How to become a TV aerial installer

Increasingly, tradespeople are finding value in discovering more about trade skills for installing aerials. If you're looking at how to become a TV aerial installer, there are a number of training courses to consider.

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It’s never been as popular for tradespeople to add extra qualifications to their existing skillset. There are a number of reasons why you might be looking at how to become a TV aerial installer.

In 2024, there wereover 235,000 job searches on Checkatrade for TV aerial and satellite services.* So as well as being a good time to join the profession, why not come on board with Checkatrade too?

Something to consider is upskilling as an electrician to take on additional jobs and make more money. Getting trained for TV aerial and satellite services is one way to do that.

In this blog, we explain more about becoming an aerial technician and why learning the skills could help you make more money.

What is a TV aerial installer?

You might not think it, but aerial technicians play a significant role in our lives. Television is such a big part of everyday life. Who wants to be the one out of the loop when it comes to discussing the latest shows?

In short, knowing how to become a TV aerial installer means getting familiar with:

• Installing and repairing

• Being familiar with satellite dishes

• Fixing or replacing aerials

• Routing network cables

If you’ve ever had cable television, or use set top boxes, then you will have used an aerial technician to complete the installation.

As well as fitting new units, aerial technicians are tasked with fixing satellite dishes should they become damaged due to bad weather.

What does a TV aerial installer do?

As mentioned, aerial technicians are responsible for making sure satellite dishes, aerials and network cables are properly installed and repaired.

As a result, a lot of the work happens up a ladder where aerials and dishes need to be fixed into place.

However, aerial technicians are also in charge of finding the best spot to install a satellite dish, as well as choosing where to add new signal reception points in buildings.

Like roofing work, being a TV aerial installer means getting familiar with the rules around working at height. As it is a trade profession that relies on getting customers the best signal.

Unfortunately that means getting higher to try and avoid buildings.

Working at height - everything you need to know

Working at height poses many risks, so be careful. It remains one of the biggest causes of workplace injuries. In the UK, The Work at Height Regulations 2005 was put in place to prevent death and injury caused by a fall from height. These regulations apply to all employers. It also applies to those

Learn more

How do you become an aerial technician?

There are a number of ways to become an aerial technician, ranging from apprenticeships to training courses.

Apprenticeships

An apprenticeship is a good place to start early on in your career. Most apprenticeships will require some form of educational qualifications, such as GCSEs, but there’s usually a scheme suitable for everyone.

If you’re looking to start an aerial technician apprenticeship, then the government’s website has a great place to start looking.

On the job training

If you don’t fancy undertaking an apprenticeship, then you can look at applying directly to installation companies.

However, if you have no experience in the field or similar skill, then it’s unlikely you’ll be offered work.

TV antenna installation courses

It’s essential to have a qualification to back up your expertise. That means that if an apprenticeship doesn’t interest you, technical training courses could be best.

For example:

• Level 2 Certificate/ Diploma in Electrical or Electronic Engineering

• Level Certificate in Digital Television Aerial Installation

Similarly, the Confederation of Aerial Industries (CAI) offers several courses that can teach you all the necessary basics.

Is it worth becoming a TV aerial installer?

Being able to take on aerial technician jobs can be a significant benefit, especially if you find yourself experiencing quiet periods as tradesperson.

For example, it is often used as a side hustle for electricians.

Aerial work remains consistent all year round and usually isn’t affected by seasons. The only downside is that it can be challenging to fit aerial technician work around an existing schedule of other jobs.

Due to the nature of broadband and satellite TV provision, a lot of aerial technician work comes through significant TV providers.

Taking on these jobs often requires you to work directly for a satellite or cable provider. For example:

• Sky

• Virgin

• BT

• TalkTalk

• NOW

• Vodafone

• Plusnet

Of course, other suppliers are available. But be aware that working for one supplier could limit your ability to take on other trade jobs.

Still, there are jobs available, especially on Freeview installations, repairs and replacing satellite dishes. With the nature of TV constantly changing, the parameters of the job may change, but interest is still as high as ever.

Should tradespeople learn to wall-mount televisions?

Tradespeople looking to add an extra skill to their bow. If you're an electrician and looking for extra work, you could think about learning how to install wall-mounted televisions.

There were over 35,000 job searches for wall mounting TVs on Checkatrade in 2024.*

TV wall mounting can be something of a grey area with homeowners unsure over the best tradesperson for the task.

Wall mounting a television isn’t difficult, so many people will choose to do it themselves, but done badly and it could prove costly in the long run.

If you have some experience and could do with more work than adding it to your Checkatrade profile is a great option.

* Internal search data based on users of the Checkatrade website in 2024

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