Your Free-to-air channels not working Australia, and you don’t know what to do? Fear not.
When FTA channels are not working, it usually indicates that there’s an issue with your antenna positioning, cable connection or device software.
This guide will cover all the proven steps to fix the problem, so let’s quickly peek into the solution.
When Free-to-air channels are not working, check if the antenna or cable connections are working fine and re-scan for FTA channels. Additionally, improve the signal strength, and factory reset your TV.
If that doesn’t help, continue reading to learn everything in detail!
First, Verify Your Signal & Settings
Before troubleshooting, it’s essential to ensure you’re doing things right.
There are quite a few different things you must consider, especially when FTA channels are missing or not working:
To review an in-depth look into each of these points, continue reading…
How to Fix Free-to-Air Channels Not Working Australia?
If you’re experiencing issues with free-to-air channels, below are several solutions you can attempt to restore all the channels.
Tip: Make sure to follow all these steps in consecutive order.
1. Check Your FTA Connection
The first and obvious thing you should attempt when the free-to-air channels are not working is to inspect the FTA cabling.
Check your antenna cable connection and ensure that it is securely plugged into your receiver.
It will refresh the signals and resolve any issues with the channels.
Follow these steps to check your free-to-air connections:
- Go to the Antenna cable point at your home.
- Then, unscrew the cable from the wall point.
- Disconnect the cable from the TV or TV box.
- Check the wire for any visible cuts or damage.
- If the cable is fine, reconnect to the TV or box.
If there’s not a screw point at your home, simply remove the FTA cable from the TV and then tightly replug it.
If you find any faults on the cable, you will need to replace it for a stable signal.
Note: The antenna cable plugs into the “Antenna IN” port, and the satellite coax plugs into the “RF IN” port on your TV or receiver.
2. Reboot Your TV or TV Box
Your device’s system may have a temporal bug, preventing you from seeing the available FTA channels, so we recommend performing a restart.
Whether it’s a TV box receiver or a television, a power circulation restarts all services and scanning for free-to-air channels again should work.
Follow these steps to power cycle your TV or TV box:
- Press and hold the Power button on your device.
- Wait for the TV to power off when all lights go off.
- Unplug the TV power cable from the wall outlet.
- Wait a few minutes while your unit is unplugged.
- Connect the power cable back to the wall outlet.
The reboot can take a few minutes, so wait patiently until your unit discharges completely.
Once it boots up, turn on the device, test different channels or perform a digital scan to discover them.
3. Re-Scan for Free-to-Air Channels
You did some troubleshooting, but free to air channels not working Australia?
Well, go ahead and re-scan for FTA channels again.
You should attempt this straightforward solution after restarting and refreshing your signal.
Rescanning the channels will hopefully get the channels back, especially if there were ongoing issues during the last scan.
Follow these steps to re-scan the free-to-air channels:
Auto Scan for Channels:
- Hit the Home button on the TV remote.
- Go to the “Settings” menu on your TV.
- Find and choose the “Channel” option.
- Next, select “Auto Scan” or “Full Scan.”
- Finally, choose Begin Scan for tuning.
If the process ends with no channels, manually add them with the steps below!
Manually Scan for Channels:
- Head over to the Channel settings.
- Set the broadcast mode to “Digital.”
- Choose a broadcast channel frequency.
- The UHF brand’s frequency range is from 522.5 MHz to 816.5 MHz.
- The VHF brand’s frequency range is from 177.5 MHz to 226.5 MHz.
After manually selecting the channel frequency, your receiver automatically scans and adds free-to-air channels.
Note: If the free-to-air channel fails to work, your signal strength is bad so keep reading!
4. Improve the Signal Strength
If you receive FTA channels via an antenna or satellite dish, their proper alignment is important for receiving solid and clear signals.
If your antenna or dish is obstructed or improperly positioned, the TV will not receive enough signals, and FTA channels won’t work.
Hence, it’s essential to improve your signal by following a few steps.
Here are a few ways to improve signal strength:
- Move the indoor antenna to a higher spot (close to the window).
- Correct your outdoor dish according to Elevation and Azimuth.
- Verify that the dish/antenna is not obstructed by metallic objects.
- Ensure that the satellite dish can see the sky at all times.
How to Correctly Adjust a Satellite Dish?
If your satellite dish is not correctly positioned as per the Elevation and Azimuth in your area, the FTA channels may not appear during a scan.
So, go to dishpointer.com and enter your area to get accurate Elevation and Azimuth.
Then, by using the help of at least 1 more person, adjust the satellite accordingly and test the signal.
Bonus Tip: To eliminate the weak satellite signals problem, use a signal amplifier at home to boost the signal strength to your TV or set-top box.
5. Check for Interfering Sources
There are cases when the problem is not with your FTA setup but interference from external sources, affecting the signal strength.
If the FTA channels still won’t work on your TV, look for potential sources inside your house and dislocate or turn them OFF to exclude this possibility.
Here is a list of all possible sources of interference:
- Microwaves
- Refrigerators
- Light switches
- Powerboards
- LED lights
- Electronics
If you find any sources near your TV or Antenna, turn off each appliance or remove them, then test whether your TV reception improves.
If the FTA signals improve when the appliance is “off”, you know what might be causing the problem.
6. Update Your Receiver’s OS
If your free-to-air (FTA) channels are still not working, update your TV software.
This method will eliminate the chances of outdated software interfering with the FTA channels.
Typically, you can easily update a TV from the settings or via USB by checking the latest firmware for your model.
Here’s how to update your TV software in easy steps:
- Make sure your TV is connected to the internet.
- Hit the Menu or Home button on the TV remote.
- Next, head to the “Settings” menu on your TV.
- Navigate to the “Support” or “System” section.
- Finally, choose “Update System” or “Update.”
Your TV will automatically start the update process if any available update is found.
Once the process ends, perform a channel scan and check if the FTA channels will now start appearing.
Note: Steps for different TV models may vary!
7. Factory Reset Your TV/TV Box
If you’ve reached this step but the free-to-air channels are not working, reset the TV receiver to the factory default state.
This will erase all software settings and saved files permanently on the unit and restore the software to the default settings, which must resolve the FTA channels issue.
Follow these steps to factory reset your TV:
- Hit the Menu or Home button on the TV remote.
- Head to the Settings menu and choose System.
- Select the “Factory Reset” option and press “OK”.
- Finally, on the confirmation prompt, select “OK”.
Your TV will reset and revert to the factory default settings.
Once the factory reset is complete, you must set up your TV from scratch and run the Auto or Digital scan for your FTA channels.
Warning: Ensure to back up your important data!
Quick Recap
Whenever the free-to-air channels not working Australia, check your antenna or satellite connections to the receiver and re-scan for FTA channels.
Additionally, improve the signal strength and update/reset your TV receiver.
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Finn Wheatley holds a Master’s Degree in Computer Science from UCL, London. He helped small data science consultancy firms, helping large corporations to grow their data capabilities, deploy advanced machine learning-based analytics and troubleshoot tech-related issues. Check out more about him here.