Why does my sattelite channels work only when it wants to.?

Question

I live in Tacoma, Wa. The sattelite always works early in the morning, late at night, but seldom during the daytime. On sunny days, it hardly every works. Overcast and cloudy days, it works great. Whats the problem?

Answer 1

signal dissipation.

the reason it works well on overcast and cloudy days is because the signal is strenghened by 'bouncing' between the earth and the clouds, this creates a strong 'field' which dishes love, and thats why on a sunny day signal is poor (no signal bouncing).

and the morning/night factor is due to the earths rotation and sattelite location, during the morning/night the sattelite would possibly be lower to the horizon, this generates a horizontal field that is  similar to the effect that 'bouncing' causes and your dish is better at recieving.

How to solve:

when did you last check the connections on the dish?:

After time the connections of the coaxial cable can become rusty/loose/frayed or corroded, these can be easily replaced.

Has your dish been turned out of line?:

strong wind/ birds and kids are all guilty of this. knocking the dish out of line by as little as 5mm can cause signal loss.

Is the dish surface in good condition?:

Poor dish surface can have an effect on picture quality, it should be free of bird p**p and other lumps and bumps.

Is the LNBF in good condition?:

the LNBF is the 'reciever' of the dish, (the bit on the pole in the middle) that has the coax connected to it, if this is faulty then you will recieve distorted or no signal.

well that just about covers it.... Althoe you do have signal morning /night i would suggest a new larger dish to ensure you get your share of the apparently weak signal in your area.