Basic TV
The Problem
Cable TV and a satellite dish are not in our budget. We have two average sized color TVs. One is in the living room and one in an upstairs bedroom. We have rabbit ears attached to both. We don't want to put one of those outside antennas on our roof either. Can anyone recommend something more efficient to attach to our TVs for inside the house? Right now we get 5-7 channels on each set, and some channels are a little fuzzy. Thanks so much.
T.F.
Place Antenna in the Attic
My mom had the same problem a few years ago. She did not get good TV reception and did not like the idea of having an ugly bulky antenna on her roof... A friend said that she put an "outside antenna" in her attic. By putting it in the attic, she can get great TV reception, less chance of attracting lightening, plus it will never rust or blow off. All you have to do is run a cable from the attic to the TV. Voila!
WW
Add a Signal Booster
For the best TV, go to Radio Shack and buy two things. One should be an antenna you place in your attic. The other should be a signal booster you hook up to it. I live north of Dallas, and with this am able to receive signals from 150 miles away.
EK
Very Easy and Economical Solution
This may sound strange, but the best indoor antenna I have ever used is speaker wire. Go and buy about five feet of it and separate the two sections down about three feet. Attach one end to the TV and you can move the other end wherever you get the best reception. Sometimes that may be just by throwing them on the floor and sometimes you can hang them over things on the wall. I have used this before and I found it to be better and cheaper than rabbit ears.
Mike
Various Types of Antennae to Check Out
We currently use an antennae from Radio Shack which cost us $99.00 and gives us about 12 channels with good reception (occasional fuzz if weather is bad). It is about 6 feet long by 1.5 inches wide. It can be put inside or out. We had ours in a closet in a spare bedroom and when we moved we put it behind our TV. Just find a place that your reception is best and hide it in a closet somewhere. It attaches to the cable port on the TV. My husband's parents have one and can get about 20 channels with great reception.
HR
Electrical Shop Solutions
Rabbit ears can sometimes do a sufficient job for bringing in TV Stations if you are in a metropolitan area. However, if your signals are obstructed, "fuzzy TV" is all you can get sometimes. I agree that the large outside antennas are not always the best choice. Visit your local Loews Home Improvement Store, and go to the "Electrical Department". There you will find a good selection of antennas that may meet your needs. I would recommend the style that can be mounted in the attic, or under the eave of your house-that way, it's completely out of sight.
BT
Enjoying Life with 1 1/2 Stations
We get five to seven channels, with some of them fuzzy, with a rotary antenna on our roof and count ourselves lucky! But that's because at our last house we got 1 and 1/2 channels. Some of the strategies we have used have been to just watch videos, and to park a VCR at my in-laws house and stop by periodically to change the tape and collect our TV. When I first moved to my 1 & 1/2 station house I thought that not having a selection of shows to watch was going to be a big deal. The real surprise for me was that when I had cable, I would watch the do it yourself shows all the time. After I was down to 1 & 1/2 channels I turned off the TV and actually did some of the projects I had seen! Now we leave the TV off unless there is actually something on that we want to watch. Those made-for-cable TV movies often come out on video anyway, so we just rent them if we really want to see them, or ask a friend to record it for us.
Heather
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