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We Are Not Receiving TV In Our RV

by Jerry
(HSV, AR USA)

How do you check an RV TV Antenna to see if it is bad? How do you check the cable from the RV to the Antenna?

When we use the Scan for channels, it says no signal.

ANSWER: Greetings Jerry thanks for submitting your question on our Ask An RV Question Page.

I will tell you up front that in most cases the reception problem you are having is not due to a bad cable running from your RV's antenna. Without having any test equipment the only way of seeing if the Coax Cable on your antenna is bad is by replacing it. Most RV Antennas use normal Coax Cable. Please follow the steps I outline below.

1. Check the cable connected at the antenna as it may be loose. The cable on your antenna screws on just like the cable on the back of your TV tighten it as needed. Also visibly inspect the cable for any signs of damage, cracks, exposed wires, etc.

2. Now check the cable connecting the antenna to the inside of your RV. Depending on the type of RV antenna you have the cable may be connected to a simple wall plate or a wall plate that has a built in amplifier. Either way you are going to have to unscrew the wall plate to reach the connection/s at the back of wall plate; tighten them as needed.

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3. If you find out that you have an amplified wall plate, there may be a tiny switch to turn the amplifier on and off. If this switch is
turned off you will not receive a good signal so make sure that it is on when you are trying to watch the TV. If it was off this could be the reason for no reception.

4. If all the connections were tight and the amplifier was on then you have a choice to make. You can go ahead and install a new cable. If the cable was the problem then you should receive a better signal. This may not solve your overall problem of poor reception of Digital TV Signals on your RV's antenna. Please read the answer I gave to the question below before you decide to install a new cable.

How Can We Improve The Digital TV Reception In Our RV?

I also suggest that you visit the Digital TV Tips For RVers Section of our website where we have a ton of information on what RVers need to know about Digital TV and a lot more troubleshooting information.

I hope this information helps resolve your RV's TV issues.

Do you have any suggestions or comments on this topic? You can add them to this page by clicking on the "Click Here To Post Comments" link located near the bottom of this page.

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Happy RVing

RVing Al

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Comments for We Are Not Receiving TV In Our RV

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No channels
by: Anonymous

After much hair pulling and spending to much money I finally found the problem. The coupling under the roof entrance was corroded, both coax copper wires were gone. Corrosion had also crept under the coax insulatin along the aluminum sheilding wire. It was a chore but I replaced the coax from antenna to coupler and the coax back to the transformer.

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Fixed bedroom reception
by: Todd

We own a 2019 294rr Cherokee. We had poor reception in our bedroom. I started checking all connections and found the small cable to splitter behind the plate (in livingroom)to be the culprit. One of the end connections wasn't making contact. I pushed the connector down to expose more copper wire so it would go in further in to screw in connector. My advice is to check all of your ends of cable to make sure you have good connection length. Hope this helps someone.

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No channels found
by: Anonymous

I purchased a tv for the bedroom area of my Pioneer RD210 travel trailer. I have done the channel search several times and keep getting the no channels found message. I have checked the connections to the boxes and the tv they are tight. The tv in the rear sitting are gets channels. Any suggestions?

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No signal
by: Dave

Replaced existing TV antenna with Winegard Rayzor. Checked coax from antenna to power booster and confirmed good before I screwed and sealed antenna to roof of RV. Green light on power booster goes off as soon as I connect antenna coax. No signal on TV's when I connect everything, no green light on booster. Can't figure out why. Help please!

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No signal message on both tv's in 5th wheel
by: Anonymous

Was working then we found the no signal message when trying to use the over the air hdtv setup. Checked all coax connections and we did get a green light on the booster. Checked that we got 12 volts at the coax going into the antenna. Swapped out the antenna and we now have tv working again. Yahoo

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Thanks!
by: Jeff

Much appreciated the help. I bought an older Southwind and have been fixing everything. The tv was the last thing. I could not get it to pick up a signal. I read here about the amplifier and the tiny switch I I hadn't noticed. Flipped it on and now I have a signal! Thank you! Heading to the lake now!

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Tv problem
by: Jon

Both tv's were working but now the back one won't pick up

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Hum
by: Anonymous

No signal on new camper just picked up from dealer, I wonder why? Got on the ladder to discover a large hole in the middle of the top of the plastic dish. Very frustrated!

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Rear RV TV
by: Anonymous

Once I test the cable if for some reason it is bad how do I install another one. My front TV works changed the control center distribution box rear TV still does not work, need help.

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no tv
by: Charliebear

We have lost tv reception to our secondary tv in our rv. We have satellite with a contol box to select either sat, cable or ant. Secondary tv does not work on any of the settings. We just turned it off one night and it would not come back on the next morning. The main tv in the front works just fine. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

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Comment From Everything About RVing Facebook Fan Page
by: RVing Al

Here is a comment we received on this topic from The Everything About RVing Facebook Fan Page.

Joseph Mack Yanno: I just went through this in our Rambler. Stupid thought I had, check the VCR. Ours is wired that the VCR controls the channels on the TV - turned that on, it worked great. Maybe it'll work for you too.

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