Starlink dish mount on Dometic awning brackets

[RoadKingsofGA]

We liked the idea of mounting the Starlink bracket to the roof as we already owned the short mount from when we mounted it to the fascia board of our house.  Mounting to the awning where easy and quick access to install the dish at each campground was our priority. But our 2019 Oliver has a Dometic awning whose bolt pattern is diagonal and the Starlink mounts bolt pattern is vertical. Our solution was to select a 2” wide piece of 4’ stock aluminum at Lowe’s, cut 2 pieces for strength, and drill holes on one end to match Starlink mount and the other end to match the Dometic awning. 

1. We began by measuring the clearance needed for the dish to clear the awning when the dish is in stow mode, and length for the drilling of holes on both end. For our application, that length was ? We also ensured the trailer was level before starting.

2. Next we used cardboard to make a template to cut and drill the hole patterns. I am sure others may find a better way to do this, but we put dark powder on the bolts and then pressed the cardboard to them using a level on the cardboard to ensure it was straight. (We also visually assessed that it appeared perpendicular to the awning). We then pre drilled the holes in the cardboard and did a test run. NOTE: it took us at least 3 cardboard attempts before we got it right!

3. Now we transferred the template to the metal pieces. We actually drilled the awning pattern on one end of the 4’ aluminum piece before we cut the short lengths. This was in case we messed up, we would only lose a short 2” piece rather than our planned 8” lengths. We mounted the long piece to the awning, but the upper hole was slightly off, so we had to wallow that hole slightly larger, but that did not impact securing it.  We cut our length and drilled the Starlink holes. We repeated this process for the second piece. 
 

4. We purchased stainless steel bolts, washers and lock nuts for the Starlink end. So we stacked the 2 aluminum plates and installed. The direction we chose for the Starlink mount was to make it easier to see and plug in the router cable to the dish when we put it up there. NOTE: the awning bolts had been cutoff and threads were damaged so the nuts wouldn’t come off easily on the rear awning bolt set. Thus we had to use the set forward of those. 
 

5. We have traveled at 65mph and it doesn’t seem to move and remains secure. 
 

6. Like others, we bring the 4 legged dish mount/anchor and use it if we are under trees and need to move the dish 50’ away from the camper. We aren’t concerned about theft of the dish as it cannot be used by anyone else. Each dish is specific to the owner’s account.  For interest, I am including a picture of our Husky storage box and how we pack it. We use a Cord-Pro to wrangle the 75’ router cord to prevent tangling. I also notched a Tupperware to protect the cord plug end that goes in the dish. It can be delicate and damaged easily. 
 

7. We current put the cord thru the basement door and plug into the router via the trap door at the bottom of the bedside table (we have twins. The basement door has a notch in the rubber seal where the cord fits and allows us to close and lock the door without pinching the cord. Eventually we plan to convert the satellite port. 
 

Please ask questions, we would be happy to answer. 

[John E Davies]

1 hour ago, RoadKingsofGA said:

We aren’t concerned about theft of the dish as it cannot be used by anyone else. Each dish is specific to the owner’s account.

There is a basic flaw in your reasoning, would a casual thief know that? 😉 A cable lock around a fixed object would make me sleep a little easier.

FYI your awning mounts should have holes drilled as indicated by the arrow, later versions have a great big opening there. Otherwise it will trap water and debris and corrode them. Especially if you have not removed that pesky rubber seal…

John Davies

Spokane WA

 

[RoadKingsofGA]

52 minutes ago, John E Davies said:

There is a basic flaw in your reasoning, would a casual thief know that? 😉 A cable lock around a fixed object would make me sleep a little easier.

FYI your awning mounts should have holes drilled as indicated by the arrow, later versions have a great big opening there. Otherwise it will trap water and debris and corrode them. Especially if you have not removed that pesky rubber seal…

John Davies

Spokane WA

 

True, we could put a long chain out to the dish stand and put a lock thru the foot of it, should we have to place it far away. But even then, a thief who wants it can cut the chain. Would be a hassle for us to then acquire another, but the bad karma the thief gets is worse. 
We had heard of others removing the rubber piece, but hadn’t heard of drilling holes in the awning mounts! It’s a real pain keeping that area clean and free of debris. I will have to read on forums about this. Like do we have to remove the awning and what is risk of drilling into the fiberglass if the drill bit slips. 

[John E Davies]

31 minutes ago, RoadKingsofGA said:

We had heard of others removing the rubber piece, but hadn’t heard of drilling holes in the awning mounts! It’s a real pain keeping that area clean and free of debris. I will have to read on forums about this. Like do we have to remove the awning and what is risk of drilling into the fiberglass if the drill bit slips. 

You do need to get up on the roof, ideally, on a foam kneeling or camp pad. You should center punch BOTH sides at a location maybe 1/2” above the bottom of the angle, then use a battery powered drill to make a 1/8” pilot hole, it doesn’t matter if it is at a slight angle. Drill from both sides, then go larger, to 3/8” or bigger. By coming in from both sides you intersect in the center of the bracket. You won’t drill into the fiberglass. Maybe somebody who has done this can post a pic. My brackets are simple ells, with no reinforcing at all.

Removing the seal lets rain water pour down, that could be an issue in the South, where you actually have precipitation… ;). But is WAY easier to keep that area clean and tidy, and it looks better too. Especially if you have a black seal.

John Davies

Spokane WA

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[mossemi]

@RoadKingsofGA

Very nice and creative!  And your documentation of the project should be very helpful to others.  But I’m more interested in what may be a bike rack mounted on top of the sewer hose storage area.  Can you elaborate on that project if it is indeed a bike rack mount.

Mossey

[topgun2]

13 minutes ago, mossemi said:

Very nice and creative!  And your documentation of the project should be very helpful to others.  But I’m more interested in what may be a bike rack mounted on top of the sewer hose storage area.  Can you elaborate on that project if it is indeed a bike rack mount.

I agree with Mike - thanks for the post.

I too do not have holes drilled in my awning mounts nor did I remove the "seal".  Yes, keeping this area clean is a bit problematic but I serious do NOT think that it looks bad - in fact, I think it makes this area look a bit more "finished" and it does keep rain from coming down that side of the Ollie.  The washing/keeping it clean is also not really that much of an issue in that I do clean the roof every time I wash Twist anyway.  A strong stream of water and/or an electric power washer easily keeps this area free of "stuff".

Like Mike - I too noticed something that I'd like more information on - the white "hood" over your rearview camera.  How's it working?  What material did you fabricate it out of?  Did you do it "freehand" or with a template or ....?

Thanks!

Bill

[Galway Girl]

Very creative idea. I also ran into the issue of mounting bolts that were offset.

 

in our Domestic awning rail (below),   I drilled and tapped 2 new holes that I installed 2 bolts with thread locker.

The front side of the bracket is flush with the aluminum mounting bracket.