Who doesn’t like life on the road? It’s a form of freedom we all crave. But let’s also be honest and say that you need to be connected, even when you’re getting away from it all. The folks in the back will want to check and update their socials. They may even want to stream a little video. After all, it doesn’t count unless your followers know about it, amirite?
Of course the problem is that RVs tend to have notoriously bad cell reception in the back. It’s all that stuff between you and the outdoors. But, obviously there’s a solution. You can get a cell phone signal booster from Solid Signal and in many cases you’ll have better reception indoors than outdoors. That means passengers can stream, shop, surf and socialize to their heart’s content.
How a cell phone signal booster works
A cell phone signal booster system has three parts. The outdoor antenna, shown in orange, picks up signals from outside. The amplifier, shown in green, pumps those signals up about 10,000 times, and the indoor antenna, shown in purple, rebroadcasts those signals. The whole system works in reverse too. The indoor antenna takes signals from your phone, the amplifier boosts them, and the outdoor antenna blasts them to the nearest cell tower.
Where to put the components
The outdoor antenna goes outdoors. (You probably guessed that.) Ideally it should go as high up as possible, with nothing blocking it in any direction. Chances are there’s a conduit and some sort of mount at the top of your RV for just this sort of thing.
The indoor antenna should be placed in the center of the RV so that it covers the entire RV with signal. Placing it on one side will mean the other side won’t get the signal you really want it to get.
Placing the amplifier
You actually have a lot of flexibility in where to place the amplifier. The cell phone signal booster itself comes with long cables which give you the opportunity to place things where you want. The amplifier can be put in a cabinet, under a shelf, or anywhere out of the way. The only thing you need to consider is that it should be a fairly well ventilated place. It does create a bit of heat. If you’re going to put it in a closed cabinet, drill holes at the top and bottom to create airflow.
People do ask if the amplifier can be outside. I recommend against this. It’s really not designed to be mounted outside. It could be exposed to extremes of temperature and weather. Chances are the booster will work for a while but will die long before it should.
Other than that, go crazy with where you want to put it. Space is always at a premium in an RV, so just find an unused nook with decent airflow. That’s all it takes.
RV services from Signal Connect
No one handles more RV communications tech upgrades than Signal Connect. We can help you choose the right booster. Then we’ll help you find a pre-screened installer in your area. If there are any activation tasks, we can handle that too. All our customer service is 100% free of charge, and we treat you like you deserve.
Find out more by calling 888-233-7563 during East Coast business hours. If it’s after hours, fill out the form below. We’ll get back to you, usually within one business day.
