2nd Repair trip - Tip or no tip?
I've been a Dish customer since '98. I've been having a problem since November that only occurs when the outside temperature is below freezing. Dish phone troubleshooting multiple times didn't help, and they finally determined that the problem was most likely a bad FSS LNB. I decided to opt for a repair person in December. The person came out spent about 30 mins, replaced the DP34 switch, ground blocks, and put new connectors on the ends of all outside cables. He said that should solve my problem. I thanked him and gave him a $10 tip over the repair call fee. Now it's January, and the temperature dropped into the 20's for the first time since the repair. The problem is still here. I have a (warranty) repair call for tomorrow to try to resolve the problem again. It will probably be a different person than the last time.
I'm staying home from work (again) to meet the repair person. Should I tip the guy coming out tomorrow? If you were coming out for a 2nd call on the same issue, would you expect a tip? I'm not trying to be bitter, I just don't know, and would like your opinion. (My wife doesn't think I should have tipped the first guy since she see's the repair bill as payment)
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More about the problem (if you're interested): When the temperature drops below freezing, my 721 loses and cannot lock on sat 105. At this point, my 811 is still fine. If the temp continues to drop into the mid 20's, my other receiver (811) loses 105 too. As soon as the outside temperature warms up, the reception returns. Sat's 110 and 119 are unaffected. The weird thing is the signal strength stays normal (mid 50's to upper 60's depending on the TP) until the point where the temp causes signal lock loss. The signal then drops down and bounces between 0 and 20. When the first repair person came out and unscrewed the connectors from the switch, the copper center "stinger" was so corroded on the 110 and 105 connections, that it broke off in the switch. He said this was most likely the problem, and that the metal contracting when cold broke the connection, while the warm temps re-established the connection. Perhaps I shouldn't have tipped this guy since he didn't do what the Dish support had requested, and replace the LNB, but his theory sounded reasonable to me. The temperature was in the high 30's, and we had 105 before and after he left. All was good until this weekend when the temps got cold again, and we found the problem wasn't fixed.
I've been a Dish customer since '98. I've been having a problem since November that only occurs when the outside temperature is below freezing. Dish phone troubleshooting multiple times didn't help, and they finally determined that the problem was most likely a bad FSS LNB. I decided to opt for a repair person in December. The person came out spent about 30 mins, replaced the DP34 switch, ground blocks, and put new connectors on the ends of all outside cables. He said that should solve my problem. I thanked him and gave him a $10 tip over the repair call fee. Now it's January, and the temperature dropped into the 20's for the first time since the repair. The problem is still here. I have a (warranty) repair call for tomorrow to try to resolve the problem again. It will probably be a different person than the last time.
I'm staying home from work (again) to meet the repair person. Should I tip the guy coming out tomorrow? If you were coming out for a 2nd call on the same issue, would you expect a tip? I'm not trying to be bitter, I just don't know, and would like your opinion. (My wife doesn't think I should have tipped the first guy since she see's the repair bill as payment)
------------------------------------------
More about the problem (if you're interested): When the temperature drops below freezing, my 721 loses and cannot lock on sat 105. At this point, my 811 is still fine. If the temp continues to drop into the mid 20's, my other receiver (811) loses 105 too. As soon as the outside temperature warms up, the reception returns. Sat's 110 and 119 are unaffected. The weird thing is the signal strength stays normal (mid 50's to upper 60's depending on the TP) until the point where the temp causes signal lock loss. The signal then drops down and bounces between 0 and 20. When the first repair person came out and unscrewed the connectors from the switch, the copper center "stinger" was so corroded on the 110 and 105 connections, that it broke off in the switch. He said this was most likely the problem, and that the metal contracting when cold broke the connection, while the warm temps re-established the connection. Perhaps I shouldn't have tipped this guy since he didn't do what the Dish support had requested, and replace the LNB, but his theory sounded reasonable to me. The temperature was in the high 30's, and we had 105 before and after he left. All was good until this weekend when the temps got cold again, and we found the problem wasn't fixed.
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