SOLVED - Gateway/Router antennas wiring issue

[TheTravelingBrowns]

Hi, installing the Gateway 4g LTE router to the Winegard but the three small antenna wires are really short. It is very tight and cannot be pulled out from the ceiling anymore. Does anyone have a solution other than opening the hole wider? Thx.

 

[Whitewolf]

I don't think there's such a thing a an extension kit for the wires. So other than opening the hole a bit or splicing the wires, I can't think of anything.

 

[Focker]

They must be caught on something, they should have enough length to attach with a little fishing around.

 

[Jim Beletti]

Hi, installing the Gateway 4g LTE router to the Winegard but the three small antenna wires are really short. It is very tight and cannot be pulled out from the ceiling anymore. Does anyone have a solution other than opening the hole wider? Thx.

You might want to remove the top cover of the dome antenna to see if there's slack in there than can be used. Or maybe with 2 people, gently use the push-pull method on both ends of the wires to free it from being bound up.

 

[TheTravelingBrowns]

Reluctantly I removed the complete seal around the Winegard and pulled it up. I found that the three Antenna wires have absolutely no more give and are already pulled tight from the green circuit board. Now what? Are there connectors I can buy from Lowes for the three Antenna Wire?

 

[Focker]

Reluctantly I removed the complete seal around the Winegard and pulled it up. I found that the three Antenna wires have absolutely no more give and are already pulled tight from the green circuit board. Now what? Are there connectors I can buy from Lowes for the three Antenna Wire?

I do not think those are the wires you are needing. The wires come off the circuit board and are three different colors.

 

[TheTravelingBrowns]

That is correct. Those are the wires I am speaking of.

 

[Focker]

That is correct. Those are the wires I am speaking of.

Well shoot, it would sound like Alliance put the hole in the wrong spot in the ceiling

 

[Jim Beletti]

@TheTravelingBrowns - those are not wires you will find at the bog box stores. I suggest you call Winegard customer service (800-288-8094) to explain the matter, that you are trying to use the RV manufacturers Winegard router prep and the 3 antenna wires are too short. They may have extensions.

Also, you may want to engage Alliance Customer Service at service@alliancerv.com. Tell them about your findings at the ceiling and at the antenna. I'm wondering if they wires got snagged in the routing in the ceiling or as @Focker alludes to, perhaps the prep location or the antenna location is off from their normal installation locations. Be sure to include your name, phone number, last 6 of your VIN and your pictures when you email customer service.

That all said, others have used these wires, so what you're seeing is not the norm

 

[TheTravelingBrowns]

Yup. And we had already placed the base plate of the Gateway so we can't move it because of the holes.

@TheTravelingBrowns - those are not wires you will find at the bog box stores. I suggest you call Winegard customer service (800-288-8094) to explain the matter, that you are trying to use the RV manufacturers Winegard router prep and the 3 antenna wires are too short. They may have extensions.

Also, you may want to engage Alliance Customer Service at service@alliancerv.com. Tell them about your findings at the ceiling and at the antenna. I'm wondering if they wires got snagged in the routing in the ceiling or as @Focker alludes to, perhaps the prep location or the antenna location is off from their normal installation locations. Be sure to include your name, phone number, last 6 of your VIN and your pictures when you email customer service.

That all said, others have used these wires, so what you're seeing is not the norm

The hole from the roof and one in the ceiling are not under each other. The wires are also not snagged on anything as I was able to pull them out and back to the hole in the ceiling where my husband could put his fingers on it. I will contact Winegard and Alliance Cust. service. I appreciate all the info you provided!

 

[TheTravelingBrowns]

UPDATE: Called Winegard and ordered extensions for the three Antenna wires to reach the Gateway Router. Alliance said to send receipt and they will reimburse the cost. Now that we have the Gateway hooked up. It is not showing up on our Wifi. We were told we did not need to add the switch the Gateway came with because we have the wifi and antenna button in the basement. Any help please?

 

[Jim Beletti]

UPDATE: Called Winegard and ordered extensions for the three Antenna wires to reach the Gateway Router. Alliance said to send receipt and they will reimburse the cost. Now that we have the Gateway hooked up. It is not showing up on our Wifi. We were told we did not need to add the switch the Gateway came with because we have the wifi and antenna button in the basement. Any help please?

I'm not familiar with the product so I'm not sure what this switch is that the gateway came with. Is it a power switch or is it a network switch with RJ45 ports on it? If it's just a switch, then right, you probably don't need it if you're just connecting your devices using WiFi.
I'd suggest you reach out to our service team or to Winegard support to troubleshoot this. Reach our team at service@alliancerv.com. Include your name, phone, last 6 of your VIN, a picture of your router installed and a picture of this switch.

Also, look at the router documentation to see if there's a power indicator light on the unit and see if that light is on. Perhaps your router isn't powered. Did you also fish out the power wires from that same hole? If not, you probably haven't powered the router. Here again, I'm sort of guessing as I don't have this product in my coach.

 

[Jim Beletti]

@TheTravelingBrowns - Here's a link to the installation / user manual. And here's a Tip Sheet we produced on this topic. Looks like there should be a power cable up there. Did you find it and connect it? Looks like there's also a status LED. What are you seeing in terms of color and motion of the LED?

I also saw in the manual, the switch your speaking of. A power switch. I feel you're right, that it's not needed as we (Alliance) provide a switched power circuit. Make sure you connected the power wire to the router and that you switched the power on at the wall plate, then check for the power / status LED on the router.

 

[TheTravelingBrowns]

Hi, yes, power cable and antenna wires are installed correctly. (Attached a pic) The switch the router comes with is a power on/off switch. I just don't see any place where there is a power light on the router. The buttons for the wifi and antenna in the basement are both on and lit green. I'll contact winegard again. Thanks for the response Jim.

 

[Jim Beletti]

Hi, yes, power cable and antenna wires are installed correctly. (Attached a pic) The switch the router comes with is a power on/off switch. I just don't see any place where there is a power light on the router. The buttons for the wifi and antenna in the basement are both on and lit green. I'll contact winegard again. Thanks for the response Jim.

Here's the LED location (see below). If you're not seeing a light at all, my guess is you're not getting DC power. That's going to be a coach issue, not a Winegard issue.

 

[TheTravelingBrowns]

We have power but no light on router. Do we need to disconnect and reconnect the battery maybe? Going to call winegard.

 

[Jim Beletti]

We have power but no light on router. Do we need to disconnect and reconnect the battery maybe? Going to call winegard.

Awesome on your troubleshooting thus far. Yes, if you have power present at that connector and no light on the router, I agree, time to call Winegard with your findings. Circle back here with how this comes out.

 

[TheTravelingBrowns]

We ended up swapping the power wires and then Winegard walked me thru the steps to get it connected to the internet. She had me enter these numbers on the web 10.11.12.1 and it opened up the place where I needed to add the sim card info. It's working now but if I didn't call, I wouldn't have known the steps to follow to set it up. Wish they had these set up instructions in the manual for those who are not tech savvy.

Want to thank you for your help Jim. Really appreciate you making yourself available to help answer questions.

Jenna

 

[Jim Beletti]

Hi Jenna - not sure why they had you swap the power wires. From your voltage reading, it was a positive, not a negative reading, indicating polarity was right. Happy you got that sorted though.

As for accessing the router's admin control panel for settings and such, as we, Alliance RV don't offer the router, it's a dealer or customer purchase and install. It's on you or your installer to get it setup for your use.

That said, I we do have the installation and setup manual hosted on our Owner Empowerment documentation website. Here's the link.

Glad you got this all sorted and are online!

 

[TheTravelingBrowns]

As long as it works, we're happy. I understand it's a Winegard product, just would have saved us a lot of frustration if my phone was compatible with the Winegard Connect app. I downloaded the RV Halo app and that's where I got stuck. Well, on to our next project!