How much would you pay for a freeview aerial?

[dangel]

Currently have a loft aerial, need a mast and outdoor aerial going up (preferably high gain) for freeview - how much would you expect to pay for it (including installation)?

I've just been quoted a (shocking) 179quid. By my reckoning the parts can't be much more than 40 bucks retail.. how much is labour??

[Elspuddy]

i'l say about £30 to £35 , the £35 from argos and i went do to the local Satellite shop asking how mutch a freesat system would cost and he said he would sel me a loft aerial for £30. but then again we would have to stick this up our selfs.

[directhex]

labor is expensive. especially specialist labor (e.g. knowing exactly which direction and type is required)

[mycarsavw]

I'm just about to buy an All-in-one SV9320 or 9350.

My sister has the internal one and it works a treat. Sub £20 on Amazon

I think you may be looking at "real" ones though, so this may or may not be of use

[obvious]

I got a Televes DAT75 new from ebay for around £30. Installation was around £30 to mount the aerial and then £10-£15 per room for cable runs.

[dangel]

Well i've had a good chat with the installers (local firm) and am sufficiently impressed by their honesty and knowledge (after improving my own with t'internet) to pay for a good quality job. I'm getting a proper 52 element aerial stuck up and they're going to redo all my cabling too (i've got sucky coaxial which isn't shielded). They ain't the cheapest but i've a feeling performance is better than price for this one and they can do it 2morrow afternoon which means a media centre weekend of fun for me whilst the wife is away..

Did look at doing it myself but it's just so much hassle (ladders/no meters etc) and i'd probably end up with 3 channels (as i did when i messed with our loft aerial)

[GoNz0]

well if there going to run shielded cable then its fair enough.
like you say its a pain in the ass to get up and do it yourself.

[chrestomanci]

Originally Posted by directhex

labour is expensive. especially specialist labour (e.g. knowing exactly which direction and type is required)

It is also expensive if they have to work at heights, to put up a tall mast. I once organised to have a Sky dish on the side of the office where I worked adjusted. The bill came to about £300, because the installer needed to rent a chery picker (van with a hydraulic lifting arm).

[jamin]

Sounds about right dude, providing they are running all new cable to the tv(s) and test it to make sure it will pick up what they say it will.

[YorkieBen]

Originally Posted by chrestomanci

It is also expensive if they have to work at heights, to put up a tall mast. I once organised to have a Sky dish on the side of the office where I worked adjusted. The bill came to about £300, because the installer needed to rent a chery picker (van with a hydraulic lifting arm).

are they not allowed to use a ladder for crying out loud!!

[Spud1]

You know, for that price you could get Sky installed, probably with a years subscription included, or at the very least with a freesat card to give you the freeview channels..

Worth considering, especially if you ever think of upgrading to sky TV. The disadvantage of course is needing multiple boxes for different rooms, but then you would need multiple freeview boxes too, so the cost difference doesnt work out much different..

[DerbyJon]

Your existing aerial will do the job fine once analogue is switched off. Just depends when that will happen in your region.

[stytagm]

Originally Posted by Spud1

You know, for that price you could get Sky installed, probably with a years subscription included, or at the very least with a freesat card to give you the freeview channels.

That's a good point, but a solid aerial will last 20 years +, so it's much cheaper in the long run (unless you go for the free satellite, but doesn't Mr Murdoch keep threatening to turn it off?).

I'm considering a new aerial because while the box under the telly is fine, the freeview card in my computer only gets about half the channels

[dangel]

Thing is, i've been paying sky for years and it's crap. Yes it'll cost me a bit this year but next year my costs are zero..
and the year after that.. and the..

[Carlh]

Originally Posted by chrestomanci

It is also expensive if they have to work at heights, to put up a tall mast. I once organised to have a Sky dish on the side of the office where I worked adjusted. The bill came to about £300, because the installer needed to rent a chery picker (van with a hydraulic lifting arm).

That would have been down as a special heights job - I use to work as a sub contractor for Sky installing dishes etc and basically any job over a certain height needed to be installed by the special heights team - IIRC any job over 40 foot had to be done by them.

[Nick]

I paid £150 for new cable runs, a new aerial and proper alignment based on signal strength, signal quality and programmes recieved.

Living where I do I'm in the middle of a triangle or transmitters, not all of which broadcast all the freeview channels.