone App is a visual tool.
(Edited)
Craig, Did you do the obstacle marker check described by Old Labs? I'm curious what you found.
Alternately you can simply do the rough calculation for yourself at:
https://www.easycalculation.com/trigonometry/triangle-angles.php
You're looking for opposite side in the calculation given adjacent side and angle (so you can calculate both opposite size and hypotenuse with your known values).
In Craig's case, given an elevation (angle) of 21.5 degrees and and an adjacent side of 1 mile (5280 feet), he'll likely only clear about 2080 feet of the mountain...
Again all just estimates...
https://www.easycalculation.com/trigonometry/triangle-angles.php
You're looking for opposite side in the calculation given adjacent side and angle (so you can calculate both opposite size and hypotenuse with your known values).
In Craig's case, given an elevation (angle) of 21.5 degrees and and an adjacent side of 1 mile (5280 feet), he'll likely only clear about 2080 feet of the mountain...
Again all just estimates...
(Edited)
Markgc, Champion
VeteranSatUser, Champion
jjones
Steve Frederick-VS1/Beam314, Champion
jjones