Weboost install

[cactusjk]

Originally Posted by cactusjk

My band 2 and band 4 are green. Not sure if that matters for Verizon?

Anyone know which bands are Verizon?

[kscherzi]

Has anyone tried this setup from weBoost for $499?

https://www.wilsonamplifiers.com/web...Fc5lfgodFLoCcQ

I'm thinking of installing the large external antenna onto the crank up TV antenna. Any fatal flaw's to this idea? On my 27FB this would then make sense to route the cable down the fridge vent. The dilemma I see is where to put the little internal antenna. I read that it has barely any transmit range at all. What's your experience?

[lewster]

Originally Posted by kscherzi

Has anyone tried this setup from weBoost for $499?

https://www.wilsonamplifiers.com/web...Fc5lfgodFLoCcQ

I'm thinking of installing the large external antenna onto the crank up TV antenna. Any fatal flaw's to this idea? On my 27FB this would then make sense to route the cable down the fridge vent. The dilemma I see is where to put the little internal antenna. I read that it has barely any transmit range at all. What's your experience?

I would think about adding this: https://www.wilsonamplifiers.com/wil...75-ohm-311155/ as your indoor antenna. It has a greatly increased range over the candy bar antenna that is offered as standard equipment with the 4G-X.

Also look at the SureCall Omni outdoor antenna rather than a trucker antenna: http://3gstore.com/product/3047_3g4g...i-antenna.html

[kscherzi]

Originally Posted by lewster

I would think about adding this: https://www.wilsonamplifiers.com/wil...75-ohm-311155/ as your indoor antenna. It has a greatly increased range over the candy bar antenna that is offered as standard equipment with the 4G-X.

Also look at the SureCall Omni outdoor antenna rather than a trucker antenna: http://3gstore.com/product/3047_3g4g...i-antenna.html

Thanks, this is very helpful. I have another question regarding placement of the internal antenna that you recommend. According to spec's its directional, so I ought to place in a way to aim the signal towards the area where cell phones are most likely to be used, in my case the dinette area. It's not the most attractive thing to hang on the wall (I'm sure my wife will have an opinion), so can the internal antenna be placed into a cabinet without much signal loss? Maybe the coat closet?

Maybe the ideal location would be placement in the upper cabinet at the rear of the trailer facing forward, but in my 27FB I have no idea how to snake a cable into that cabinet without drilling a hole from the outside. So I think I'm constrained to placement of the antenna in the middle of the trailer and pointing it to to the rear, leaving the bedroom area without much signal. I may just have to buy the equipment, then using tape, experiment with placement.

[lewster]

Originally Posted by kscherzi

Thanks, this is very helpful. I have another question regarding placement of the internal antenna that you recommend. According to spec's its directional, so I ought to place in a way to aim the signal towards the area where cell phones are most likely to be used, in my case the dinette area. It's not the most attractive thing to hang on the wall (I'm sure my wife will have an opinion), so can the internal antenna be placed into a cabinet without much signal loss? Maybe the coat closet?

Maybe the ideal location would be placement in the upper cabinet at the rear of the trailer facing forward, but in my 27FB I have no idea how to snake a cable into that cabinet without drilling a hole from the outside. So I think I'm constrained to placement of the antenna in the middle of the trailer and pointing it to to the rear, leaving the bedroom area without much signal. I may just have to buy the equipment, then using tape, experiment with placement.

I play most of mine on the ceiling of the trailer/Interstate in a central location. Wilson has a nice ceiling mount kit that works well for this. Use it with 4 rivets and it looks great as well.

[dhroberts]

Originally Posted by lewster

I typically run the Wilson Ultra Low Loss 400 series cable from the Sure Call Omni antenna thru the roof mounted combiner box when I add solar to the Interstates. It is sort of a package, and I have not installed a Surecall/4G-X system as a stand-alone system yet.

The Omni is mounted to the roof using a pair of tall solar panel mounting feet from AM Solar by using the same technique that we use for mounting our solar panels.....NO HOLES!!!!

Look here for the feet: http://amsolar.com/rv-mounting-accessories/mounttl-5

Lewster, thanks for your reply. Several follow-up questions:

1) I understand that the ultra low loss cable is very thick (diameter like a man's thumb). Any issues snaking the cable from the roof to a 2016 Airstream Classic's cabinet above the dinette? and

2) What length of cable do you recommend from back end of roof to the Classic's cabinet? Would 20 feet be sufficient? Or should I go with 50 feet and cut to desired length?

Thanks again. Regards, Dennis

[lewster]

Originally Posted by dhroberts

Lewster, thanks for your reply. Several follow-up questions:



1) I understand that the ultra low loss cable is very thick (diameter like a man's thumb). Any issues snaking the cable from the roof to a 2016 Airstream Classic's cabinet above the dinette? and



2) What length of cable do you recommend from back end of roof to the Classic's cabinet? Would 20 feet be sufficient? Or should I go with 50 feet and cut to desired length?



Thanks again. Regards, Dennis

I always run the ULL cable through either the roof fridge vent or AM Solar's roof mounted combiner box so I have no direct experience with the cabinet area you describe.

I usually cut the ULL cables to length and add a new end. Requires a much smaller hole this way.


Lew Farber

[kscherzi]

Over the weekend I managed to hook up a large external antenna to the crank up TV antenna, extending it about two feet above the TV antenna. It lays flat when the TV antenna is cranked down. Pulling the cable down the fridge vent to a cabinet was fairly straightforward where it's connected to the Weboost 4-GX and Hershey bar indoor antenna. But I have a question about performance.

With no amplification and sitting inside the trailer while parked in the storage yard, my phone reads about -115 dBm. Amplifier turned on it goes to -83 dBm, but only if the phone is literally laying on top of the Hershey bar antenna. If the phone is more than 12" away from the Hershey bar antenna no amplification is realized. At 6" distance, performance is seriously degraded. Is this normal? Would a indoor antenna like the one below be significantly better? In other words, fill most of the interior of the Airstream with a significantly amplified and usable cell signal (i.e. 83 dBm per above experiment)? Downsides? Just not excited about spending another $100 to increase range from one foot to two feet.

https://www.wilsonamplifiers.com/wil...50-ohm-311135/

[dhroberts]

Originally Posted by lewster

I typically run the Wilson Ultra Low Loss 400 series cable from the Sure Call Omni antenna thru the roof mounted combiner box when I add solar to the Interstates. It is sort of a package, and I have not installed a Surecall/4G-X system as a stand-alone system yet.

The Omni is mounted to the roof using a pair of tall solar panel mounting feet from AM Solar by using the same technique that we use for mounting our solar panels.....NO HOLES!!!!

Look here for the feet: http://amsolar.com/rv-mounting-accessories/mounttl-5

Lew, as you recommended, I purchased from AM Solar two of the tall solar panel mounting feet to attach the SureCall antenna to. Question: Is it important to install the mounting feet directly to the skin of the AS (i.e. metal on metal) so that any grounding requirements for the SureCall antenna are met? Thanks. Dennis

[lewster]

Dennis,

AFAIK , the Sure Call Omni has no external grounding requirements. I use 3M VHB tape to mount the feet to the roof and then SikaFlex 221 over the top of the feet, so there is no grounding to the roof.


Lew Farber

[bbdo]

Originally Posted by kscherzi

Over the weekend I managed to hook up a large external antenna to the crank up TV antenna, extending it about two feet above the TV antenna. It lays flat when the TV antenna is cranked down. Pulling the cable down the fridge vent to a cabinet was fairly straightforward where it's connected to the Weboost 4-GX and Hershey bar indoor antenna. But I have a question about performance.

With no amplification and sitting inside the trailer while parked in the storage yard, my phone reads about -115 dBm. Amplifier turned on it goes to -83 dBm, but only if the phone is literally laying on top of the Hershey bar antenna. If the phone is more than 12" away from the Hershey bar antenna no amplification is realized. At 6" distance, performance is seriously degraded. Is this normal? Would a indoor antenna like the one below be significantly better? In other words, fill most of the interior of the Airstream with a significantly amplified and usable cell signal (i.e. 83 dBm per above experiment)? Downsides? Just not excited about spending another $100 to increase range from one foot to two feet.

https://www.wilsonamplifiers.com/wil...50-ohm-311135/

The core issue is the output power for the internal antenna. That candy bar represents what the booster is supposed to do, which is proximal boosting only. I tried a couple of other antennas and got no better. I ended up getting a splitter and jacking this into a 4G WiFi device, and that works great for me.

When shopping for an amplifier, take a close look at the 'indoor' coverage. And keep in mind, the more indoor coverage, the greater separation required between the outdoor antenna. This may be a real issue in such a small space. I know with my 4G Home model (installed in the home, not the Airstream), I had to get a lot more separation than I would have thought otherwise.

-brad

[Rocinante]

Originally Posted by lewster

Dennis,

AFAIK , the Sure Call Omni has no external grounding requirements. I use 3M VHB tape to mount the feet to the roof and then SikaFlex 221 over the top of the feet, so there is no grounding to the roof.


Lew Farber

Hi, Lew! Maybe a silly question, but how many of those feet to you use for each SureCall antenna? I don't want the antennae bowing down in the wind, so wondered whether maybe you used 1 or 2 feet for each one.

Thanks.

[lewster]

Originally Posted by Rocinante

Hi, Lew! Maybe a silly question, but how many of those feet to you use for each SureCall antenna? I don't want the antennae bowing down in the wind, so wondered whether maybe you used 1 or 2 feet for each one.

Thanks.

2 feet opposing for a larger adhesive base.

[Rocinante]

Awesome, thanks!

[dhroberts]

Originally Posted by lewster

2 feet opposing for a larger adhesive base.

Rocinante,

I took Lewster's advice and purchase the two feet from AM Solar. They align perfectly when laid back-to-back with drilled holes also aligned to connect the SureCall antenna to. FYI, the feet come with the 3M VHB tape provided. I have not installed yet as will do so as a part of my mid-October solar system install.

Good luck, Dennis

[Rocinante]

Excellent, thanks Dennis.

I have the same feet on order (four feet, two per antenna). As I understand it, we must be sure to clean the roof with mineral spirits before we attach those feet with the included VHB, and then cover them with Sikaflex 221.

FYI, I have two antennae because one is for pulling in 4G signals and the other one will broadcast a WiFi signal for my LAN which I'll then be able to use while outside the trailer.

[dhroberts]

Originally Posted by Rocinante

Excellent, thanks Dennis.

I have the same feet on order (four feet, two per antenna). As I understand it, we must be sure to clean the roof with mineral spirits before we attach those feet with the included VHB, and then cover them with Sikaflex 221.

FYI, I have two antennae because one is for pulling in 4G signals and the other one will broadcast a WiFi signal for my LAN which I'll then be able to use while outside the trailer.

Rocinante,

Thanks for your response.

I also will have two antennae: 1) for cellular boosting - the roof-mounted SureCall antenna attached to a weBoost 4G-X; and 2) for wifi boosting - a roof-mounted WifiRanger with its matched Go2 router / internal antenna.

I plan to have both antennae attached to the AS's rear roof to get sufficient separation between the external and internal antennae. I understand from other Air Forum posts that the two antennae can be adjacent to one another without risk of interfering with one another.

Does this rear roof placement and no interference make sense to you? Similar to how you installed? Any advice much appreciated.

[Rocinante]

Your plan makes sense to me. I'm not installed yet, but my "forest" of antennae will include the pair of SureCall antennae as mentioned above, and a Wilson Yagi directional antenna. I'll only use the directional antenna when the omni can't pull in a signal. The directional will be attached to my TV antenna mast so I can raise and rotate it as needed.

<edit> One thought, though - you may want to plan your antenna placement so it won't interfere with potential future locations for solar panels, in case you decide to add them (or more of them) at some later date. </edit>

I know lots of folks swear by their WiFi Ranger, but we're not going that way, as we have no interest in attempting to connect to Campground WiFI (that's an oxymoron ). I've yet to see a campground wifi network worth the effort of connecting to it. I hope someday that will change, but so far, no.

[dhroberts]

Rocinante, good advice regarding having a roof real estate plan when placing your roof antenna. I think I have considered that. Marv Braun of Precision RV will be installing both the two antennae and nine solar panels. Unspoken for roof real estate is a precious commodity. That said, Marv has installed a like system on a 30' Classic recently. I will let you know how it goes. Dennis

[Rocinante]

Sounds great, best wishes on that professional installation! I'm sure it will go fine. Looking forward to pictures of everything, of course.