How/whether to remove an old satellite dish
July 20, 2004 6:08 AM Subscribe
BigUglyDishFilter: We've got an old C-Band satellite dish on a pole in the back yard. I'd love to get rid of it as it's... well, big and ugly--and I'm thinking that when we do want to sell the house in a few years, it'll be easier without that monstrosity back there. The guys who installed our DirecTV dish said they could dismantle it for $200. Is this cheap? Expensive? Something we could do ourselves? Or should we just leave it (it works)? There's no Craigslist here!
A childhood friend of mine in rural Maine had one that was knocked down by a snowplow. His dad partially disassembled it to straighten out part of the lip-- it was just bolted together and he used a socket wrench and visegrips.
Take some binoculars and get a close look at it and make sure that it has visible screws and locknuts. I suspect that you could disassemble it yourself-- many of those were sold disassembled and it was up to the homeowner (or contractor, but not in Maine) to put it together with common tools. Perhaps some brands were shipped completely welded or something, but that seems unlikely and it was probably assembled on-site.
Take a hacksaw to the pole and pretend that you're a logger!
posted by Mayor Curley at 6:51 AM on July 20, 2004
Take some binoculars and get a close look at it and make sure that it has visible screws and locknuts. I suspect that you could disassemble it yourself-- many of those were sold disassembled and it was up to the homeowner (or contractor, but not in Maine) to put it together with common tools. Perhaps some brands were shipped completely welded or something, but that seems unlikely and it was probably assembled on-site.
Take a hacksaw to the pole and pretend that you're a logger!
posted by Mayor Curley at 6:51 AM on July 20, 2004
*PAY* $200 to get rid of it? *HAHAHAHA*! I'm a satellite installer myself and I only *WISH* I could get paid to take things like that down and sell them. :-D
You should put an ad in the local paper and tell people that they can come by and have it for free. You should get a bite in only a while (a few weeks), assuming the dish is in decent shape. It's the summer, too, so it's more likely to move.
Note that if someone were to actually buy a new C-Band system (you still can, believe it or not), a basic system starts at about $500 for a 6 footer.
Used dishes usually sell at satellite stores for about $100 - $200.
Personally, I'd just leave it and enjoy using it. There's plenty of fun to be had with one of those, especially if you know more than just the english language (your C-Band dish, hopefully, can pick up Ku-Band as well).
Doing the work yourself is no big deal. It's just ridding yourself of what's left. If you have a truck, go for it.
BTW: You shouldn't need to hacksaw the pole (!). There'll be some bolts gripping the pole at the base of the dish. Loosen them and the rest is simple (with help). The dishes are heavy, of course. If you keep the pole, you're smart -- you can always put another dish on it later easily, even if it's just an LSD (18" dish).
Too bad you're not near my store... I'd have probably taken it off your hand if it weren't a 10 footer. I could use one for the store. :-)
posted by shepd at 7:08 AM on July 20, 2004
You should put an ad in the local paper and tell people that they can come by and have it for free. You should get a bite in only a while (a few weeks), assuming the dish is in decent shape. It's the summer, too, so it's more likely to move.
Note that if someone were to actually buy a new C-Band system (you still can, believe it or not), a basic system starts at about $500 for a 6 footer.
Used dishes usually sell at satellite stores for about $100 - $200.
Personally, I'd just leave it and enjoy using it. There's plenty of fun to be had with one of those, especially if you know more than just the english language (your C-Band dish, hopefully, can pick up Ku-Band as well).
Doing the work yourself is no big deal. It's just ridding yourself of what's left. If you have a truck, go for it.
BTW: You shouldn't need to hacksaw the pole (!). There'll be some bolts gripping the pole at the base of the dish. Loosen them and the rest is simple (with help). The dishes are heavy, of course. If you keep the pole, you're smart -- you can always put another dish on it later easily, even if it's just an LSD (18" dish).
Too bad you're not near my store... I'd have probably taken it off your hand if it weren't a 10 footer. I could use one for the store. :-)
posted by shepd at 7:08 AM on July 20, 2004
My father-in-law took one of those, fiberglassed it, and used it for a roof on his hunting blind. (Of course, it took a winch and a backhoe to move it after that, but he's just the kind of guy that has those around.)
A little more seriously, if you can't get rid of it to someone else who wants the reception, it's not often that you've got a nice, spherical dome that's big enough to use structurally somewhere--backyard gazebo, potting shed, etc.
posted by LairBob at 7:20 AM on July 20, 2004
A little more seriously, if you can't get rid of it to someone else who wants the reception, it's not often that you've got a nice, spherical dome that's big enough to use structurally somewhere--backyard gazebo, potting shed, etc.
posted by LairBob at 7:20 AM on July 20, 2004
Response by poster: I already had fun finding theBuffy when I first moved here (there was no UPN station) but geeking out with azimuths really isn't my cup of tea. We've got DirecTV and--OMG--crystal clear local channels now, so I'd like to get rid of the 10' thing. There's no room in the back yard for anything ReadyMade-like, and we've now got an old DirecTV dish and receiver for when my mother-in-law finally builds the cabin...
posted by mimi at 7:29 AM on July 20, 2004
posted by mimi at 7:29 AM on July 20, 2004
What shepd said, and here's where you'll find takers for your offer:
posted by Fupped Duck at 8:24 AM on July 20, 2004
posted by Fupped Duck at 8:24 AM on July 20, 2004
I think there's an error in FD's link--it looks like it was supposed to go here [freecycle.org].
posted by LairBob at 8:42 AM on July 20, 2004
posted by LairBob at 8:42 AM on July 20, 2004
Goodness. Take the thing down, turn it upside down, and paint it to look like a mushroom. Makes a great sun umbrella!
posted by five fresh fish at 10:03 AM on July 20, 2004
posted by five fresh fish at 10:03 AM on July 20, 2004
This thread is closed to new comments.
posted by yesster at 6:51 AM on July 20, 2004