Last Updated on August 19, 2016 by Dave Farquhar
I threw together a Gray-Hoverman antenna tonight. It’s literally two pieces of bent copper wire taped to a piece of plywood, connected with a 75 to 300 ohm transformer like this one, stashed behind the entertainment center. I’ll pretty it up at some point.
I now get 15 channels of over-the-air TV. With my old antenna, I only got 10.
With some tinkering, Antennapoint suggests I should be able to get channels from as many as 9 nearby cities, including, potentially, Springfield IL, and Jefferson City, MO.
I’m definitely hoping to pull in a couple of additional distant PBS stations, since they tend to vary their programming a little bit more. It would be nice to get an additional PBS Kids station, since the local PBS Kids stopped carrying a couple of shows my oldest son liked.
A basic cable TV package only gives you 20 channels, and most of them are stuff you wouldn’t want to watch anyway. And they usually don’t include the extra DTV channels. For instance, the local PBS channel also broadcasts a channel that alternates between home improvement and cooking, a kids channel, and a news channel. All are better than their cable equivalents, and they’re free. A couple of the other stations broadcast syndicated programming on a secondary channel.
I eventually want to build a better one and possibly mount it in the attic or even outdoors. But it’s amazing what 30 minutes with a piece of scrap lumber and $2 worth of wire yielded.
David Farquhar is a computer security professional, entrepreneur, and author. He started his career as a part-time computer technician in 1994, worked his way up to system administrator by 1997, and has specialized in vulnerability management since 2013. He invests in real estate on the side and his hobbies include O gauge trains, baseball cards, and retro computers and video games. A University of Missouri graduate, he holds CISSP and Security+ certifications. He lives in St. Louis with his family.
Dave,
Do you realize that you are hurting the Democrats reelection bids? If you don’t buy the most expensive antenna, the economy will not grow thus reassuring Obama’s reelection.
I love to read about your projects. Keep it up.
.
“Government’s view of the economy could be summed up in a few short phrases: If it moves, tax it. If it keeps moving, regulate it. And if it stops moving, subsidize it”
Ronald Reagan
If I tell people how to make an antenna out of $10 worth of material, they’re a lot more likely to try it. And if one person cancels his or her $100/month cable plan after trying this, I’ll be thrilled.
I don’t really care about the political implications of any of the tricks I post. If you want fiscal responsibility, don’t vote by political party. Voting Republican or Democrat is just choosing between which flavor of Big Government you want. Find candidates with Scottish or Russian ancestry and vote for them.
"the economy will not grow thus reassuring Obama’s reelection."
the economy will not grow thus assuring Obama’s failed reelection.
I need to edit before pushing the button.