How to Find the Signal for a Dish Satellite

Finding a satellite dish network's signal for a first time can be tricky.

If you want to find the signal for your satellite dish system, first remember that all satellite dishes need to be pointed toward the equator and should have a clear view of the southern sky. Once the dish is installed comes the tricky part: trying to align the dish so it points directly at a satellite that's more than 26,000 miles away. Though the job can be frustrating, you can still do it in a few steps.

Things You'll Need

• Pliers
• An assistant

Instructions

1. Press the Main Menu button on your satellite receiver's remote. Enter the Setup menu and search for the Satellite Transponder menu.

2. Loosen two bolts on the back of your satellite dish. There's one bolt that controls the up and down motion of the dish, and one that controls the left and right. Loosen both only slightly, just enough so that a bit of pressure will move the dish.

3. Move the dish in small increments, an inch or two at a time. Have an assistant watch Transponder One on your screen. Continue to adjust the dish until the transponder goes above 70.

4. Check Transponder Two. If it is below 70, continue to adjust the dish in even smaller increments until it also rises above 70. Return to Transponder One and continue until both are above 70.

5. Check all remaining transponders. If One and Two are above 70, the rest should be as well. If any of the transponders are not above 70, continue to adjust the dish until they all are above 70 or very close to it.

References

• DirecTV: H10 Manual