Where to install
Picking a location, why the dish has to stay tilted, and how to clean it without wrecking it.
Overview
Placement decides how good your service is, and it is the one thing that is expensive to change later. Everything else is software.
Picking a location
The dish needs a clear view of the sky in the directions the satellites travel. A branch, a pole or a roofline in the way causes interruptions rather than a clean failure, which is why people live with a bad location for months without realising it is the cause.
Use Check for Obstructions in the app at every candidate spot before you drill anything. See Obstructions.
Most people end up better served by a permanent mount somewhere high: a roof, a pole, a wall. Permanent installation also protects the cable, which is the part that fails first on a temporary setup. Mounts and accessories are available in the Starlink shop once your kit is ready to ship.
Keep it tilted
The alignment tool applies to the Standard 4, Standard 4 X and Starlink Mini, which have no motor and rely on you pointing them.
Two reasons the tilt matters:
- Coverage. The dish reaches the most satellites when it is aimed at the part of the sky they cross.
- Water. Laid flat, the dish pools rainwater, and you get dropouts that look like a service problem. Use the kickstand.
See App tools for how the alignment tool works.
Cleaning
The radome is pure Teflon, which is why it is so slippery and sheds water on its own. A microfiber cloth and glass cleaner is all it needs.
Do not:
- Paint it. Any coating on the radome ruins snow and rain shedding and you lose performance in exactly the weather where you need it.
- Cover it with cloth or anything else, for the same reason.
- Apply hydrophobic treatments such as NeverWet or RainX. They get recommended for other companies’ dishes and they are not recommended here.