Anybody had problems with roof leaks?

[davidf]

I am considering signing on with DISH but I'm concerned about the quality of the installation. Has anyone here had (or heard of) any problems with roof leaks and the like?
It appears they put screws straight thru the roofing and then gunk silicone around the holes, rather than sliding the brackets under the shingles so that the fasteners are protected from rain.
And what can I expect in the way of repair service/liability if the roof does leak? DISH tells me they don't provide any kind of warranty, which makes me suspicious.
I would appreciate any feedback--thanks

 

[dfergie]

Welcome to SatelliteGuys...I have mine mounted on the side of my house, so no problems here...

 

[davidf]

Welcome to SatelliteGuys...I have mine mounted on the side of my house, so no problems here...

Yeah, they told me they'd have to cut out a section of my gutter to do that, which doesn't seem to be an option as I happen to need an operable gutter

 

[BrettTRay]

Welcome to SatelliteGuys As a former dish network employee/installer if you are worried about the roof leaking then don't put it on the roof. I know there are alot of companies (HSP/RSP's) that don't allow roof mounts, I know I used to work for one. Get them to put it on a pole or on the eave. If they have to put it on the roof then make sure its over a over hang and not over living quarters. I know that there have been a few instances were there were roof leaks because of a lack of a quality install and the customer filed a damage claim and the company had to pay for it to get fixed. With that being said if you are worried about the quality of the install all together, then just watch what the installer is doing and if its not up to your standards then let him know. The installer is your friend in this instance. If you treat him right then he will treat you right. If he does a good job then give him a tip. These installers work very hard for there money and I think thats whats lacking in the installing business, theres not enough customers out there that appreciate a good install job. But on the other hand theres not enough installers that take pride in there work and it makes the customer, that has to pay there hard earned money for the service, take time out of there day to get someone out there to fix it. Before you make the desision to have dish installed at your house look around this forum and make sure you know a little about whats going on where you will know what a good install is supposed to look like. Good Luck

 

[Dish Dude]

i Have all 3 of my dishes over my garage on the roof, pitch pads some black jack, no issues 3 years

 

[BrettTRay]

yea, I know if a roof mount is done right there will be no problems. I've seen them that have been on roofs since Directv/Dish first came out and haven't had a single problem. Me personally, I would rather have it on a pole then anywhere. It makes it easier to service if necessary.

 

[Liquidforce88]

If the dish is put on the roof it should be sealed. I don't use silicon personally, but if the mount is sealed properly it should not leak.

That being said if you don't want it on the roof tell the installer before hand so he can have a pole ready. Also depending on who does the install you may have to pay for that pole. Also if you have alot of trees around be ready for the fact that the roof may be your only option.

 

[Wylwrk]

Dish Network Soffit Mount Kit



If the dish needs to be placed "high" on your home there are alternatives to a roof mount and ^ is one of them.

Good luck with your install

 

[SouthRider]

My Dish 500 was installed directly on top of the shingles with silicone over the screws. This was 4 years ago & I haven't had any problems. I originally wanted it screwed through the fascia to the rafter, but the tech wouldn't do it. He swore up & down that the roof mount was stronger.

This month I needed a 2nd dish installed & they ABSOLUTELEY REFUSED to use my existing roof mount, and instead wanted a pole in the yard. They claimed that the roof mount was too much of a liability in high wind, and that if they touched it even to replace the dish that they were liable for the install & any damage.

BTW - the 500 went through Hurricane Katrina fine on my roof. It withstood over 6 hours of wind in excess of 100 mph with no problems & no leaks......

 

[Liquidforce88]

Actually there is a company that makes a bracket that can be mounted on the fascia. You then use what amounts to a primestare adaptor to mount the dish. I will see if I can find a web site on it.

 

[rowemance]

Dave you do have options if you don't want it on your roof with out cutting your gutter.
If you have a cast iron toilet vent pipe get a pipe adapter, There are several type of eve mounts or if you have a chimney or for a wall mount they have extra long J pipes.

If it does have to go on the roof make sure they use pitch pads or bishop tape under the mount and have them mount it as close to the peak as possible (the less roof above the mount the less water that will pass by the mount).

I have been installing for 7 years and haven't had a leak yet.

But the side of your house right next to a window is always the best place on a house.

 

[Van]

As a dishnetwork technician the roof is the last option for the dish 500 and I will not mount a super dish on a roof period because of the possibility of wind damage. I have never had any of my roof mounts leak in the 5 years plus Ive been doing this work as I always seal my installs with pitch or silicone. But I have seen roofs damaged by not being sealed, I see this more often with sub contractor firms than I do with my work done by my fellow employee's.

 

[Anole]

eaves, poles: yes. roof: no

I have boxed-in eaves like shown in the picture above.
The not-quite-so-vertical surface had more pitch than the dish foot could accommodate.
Mounting to it would put the pole about 20 degrees off plumb.
I tried to make a wooden wedge to mount the foot, but in the end I laminated another 1x6 to the surface for strength and to spread the load, then bolted the foot flat against it.
That left the pole leaning 20 degrees in the direction of the satellites.
I added 20 degrees to the elevation, and with the use of a $20 sat meter, found the birds and peaked the Twin without any trouble.

This was on advice from an engineer friend at a local TV station.
He's used to seting up temporary microwave links in the field, and making do with less-than-optimal situations.
He said I wouldn't have any trouble.
He was right!

The professional installers probably won't do it this way, and I don't blame them.
However, there's always somewhere to mount that dish, besides through the roof.

 

[digiblur]

I frown upon any roof mounts. I consider it lazy tech work. Wam bam thank ya mam for the roof mount! It's rare when there is nothing else to mount it to. I can see the water leaking now!

 

[SimpleSimon]

I do roof mounts as needed. Here in snow country, I discourage it, but NOT because of leak issues. I'm doing a roof-mount DirecWay (SuperDish size) tomorrow. The DWay mast with it's two support arms is basically immune to wind - it has to be because a DWay is MUCH more sensitive than a TV dish. I guess I've got a different perspective coming from the BUD days. Roof-mounting an 8' solid dish makes this stuff trivial.

I goo the bolt shaft BEFORE driving it in. The goo gets pushed back up under the foot, and through the hole up under the bolt head. Then I usually add some more goo at the top of the foot to direct water around it. Never an issue.

 

[Texanmutt]

Simon, just out of curiosity, what does direcway pay for installs ?

 

[sksatellite]

I did an installation a while back while work for dish installation on a house that there a dish at the very top of the roof, my 26 or 28' ladder could not really reach to the point where I wanted to get to the roof, so I set the ladder on the bed of truck and gained a few foot so I will able to get to the roof and put a new dish and replace the old dish 500.
Since it was rain a while back at the day and the roof still a bit wet and with sometime 20/30 miles gusty wind, but no choice, I have to force to the roof at this condition and I am the only guy, no help, once I reached to the dish, one hand holding the new dish and another hand to loosen the screws from the dish mount, and found who ever did the last installation did not has any sealant, the lag screws just drived into the roof, and lucky, all these time, has not see any leak from the attic. I did spend over half and hour at roof take down and set new dish and peak the dish, etc. take another few minutes to reach to the ladder, can not stand up and walk cause the wind and wet on roof, once I stepped down to the truck, my fully extented ladder fell, lucky, it went down to the other side and hit next door driveway, scratch but no heavy damage.

Since then, I quited this job although making over thousand a week but considering may not be that lucky next time.

 

[Van]

If the roof conditions were such that you could not safely work on what you had to do then you dont do that particular install, its only tv and even though you may loose the money from that customer that day you can make it back another day where as you cant make back your life should you fall off the roof and die.

 

[sA :: Shaggy]

What happens after you remove a dish. do u just fill the holes as much as possible, I would hate to have my roof screwed up because of a removal. this is why im asking... http://www.satelliteguys.us/showthread.php?p=778454&posted=1#post778454

 

[Mike500]

If done right, with asphalt composite fiberglass roof shingles, no sealant is needed or desired.

If you used hardened #14 or 1/4 inch diameter hex drive hardened sheet metal screws and drive them into the wooden rafters or through the plywood or OSB board deck right through the shingles without drilling, the heat caused by the driving friction and displacement of the asphaltum in the shingles would resulting in a self sealing unit as the heat dissapates and the plastic asphalt cools.

Removing any dish foot that was installed in this manner would be simple. The holes would be less than 1/4 inch in diameter. The holes could be sealed with roofing cement or silicone squirted into them. The screws can also be redriven in and the heads sealed with roofing cement.

Gluing the mounting foot to the roof causes nothing but problems. Removing is not difficult, however. Just saw off the sealant with a steel wire tied to two sticks, using one stick in each hand. After removal, you will have ann ugly spot that looks bad or have shingles replaced to keep it from showing. Sweep the granules out of the gutters, spread roofing cement on the ugly spot and sprinkle on the granules. This would hide the ugly spot and make it hard to see from the ground.