TV Extension Completed

After several trips to Midland for parts and probably a dozen sessions in the attic I finally completed the extension of the house TV cable network.

The cable from the TV antenna is an obsolete RG-59 which I could not swap out because the TV antenna is so old that the cable connection to the antenna is made by twisting wires around posts with wing nuts rather than the modern "F" screw in connections.  Fortunately JCAR had an RG-59 to F adapter, and after looking at a couple of demonstrations from Youtube I cut the cable, prepared the end using a Stanley knife, then screwed on the adapter with no great difficulty.  From that point on I was able to set up a completely new and modern network.

New cabling for TV, Electricity for attic ready for connectin

4-Way Splitter

2-Way Splitter

New Bedroom Wallplug

The RG-59 cable that I cut must have been installed by a professional while I was sailing because it passed from the attic, through the ceiling and stereo shelving, then into the wall to the back of the plate.  I saw two problems with this setup.  First, no slack had been left in the cable, making it impossible to remove the wall plate for replacement in the future.  Second, the interface to the wall plate was hard wired, making a temporary disconnection impossible for an amateur.  I decided to replace that section with a new RG-6 cable and new wall plate which uses the standard F connection.

Back to the Antenna, I connected it to a powered 2-way splitter.  The JCAR man had recommended a powered one so that the TV signals would be amplified for distribution through the extended cable network.  One cable from the splitter travels down the living room cavity and the other one is connected to a nearby 4-way splitter with output cables to the bedroom, office, and kitchen TV.  I drilled a large hole through the side of the chimney so that I could pass both power and the TV cable from the attic down the chimney for a much neater setup than before.

To my surprise all of the new TV outlets work fine without energizing the powered splitter, which is a testament to the very strong TV signal that I am receiving from Perth's TV transmitters, all located at Bickley, near Kalamunda, and in line of sight from this house.