Most RVers don’t like to spend all their time cooped inside in the RV when at an RV park but there are some spots where you will find yourself killing time indoors be it from severe weather, darkness or just kick back and relax. The most American way to kill time is of course found in the old television set. Many RVs have cable and satellite hookups, and many RV parks have these utilities as well, so you can catch your shows while relaxing at the park or even out in your driveway.
There’s one thing, you need to hook them up. Rookie RVers or RVers who bought a television may be wondering how to make these connections, but we’ll help you out. Here is how to set up RV Satellite/Cable Hookups.
Setting Up RV Cable Connections
Of course, the first thing you want to do before booking a site is to check to see if the RV park offers television hookups, be it cable or satellite. It doesn’t make sense to prep for these when there are no connections to be offered. Check the RV park’s website or call to ask about what type of television connections they have.
Keep a coaxial cable cord in your RV and buy a couple of different lengths if you have the money and space. We would recommend coaxial cable cords anywhere between ten and 50 feet. Don’t count on an RV park to provide a cable. You can buy coaxial cable cords at any big box retailer, tech store or office supply store. Make sure you get coaxial cable and not auxiliary cable.
The connection is as simple as it is at home. Connect one end of the cable to any cable outlet such as an RV park’s output and the other end into your RV’s input. Don’t worry about which end goes whereas both ends of a coaxial cable are male.
Make any secondary routes if need be, such as plugging the coaxial cable into a cable box, into the RV set or wherever you need to depend on your cable.
Turn on your TV; you should have cable TV now.
Setting Up RV Satellite Service
Satellite is a little trickier than a simple cable hookup. Here are some basic rules when hooking up the satellite.
Satellite-ready RVing
Depending on the manufacturer of the RV this could mean that either the RV already has a satellite system and you need to connect a few cables, or that the RV has ready-made attachments and systems to install a satellite system.
Unfortunately, because every RV is different, we can’t give you step-by-step instructions on how to setup your satellite system. Your first go-to will be your RV user’s manual if that doesn’t work, try the RV forums and if you’re frustrated, take the RV to your dealer or RV service center and have them ready up your satellite system for you.
Independent Satellite Systems
You can also purchase independent satellite systems to get TV to your RV about anywhere. These systems can vary in price, quality and more so make sure you do plenty of homework before deciding which third-party satellite system you would like to purchase. Install and setup instructions for a third-party satellite system will be different per model of a system and your RV. Remember, the user’s manual is always your friend.
We like to pretend that RVing is only about getting out to see new landscapes, but the truth is, sometimes we want to be lazy and watch some TV. Use these instructions to get TV to your RV and keep boredom from taking over.