Frequently asked questions

Usually it’s a weak or unsteady signal reaching the TV. Common causes are an old or corroded aerial, an aerial knocked out of line by wind, damaged cable, a failing amplifier or splitter, or interference from nearby 4G/5G mobile masts. Try a retune first — if that doesn’t fix it, give us a call and we’ll test the signal and find the cause.

If every channel has gone, check the aerial lead is pushed firmly into the TV and try a retune. If some channels work and others don’t, or it comes and goes, it’s almost always the aerial or cabling rather than the TV.

Freely and streaming apps deliver TV over your broadband, which is great if your connection is fast and reliable. An aerial still gives you Freeview without using any data, keeps working if the internet goes down, and is what many recorders rely on. Lots of households use both.

Yes, we’re asked about these a lot. We can get catch-up apps like BBC iPlayer and ITVX working on your smart TV, Freely TV or streaming box, and show you how to use them. If they keep buffering or stopping, the cause is usually a weak internet connection to the TV, which we can fix with better WiFi or an ethernet cable.

Yes. A Freely recorder (PVR) needs an aerial connection to record programmes, as well as WiFi or an ethernet cable for the channels and apps that come over broadband. If your aerial is old or the signal is weak, recordings can break up, so it’s worth having it checked when you get the box. We can check or install the aerial and set up the connection.

Yes, we’re asked to do this regularly. We take aerials down for roof and chimney work, and move satellite dishes when scaffolding or an extension blocks their signal. Once the work is finished, we refit, realign and retune everything. If a dish or aerial needs a new permanent home, we’ll find the best spot for signal and run the cable neatly. We do our best to fit around your builder’s timings.

Lots of homes still watch Sky Q and Freesat through a dish, and it works well. Sky also now offers broadband-based options (such as Sky Stream and Sky Glass) that don’t need a dish. If you have a dish system, we can replace an ageing dish or LNB, realign it, move it or add feeds to other rooms.

Yes. We add aerial and satellite points in any room, with an amplifier where needed so every TV gets a strong signal, and run the cables as neatly as possible.

Yes — we’ll talk through the options for your wall, from neat trunking to concealing the cables, and connect and tune everything before we leave.

Yes. We supply and fit quality aerials, dishes, cable and brackets. If you already have the equipment, we can fit and set that up instead.

Yes. Derek was a partner in Televid, the TV repair shop on Maida Vale, which closed its workshop in 2022 after 34 years. We’re still the same family, and we still do aerials, satellite and TV wall mounting.

No. Sparky-UK is just Derek and Mark. We aren’t an agency or a national network, and we don’t pass jobs to subcontractors. The person you speak to on the phone is the person who turns up.

It depends on the job, such as the type of aerial or dish, how high the roof is and how many rooms are involved. We don’t price over the phone, because we’d rather see the job first. For planned work, like a new aerial, moving a dish or wall mounting, there’s no charge to come and look: we explain what we’d suggest and, if you’re happy, price the job. If something has stopped working, our call-out is £65, which includes finding the fault, and it’s included in the price if you go ahead with the repair. Either way, nothing starts without your go-ahead. We’re not VAT registered, so there’s no VAT added to our prices.

We’re fully insured and all our work is guaranteed for 12 months.

We’re based in Cheltenham and cover Cheltenham, Gloucester, Tewkesbury, Cirencester, Bishop’s Cleeve, Winchcombe, Bourton-on-the-Water, Stow-on-the-Wold, Northleach and towns and villages across Gloucestershire and the Cotswolds. If you’re unsure, just call.