Pre-Wire - Antenna

[chris_kelly]

So we picked up our ‘21 GT 25FB.

Anticipating our personal needs we purchased a new antenna for our pepwave LTE modem.

The tech at our dealership thought we were pre-wired with an antenna but the SNR is total crap.

My assumption is we don’t have an antenna but there are antenna extensions to route to the rear compartment.

I’ll be getting up and inspecting the roof to see whether there’s an antenna or if there’s simply an access port.

More to follow.

[lsbrodsky]

Interesting...I had not heard of any antenna prewires, just solar.

Larry

[GMFL]

They are there....

[chris_kelly]

Yeah. Weird.

They fished the antenna extension through the upper front bunker.

The label on them had the upc for the 5m extension. Not an actual antenna label.

[Mighty Mite]

Funny, this string of thoughts, questions was exactly what I am looking for. I to have a PepWave system and wondered how I would get a Wi-Fi antenna on the roof. Picking up a 2021 16' Caravel first week in Dec. Keep the findings and solutions coming.



Bob

[chris_kelly]

Originally Posted by GMFL

They are there....

Any idea where the access is on the roof to mount the antenna using the rf cables pre-wired?

[chris_kelly]

So had some back and forth with Airstream support.

Couple of points they made:

- There should be 5 SMA connectors 2 - 2G/3G/4G , 2- 2.4/5 GHZ, and 1 GPS Cable

- Unfortunately they do not have any photo's or PDF's to share

- The pre wire for the antenna is located at the front of the roof

- You will need to remove the white circular cover to gain access

I haven’t gone on top of our camper yet but will do once I get a chance.

[chris_kelly]

So went on the roof today and did some digging around. Took some pictures.

The cap is exactly where support said it would be. No issues there.

There are male sma adapters on the end of the extension. Again no issues.

The only problem I have now is the antenna I have already has about 2m of cable so there’s no need for the extension.

I think what I’ll do is use the existing cable and snake the attached antenna cable to the from upper cabinet to bring through to the modem.

[ETroup]

I have just taken delivery of 2021 AS International 27FB. My roof antenna prewire is located on the front left corner of the AS. The prewire bundle of 5 SMA cables comes into the left side of the front bedroom overhead cabinet. The wires are hidden behind an end partition.

Easiest way to get at the cables was to remove the speaker cover on the left underside of the overhead storage bay. Removed the four bezel screws holding up the speaker. Reached inside to find the bundle and pushed the ends though the existing cable hole in the partition. In addition I was able to grab a orange/white wire the AS Tech said was there to provide DC power.

The Orange cable is routed to the lower left front corner of the trailer under the bed. I understand it needs to be connected to positive side of the battery. However, not sure about the negative side.

There is white wire wrapped with orange/white wire in the upper cabinet but only the orange wire appears in the lower right side space.

Want to use the orange and white wires to power a USB hub to provide power to the Netgear M1 M1100 cellular WiFi access point (in lieu of the pepwave).

What is everyone else using for power for the Pepwave in the overhead where the antenna cables appear?

[chris_kelly]

Nice find on the power to the upper cabinet. Not sure I’ll re wire everything but I may use that for the USB port i added their to power the pihole and blink camera we have in the camper for our puppies.

Our dealer in Wisconsin thought we had an antenna pre-installed but no that was only the pre-wire access.

I wound up tapping into a light fixture in the same cabinet and was way easy to do once the wago wire connectors came in the mail.

http://WAGO 221 LEVER-NUTS 28pc Wire...ing=UTF8&psc=1

[ETroup]

Originally Posted by chris_kelly

Nice find on the power to the upper cabinet. Not sure I’ll re wire everything but I may use that for the USB port i added their to power the pihole and blink camera we have in the camper for our puppies.

Our dealer in Wisconsin thought we had an antenna pre-installed but no that was only the pre-wire access.

I wound up tapping into a light fixture in the same cabinet and was way easy to do once the wago wire connectors came in the mail.

http://WAGO 221 LEVER-NUTS 28pc Wire...ing=UTF8&psc=1

Update... I connected the end of the Orange wire The RV tech told me about to a new 10 gauge red wire I ran direct to a positive battery post with an in-line fuze holder.

Back in the overhead cabinet, I now have 12vdc + on the Orange and - on the other.

For power receptacle on the side wall will install Linkstyle 4 in 1 Charger Socket Panel, 12V 4.2A Dual USB Charge... https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07JHH5YP4...ing=UTF8&psc=1

[ETroup]

I have been getting my cellular and WiFi equipment from https://antennagear.net

[ETroup]

Originally Posted by chris_kelly

So went on the roof today and did some digging around. Took some pictures.

The cap is exactly where support said it would be. No issues there.

There are male sma adapters on the end of the extension. Again no issues.

The only problem I have now is the antenna I have already has about 2m of cable so there’s no need for the extension.

I think what I’ll do is use the existing cable and snake the attached antenna cable to the from upper cabinet to bring through to the modem.


Attachment 380381Attachment 380382Attachment 380383

I bought a suitable antenna for the roof on the Airstream. It came with 2 meters of RG58 antenna cables for the Cellular and WiFi and one RG174 for the GPS.

I decided to cut off the excess length snd attach new SMA connectors. Two are male and two are female.

Now will be much easier to attach to the prewired cables.

[JimMussulman]

Our 2020 23' GT does not have the pre-wire cap on the roof so I assume it is not prewired.
Jim

[chris_kelly]

Originally Posted by ETroup

I bought a suitable antenna for the roof on the Airstream. It came with 2 meters of RG58 antenna cables for the Cellular and WiFi and one RG174 for the GPS.

I decided to cut off the excess length snd attach new SMA connectors. Two are male and two are female.

Now will be much easier to attach to the prewired cables.
Attachment 382599

I like it!

If I had to do it all over again I would cut the cable down to length. We had a trip planned that I needed to have internet for - dang job got in the way!

Once 5G is more prevalent and cost effective I’ll get both a new modem and an antenna.

[ETroup]

The antenna shown supports 4G and 5G.

https://antennagear.net/m600-5-lead-...m-iot-antenna/

[CMHM]

I have a 2021 AS Globetrotter and bought my own Pepwave / Poynting combo.

This is how the power wiring looks for me. I’m a newbie and would appreciate any help on how to power up the modem:

[ETroup]

Originally Posted by CMHM

I have a 2021 AS Globetrotter and bought my own Pepwave / Poynting combo.



This is how the power wiring looks for me. I’m a newbie and would appreciate any help on how to power up the modem:

If you look at my earlier post those wires can be connected to the battery giving you a +12vdc and a ground.

You could connect those directly to the Pepwave but it would be unfiltered power. Alternatively you could use the the +12vdc to power a usb power supply and then use one or two usb cables to power the Pepwave. I have done this with a Pepwave max transit.

I bought one of these and mounted to the end wall to create a little power panel.

Linkstyle 4 in 1 Charger Socket Panel, 12V 4.2A Dual USB... https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07JHH5YP4...ing=UTF8&psc=1

[CMHM]

Originally Posted by ETroup

If you look at my earlier post those wires can be connected to the battery giving you a +12vdc and a ground.

You could connect those directly to the Pepwave but it would be unfiltered power. Alternatively you could use the the +12vdc to power a usb power supply and then use one or two usb cables to power the Pepwave. I have done this with a Pepwave max transit.

I bought one of these and mounted to the end wall to create a little power panel.

Linkstyle 4 in 1 Charger Socket Panel, 12V 4.2A Dual USB... https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07JHH5YP4...ing=UTF8&psc=1

Thank you. My Pepwave came with a fused DC cable that I connected to the same wires you used. I'll write up a post as I feel not many people know about the pre-wiring, it was such an easy job to get great internet in our AS.

[englishw]

Curious if anyone has any pictures/suggestions on how they mounted the actual antenna on the 2021 Airstreams that already have the prewire?

Thanks in advance.