We have all experienced it: the sudden stutter of the TV picture, the robotic squeak of the audio, and the explosion of digital blocks on the screen. It is known as pixelation, and for many households, it is a daily annoyance. While it is easy to blame the satellite dish, Smartsat connect has found that the source of the interference is often much closer to the sofa than the satellite. Modern homes are filled with wireless noise, and your TV system might be the victim.

One of the most surprising culprits is the humble DECT landline phone. The base stations for these cordless phones broadcast on frequencies that can overlap with the Intermediate Frequency (IF) used by satellite cables. If your satellite cable is old or poorly shielded—common in houses wired during the boom years of the early 2000s—it acts like an antenna, picking up the phone signal. This interference scrambles the picture data, causing pixelation every time the phone rings or "handshakes" with the base.

Another modern offender is the HDMI cable. Cheap, unshielded HDMI cables connecting a games console or streaming stick can leak electromagnetic interference (EMI) directly into the back of the Sky box. This noise floods the tuner, causing the picture to break up on specific channels while others remain fine.

Then there is the issue of "cabling rot." Many homes have coaxial cables that were installed 15 or 20 years ago. Over time, the dielectric foam inside the cable degrades, and the copper braid oxidises. These aging cables simply cannot handle the high-bandwidth data required for modern HD and 4K broadcasts. The signal arrives at the box too weak and "noisy" to be decoded properly.

This is why Sky Tv Repairs are rarely just about realigning the dish. It is a forensic investigation into the electronic ecosystem of your living room. We use spectrum analysers to "see" the noise on the line. We replace substandard fly-leads, move interfering devices, and upgrade cabling to triple-shielded specifications.

It is a reminder that in a digital age, signal purity is paramount. Pixelation isn't a quirk; it is evidence of a conflict in your setup that needs professional resolution.

Conclusion Pixelation is often a symptom of domestic interference or aging infrastructure rather than external weather. By investigating sources like DECT phones and poor shielding, we can resolve the conflict. Upgrading internal cabling is key to restoring a flawless HD picture.

Call to Action Stop the interference and clear up your picture with a diagnostic visit from Smartsat connect. https://www.smartsatconnect.ie/