Cell Signal Black Holes

[Bass Babe]

Why is it that my house, some friends' houses, and Wal-Mart, for example, have no Verizon signal? There's nothing like relaxing at home, and when the phone rings, having to run outside in two different sandals, a t-shirt, and underwear so that you can answer a call. What am I going to do in the winter? Anyways, is there any remedy for this? Especially at my own house...argh.

[BigBo]

Originally Posted by Bass Babe

having to run outside in two different sandals, a t-shirt, and underwear so that you can answer a call. What am I going to do in the winter?

Well, if you're going to be running outdoors in your underwear, I think the best solution would be to move in next door to me.

[afterhours]

i've got cingular- new black holes popping up everywhere. wish sat. phones were'nt so much $$ to use.

[Pete_G]

Especially in already marginal areas, being inside a building, in particular one with a lot of metal construction can be the last straw causing you to get no signal.

There's no real remedy other then to maybe stand near a window or find a strong spot in your house. Although it won't cause any instant change, it might be worth calling Verizon so they know about the weak area.

As a rule, Verizon is still the best in the area. They have the most towers by far and they operate at a lower frequency then most of the other carriers. The lower frequency punches into buildings and anything else that blocks the signal better then a high frequency. See if anyone else can actually get a signal in your house. I'd bet most people will be lucky to hear their phone ring.

Good luck finding a solution, my house used to be a weak spot and I either had to run outside half naked or stand near a window as well. Eventually Verizon built a tower in the area.

[MakoMike]

I have t-mobile and find very few black holes in RI.

[Redsoxticket]

The signal strength at the tower may be lower or the signal to strength ratio is higher at the Verizon tower. Therefore, you can have more towers and it doesn't mean beans. Ask someone with a different carrier to use there phone at your house.

[NaCl H2O]

Don't know if this will be much help, but with it you can see how close the nearest tower is to your location.

http://www.cellreception.com/towers/index.html

[BigBo]

I haven't actually tried this, so I can't say for sure if it's true. I'm pretty sure that if you stop by one of Verizons service centers, they can punch in a code onto your cell phone and it will update for any new cell towers that have gone up in the area.
Maybe worth a call to Verizon to see.

[Skip N]

Not many problems with Nextel in 3 years using them. Only in Montana but thats to be expected i guess.

[Backbeach Jake]

They sell antenna with amplifier setups for home cell service. Sorta like having a mini tower in your attic.