Dish Tailgater Antenna - 12/30/14 - Yuma, AZ

Tuesday – December 30, 2014
Dish Tailgater Antenna
Satellite Advantage
Quartzsite, Arizona

On Sunday, December 28, 2014, we lost our television service with Dish Satellite. When I turned on the television and the Dish ViP211K receiver, the receiver would perform a check switch routine through the Dish Tailgater antenna and within a minute or so the television would display the message: No Satellites Found – Error Code 151. I needed to determine if the problem was with the receiver or the antenna, so I contacted Dish customer service to find a Dish satellite service center in Yuma, Arizona. Dish directed me to American Satellite System inYuma, Arizona.

Since it was a Sunday and American Satellite was closed, I searched online for problems with the Dish Tailgater antenna. This search provided a wealth of information related to problems other owners of this antenna were having. I also discovered glowing reviews of how knowledgeable and helpful Satellite Advantage in Quartzsite, Arizona were in problem solving satellite antenna and receiver problems.

Monday morning I visited American Satellite System. I had the Dish ViP211K receiver and the Tailgater antenna with me. It was a wasted trip! The folks there offered me two solutions:

1. Send one or both items back to Dish for replacement.
2. Buy a new ViP211K receiver and/or Tailgater antenna from them.

Since my receiver and antenna were out of warranty, option 1 was not a viable option.

I was so disappointed with American Satellite and Dish for recommending them to me. If you are looking for someone to service your satellite receiver or antenna … Go Somewhere Else!

I called Satellite Advantage in Quartzsite, Arizona, while I was sitting in the parking lot at American Satellite. I talked to the owner, Paul Angerami, and explained my problem. He immediately recognized the problem and stated it is unique to the Tailgater antenna when using that antenna while dry camping. The fix requires them to re-download software onto the ViP211K receiver using one of their Dish antennas. The service charge for this fix is $15.00. Since Quartzsite is about 70 miles north of Yuma, I decided to visit them on Tuesday.

I arrived at Satellite Advantage on Tuesday at 11:45 a.m. Within 20 minutes they had the software downloaded onto my Dish ViP211K receiver. The receiver was functioning properly, as connected to one of their televisions and antennas. While I was waiting, the owner commented that starting in January, when the largest influx of snowbirds start to arrive, those RV’ers that have the Tailgater antenna will be lined up in his store with their receivers to get the software downloaded. For this reason, he discontinued carrying the Tailgater antenna and now carries the Pathway X1 and Pathway X2 antennas, manufactured by Winegard. These are purported to be a more robust antenna system for continuous dry camping.

I arrived back at the Imperial Dam BLM, LTVA, in Yuma, Arizona late in the afternoon. I connected the Tailgater antenna to the receiver then the receiver to the television. Turned the system on, and to my dismay, the television screen displayed the dreaded message: No Satellites Found. I am so upset with myself. I just drove 140 miles to get software downloaded onto my receiver and never gave a thought to ask them to connect my receiver to my Tailgater antenna to make sure the antenna is working properly. Another senior moment gets the better of me! I swear, I have to make notes for just about everything anymore. I just can’t rely on my memory the way I use to. Aggravating! Of course, just my luck, it’s the day before New Year’s eve. They will be closed on the 31^st and January 1, 2015. I will have to wait until Friday, January 2^nd before I can get my Dish satellite system running again. Fortunately, we have a large selection of DVD movies we can watch in the meantime.

Tomorrow another adventure begins.