motorhome power and aerial

[robin]

I have just bought a Motorhome and need some help please.
1) We have bought a freeview TV but what sort of aerial is best suited for motorhomes. I have seen that lots of aerials don't work unless you are in a very strong region.
2) When I hook up to mains power on a site, I seem to lose 12v power. Is this normal??

[AlBags]

Yes
I have rigged up a couple of American motorhomes (Winnebago 36ft) with TV and Satellite.
You really need a proper antenna at the moment (things will be better after DSO as signal amp strengths will be up, some by many times) Small omni-directionals will mostly be no good.
Best way is to have a socket on the roof you can drop pole into, and have a plug/socket to connect (at the antenna) This is what most do on narrowboats now. You should have a booster too if poss. Mains will cut out the 12v yes, but only if on-board 12v battery is no good, or wired up incorrectly. If you need 12v because of the receiver or TV, best to check on-board 12v supply first.

[robin]

Thanks, that is very useful information.

[Graham-W]

We have a "Status" directional aerial on our caravan and we can get freeview on nearly all of the sites we visit. They have a built in signal booster and as AlBags said things should improve when analogue is turned off.
As to the power question, we still have a 12v supply when connected to mains as all our lights and water pump operate on 12v. Sounds like you have a problem or are you missing a change-over switch. Dealer or previous owner should be able to help.

[robin]

thanks Graham, I will get it to a dealer to check out. I had seen a lot about these Status aerials with mixed success. It obviously seems to depend on the strength of signal in a particular area.
Isn't there a lot to learn about these Motorhomes etc !!!!!!!