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Cancel Satellite TV And Turn Your Existing Dish Into An HDTV Antenna

Tired of spending too much money on your Satellite TV bill? Well for around $50 you can purchase and easily install an HDTV Antenna that will give you quality HD TV programming. Of course you will not get as many channels as before using DirecTV, but there are hundreds of channels available broadcast into the airwaves for free from the stations you already know and love. This is a tutorial for most people who can no longer afford the cost of satellite television. Cancelling DirecTV or Dish Network will save you from $75 to $300 dollars a month. Admit it, most of the channels that you are paying your hard earned dollars for are completely worthless. Cancel the service, buy an HD Antenna, and get Netflix. You will not miss most of the TV you watch and you will be saving mountains of money per year. So ditch the monthly bill and follow our tutorial below for saving your money…

Step 1: CANCEL SATELLITE TELEVISION

RCA ANT751 High Quality Durable Compact Outdoor AntennaStep 2: Buy an HD (High Definition) Television Antenna.
Here is the HDTV Antenna we purchased from Amazon for around $50 dollars.
(You may also need a coax cable splitter, antenna amplifier signal booster, or new coax cable)

Mounted an RCA Outdoor Antenna to Existing Satellite DishStep 3: Remove the cone and place the HD Antenna on your existing Satellite Dish.

Secured the RCA Antenna to Withstand the ElementsStep 4: Install the U-bolt that is included with the antenna and secure it tightly in place.

Connected Existing Coaxial Cable from DirecTV to the AntennaStep 5: Connect the already existing coaxial cable to the HD Antenna.
(The cable is already going from your TV from the dish, so just disconnect and re-attach to the hd antenna)

Satellite Dish With HD AntennaStep 6: Check all connections to make sure everything is secure and tight.

Coaxial CableStep 7: There should already be a coaxial cable going into your home from the roof.
If it was disconnected then look along the side of your home for a connection like this and plug back in.

antennaweb.orgStep 8: The next process involves finding out which direction in the sky your local channels are in.
You will need to point your antenna in a certain direction for best reception depending on where you live.
Go to Antenna Web, FCC DTV MAPS, or Antenna Point and type in your info to find out which way to point your HDTV antenna.
Once you have the correct direction located, point your antenna/dish in that direction.

Signal Strength at 100 percentStep 9: Turn on your TV and set it to “Antenna” and let it “Find” the available free stations.
Then check the signal meter to see if it is strong.
If all is good you are done! Free HDTV!
HDTV That is broadcast free is from 720p to 1080p HD quality!

TV HD Antenna can also be installed in your atticOf course you do not need an old dish to install a new HD Antenna.
You can install one in your attic too if you desire.
But remember that HDTV Antennas work best when attached to a roof and there are no obstructions.

how to connect and combine signals from 2 antennas facing different directionsHere is a small chart for “how to connect and combine signals from 2 antennas facing different directions” if needed.

Keith Schneerer

Written by Keith Schneerer

Certified Appliance Tech · Founder, RemoveAndReplace.com

Keith has spent 30+ years repairing machines, starting as a military mechanic and later maintaining food processing equipment before moving into appliance repair. He founded RemoveAndReplace.com to share field-tested repair advice.

More about Keith →

198 thoughts on “Cancel Satellite TV And Turn Your Existing Dish Into An HDTV Antenna”

  1. I want to know what antenna is good for my area 85017 3313 w Thomas Rd Phoenix, Arizona

  2. DIY Project Help Tips

    Hi D,
    We are 27 miles from the transmission towers for HDTV that is transmitted through the air for free (using an HDTV antenna). You can go to Antenna Point to find out how far you are from your local televisions transmission towers.
    -RR

  3. DIY Project Help Tips

    Brett,
    There should be no problem as long as the existing cable wiring has not come loose or disconnected somewhere within the wall. Check all connections and make absolute sure the connected wire to the antenna or antennas (on your roof?) are tight and connected properly. What type of antenna are you using?
    -RR

  4. This is awesome but I have a problem. The existing Dish network coaxial is still in place and I connected everything. I ran a coaxial from the outlet where Dish used to come out and connected it to my TV. Nothing. Now, when I connect any indoor antenna to any other outlets in my house, all TV’s pick up channels. Why would this one connection from the old dish to my living room not pick up anything? Thanks for any advice you can give.

  5. I followed your instructions and our channels received went from 7 to 56! Thanks for putting this up…

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