We have tried loads of different aerials, one's with and without boosters built in, ring types and the directional type and the best set up we have come up with is a battery boosted ring aerial called an Active Magic Circle which we got from a caravan centre and an in line signal booster that we got from Maplins. Together these seem to work really well, even in places that we have been told are very poor reception ares.
Good luck and happy viewing next year !!
Gary
------------- Dont dream your life, live your dream, or just go down the pub !!
like this one. Ours is mounted on a pole on our jockey wheel and works well. Not had much success with the onboard Status aerial in poor reception areas
We have used the same Image UHF Directional TV Antenna for years. We used on the caravan and then when we bought the FC we bought a mast for the towbar and we use it on that with an extension cable. We now use it with a flat screen with built in freeveiw and the only time we did not get a perfect picture was last year when we had a pitch next to a row of high, dense trees.
Mike
------------- Some people have nothing much to say, but you often have to listen for a while before you realise it!
The Image TV aerials from Grade are excellent and I've found them easier to transport than residential aerials; I use the Image 420 as seen here, mounted as per Mikes method on a mast on the towbar. Do shop around though if you opt for one of these and don't be mis-led into similar looking aerials.
If you decide to go down the 'normal' TV aerial route, make sure it's designed for wideband coverage as there are still some 'grouped' aerials around that were specific to use in specific regions.
I can recommend this for a good general purpose aerial. It cost us about a tenner at the time so its gone up a bit. I have seen the same aerial in caravan dealers at £29.99 so its not a bad price!
We used one together with a pole for a number of years.
We just got fed up with the "flying saucer" so didnt even bother trying it after it let us down so often.
Putting up the aerial just became part of setting up when arriving on site.
Never let us down.
------------- I started out with nothing and I've still got most of it left - Seasick Steve 2008
The disadvantage with the 420 and other aerials like it, is that you need to know whether you are on a horizontal or a vertical signal. Okay if you are on a site where there are lots of other aerials and you can copy them.
At present we use one of these on our old Sony crt tv and get a decent picture.
We also use the same aerial at home and get a decent picture,but we can't get a signal with it when we connect to our new freeview tv.?
Thats why I'm thinking we need something different when we go camping.
Quote: Originally posted by Mike Richardson on 17/11/2009
Point taken Lobey, but we have camped all over the UK and never yet had to move the Image into the vertical position.
Mike
Clearly not ALL over the UK.
I have been on 3 sites in the last two years where other people's aerials were all in the vertical position.
Although a horizontally polarised aerial can pick up a vertically polarised signal, the strength of that signal will be much weaker than it would be if the aerial was positioned properly.