SolidRF RV Pro Cell Booster Ladder Installation

In exchange for a free SolidRV RV Pro Cell Booster, I was willing to provide a little installation guide video as well as a testing video for SolidRF. This blog post is to further expand on the information I noted in the video and hopefully help guide you as you install your own SolidRF RV Pro Cell Booster. This installation is (as of now) NOT endorsed by SolidRF, it is just how I installed this booster on my rig. It may or may not work for your particular RV.

I decided to switch up the install a bit for those that may not want to permanently install the booster on the roof of their RV via adhesive. If you happen to have a ladder attached to the back of your RV, here is an alternative install method from those that come within the SolidRF RV Pro Cell Booster kit.

What You Will Need To Complete This Install

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Tools/Equipment (May vary based on your own measurements or Install)

1. SolidRF RV Pro Cell Booster
2. Drill
3. Wrench to tighten nuts
4. Measuring Tape
5. Caulk Gun
6. Dicor Lap Sealant (for Rubber Roofs)
7. Thread Locker Blue (optional)
8. 1/4″ Drill Bit Capable Of Drilling Metal (I used Titanium)
9. 1/2″ Drill Bit for Grey Tank Pipe (If you have the same setup as my RV)
10. Silicon Sealant for Grey Tank Seals ( I used Gorilla Sealant as it has worked for me in the past perfectly)
11. Velcro Straps for Ladder Wire Management (We use these for all wire management in the RV)
12. Pen & Masking Tape to Mark Drill Holes

Specific Tools I used (Amazon Affiliate Links Included)

Extra Items I Needed (May Vary Based On YOUR Measurements)

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Found in Local Hardware Store – Measure Your Install before Buying (Step 1 below)

1. Six – Zinc Machine Screw/Bolts with Nuts – 1/4″ Diameter 1/2″ long (length could vary based on thickness of L brackets)
2. Two Metal Pipe Straps (I used 3/4″ straps because my ladder had a diameter of 1″ (Strap sizes vary, thus measure first)
3. Two Metal L Brackets (I used 2 8×10″ Metal Shelving Brackets, but I do not recommend getting brackets with a crossbar)
4. 2 Neoprene Washers to act as padding for Metal Pipe Straps

Notes Before Install

1. Main Internal Antenna (white) must be located at least 4 feet below External Antenna and within a 1 1/2 foot radius
2. 2nd Internal Antenna (little black antenna) must be 12 ft away from Main Internal Antenna
3. External Antenna must not have any large objects right next to it for optimum performance (avoid putting right next to other antennas or objects that may block signal).
4. BEFORE INSTALLING, figure out where everything needs to go and do a soft test to make sure oscillation does not occur and everything is working as expected. That means before gluing, drilling, ANYTHING, make sure everything is working properly so you don’t have to relocate after installing.

SAFETY

I am not a DIY expert by any means, so only attempt this install at your own risk. This install will likely involve drilling through metal depending what you purchase. So if you are not comfortable or experienced with that, please DO NOT ATTEMPT.

INSTALLATION

After you have read everything above, here are the steps I followed in order to complete this install. Some of the steps I completed with my previous install of the WeBoost which is why you didn’t see them in the install video at the top of this post.

STEP 1 – MEASURE

AFTER figuring out where you would like to place everything and have done a soft test to make sure things are working as expected (light is green on the back of the Main White Internal Antenna), it is time to measure.

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THINGS TO MEASURE AND WRITE DOWN

1. Diameter of Ladder for Pipe Straps (My ladder was 1″ round, and the 3/4″ pipe straps had an interior diameter of about 1″)
2. Height of Ladder above your Roof. My ladder was about 6″ above the roof of my RV, so I went with 8×10″ L Brackets.  I put the 10″ side against the ladder itself to allow plenty of room for drilling holes around the ladder.
3. How much wire you will need in order to feed the external antenna to the internal antenna. The 15′ wire was more than enough for me, but could vary based on your RV and how you feed the wire inside. This really should have been part of your soft install, but just make sure you have enough wire.

STEP 2 – BUY HARDWARE (Bring Measuring Tape, SolidRF Base Bracket With You)

Based on your measurements above, you should now be able to buy the L brackets and pipe straps. I DO NOT recommend buying the particular shelving brackets I used in this video due to the crossbar getting in the way.

Keep in mind that you will also need to at least purchase the nuts & bolts to mount everything. In my installation, I used 6 1/4″ diameter bolts of the exact same size. 2 for the base bracket of the booster itself, and 4 to mount the L brackets to the ladder.

Make sure the bolts give you enough leeway based off the thickness of the metal brackets/pipe straps/and SolidRF base bracket to securely attach the nuts. However, you also need to make sure the bolts do not exceed the length of metal mounting columns located on the SolidRF base bracket. For my 1/8″ thick metal brackets, I used 1/2″ length bolts.

Don’t forget to check the items list at the top of this post in case you need to buy anymore equipment or items before you start the install.

STEP 3 – CONNECT L BRACKETS TO SOLIDRF BASE BRACKET

In this step you may need to drill out 1/4″ holes into the L brackets themselves in order to bolt them onto the SolidRF Base Bracket. My L brackets already had holes pre-drilled, I just needed to widen them for the 1/4 diameter bolts I purchased. If you do need to drill, learn from my initial mistake. Use a work bench and have something to secure the metal bracket in place.

Now connect the L Brackets to the SolidRF Base Bracket via 2 bolts/nuts you purchased previously. Do not use thread locker quite yet as it is best to leave these loose for further adjustments if needed.

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STEP 4 – MEASURE WHERE YOU WANT THE PIPE STRAPS TO GO

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Time to head back up to the top of the RV and measure where the pipe straps will be located on the L brackets themselves. This is where the masking tape and pen can come in handy. Cover the back of your L brackets with the masking tape then line the L Brackets up against the ladder itself. Arrange where you want to put the pipe straps on the ladder while leaning the L brackets up against the pipe straps. Then just mark where the holes need to be drilled.

STEP 5 – GET TO DRILLING

BE CAREFUL – WEAR PROPER SAFETY EQUIPMENT WHENEVER DRILLING, ESPECIALLY METAL

Time to drill those holes to attach the pipe straps. Again, I purchased 1/4″ diameter bolts, so I needed 1/4″ holes to drill through the brackets. I recommend taking your time and not putting too much force on the drill itself. Let the drill do most of the work. Drilling through metal isn’t particularly easy for you or the drill, so take it easy. My Milwaukee drill handled this like a champ with the 1/8″ metal. If you got a thicker metal, it’ll obviously be harder to drill.

Depending on your pipe straps that you purchased, you may also need to widen the holes with the same drill bit size. Mine were just barely too small to fit the 1/4″ diameter bolts, so I widened those as well.

STEP 6 – PIECE IT ALL TOGETHER

I recommend doing a quick soft install to make sure the pipe straps fit secure around the ladder ok and everything else secures as expected before proceeding. Also make sure you have everything you need with you especially before laying down the dicor and thread locker blue.

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After making sure everything will install as expected, go ahead and apply the thread locker blue (optional) before securing the L Brackets to the SolidRF Base Bracket via nuts/bolts.

I then put a bead of dicor underneath each of the bolts to prevent scratching up the metal roof in case they do bounce around while traveling. (Don’t want to cause damage to roof that may cause water damage in the future).

After the dicor is in place, I set the base bracket down and then proceeded to mount the pipe straps to the ladder (with the neoprene washers as padding to prevent scratching on the ladder). The neoprene washers also give a tad more friction to the ladder to allow a tighter/more secure fit.

Once that is all done, you have completed the hardest steps in the install.

STEP 7 – Attach the Booster and External Antenna to the Roof

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Follow the instructions that came with the booster itself for attaching the SolidRF booster and external antenna to the base bracket. The end product should look something like the above.

STEP 8 – DRILLING A HOLE TO FEED WIRE INTO THE RV

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As mentioned with my WeBoost install, we had a grey tank exhaust located on the rear end of the RV. I simply went underneath the cabinet of our kitchen sink to wear the grey tank exhaust pipe was located…and drilled a hole JUST wide enough for the WeBoost wire to get through at the highest point possible on the pipe. (Sorry, don’t have any images for this, but I will include the link to the WeBoost Install Video).

STEP 9 – INTERIOR INSTALLATION WRAP UP

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I recommend feeding the exterior wire in…rather than feeding the exterior wire OUT of the RV because the exterior end is much wider and will require a much larger hole to drill.

With our setup we have the exterior wire running underneath the kitchen sink through the grey tank pipe, then we will eventually be drilling a hole on the side of the cabinet to allow the wire to be fed through and better managed.

The 2nd interior antenna will be placed closer to my work area within the RV so I can also benefit from the boosted signal whilst working.

If you do route the wire in through the grey tank pipe as we did, make sure you use a thick sealant to close any air gaps around that wire to avoid off-gassing to come into your RV through that hole. (It stinks, speaking from experience).

Let us know in the comments below or in the video if you have any questions regarding our particular install. This isn’t the perfect solution for everyone as everyone has a different rig and different setup.

NOTE FROM WRITER

If you enjoyed this blog post or the video to go along with it, feel free to share it with your friends.  You can find us on YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter. You can also subscribe to our channel’s RSS feed via the subscribe button on the sidebar. If you have any questions or comments go ahead and leave them below and we will try our best to get back to you! Thanks for reading/watching!

Also be sure to check out Deanna’s food blog, The Harvest Skillet, when you get the chance! A lot of awesome and healthy recipes to use there!

Adventure On!