I am a cord cutter

[I_UndergroundPanther]

And I have a mohu leaf antenna I bought 4-5 years ago.

As of around December I lost some channels and it pixilates often,sometimes less.

Certain times of day tv is unwatchable because of pixilization.

Do antennas get old and stop working? Do antennas ever need updating?

What antennas work better?

Do I need the anti interference thing?

I live in a second floor apartment.
My antenna is on a slight northern mostly east direction.

[subterranean]

1. Try rescanning your TV.

Many stations have been changing their broadcast frequencies since last year to accommodate wireless services. I had the same issue, and after I did a re-scan, most of the lost channels came back.

[Lochloosa]

4. This. You should do this every couple of months

[GoCubsGo]

5. Yep.

Might even find some new channels that were added. If it's been 4 or 5 years since the last scan, there's an excellent chance that at least a couple more available.

[Hermit-The-Prog]

2. if no improvement after doing subterranean's suggestion ...

Try building a Gray-Hoverman antenna.

[BlueJac]

3. I have an antenna and have installed about 20 of them,

All have a signal booster that goes between antenna and tv. You can get ones on Amazon, for about $25. Good luck, Yes rescan can solve the problem .

[LunaSea]

6. Make yourself a bowtie!

Easy to build, cheap, works great. Lots of plans available.
Add as many bows as you need for better reception.


https://www.azega.com/diy-hdtv-tv-antenna-bowtie/
https://www.pinterest.com/pin/190277152980238182/
https://www.instructables.com/id/Powerful-Modern-Homemade-HDTV-Antenna/

Or just buy one-
https://www.monoprice.com/product?p_id=24172

Also, you can have more than one hooked together if you can't get all the signals from a particular direction.

[I_UndergroundPanther]

7. What type

Of connector do I get to have multiple bows? Do I need to Chuck the leaf or get a new one? And can the leaf be used with bowties?
I'm stuck using indoor antennas.
No balcony.😿

[LunaSea]

8. One of these will do it

https://www.amazon.com/GE-Compatible-Satellite-Connectors-33526/dp/B0054EILOE?psc=1&SubscriptionId=AKIAILSHYYTFIVPWUY6Q&tag=duckduckgo-ffsb-20&linkCode=xm2&camp=2025&creative=165953&creativeASIN=B0054EILOE

But instead of splitting signal to 2 tvs, turn it around and put two signals to one tv.

Don't toss the other one, add it and turn it to 45-90 degrees from the other. Might take a bit of experimentation.

[LunaSea]

9. other things to check..

Antennas don't get old, only outdated, make sure your connections are tight and clean, a little corrosion can deteriorate the signal. Check the wires for cracks or breaks, see if flexing the wiring changes the reception, if it does, get new wire.

See if you can locate the transmitters of the stations you want to view, that way you'll have an idea of where to point the antenna. All stations post the location of their transmitters.

You say you lose signal at certain time of day, that suggests interference from some source when it is powered up.
Could be anything. Analog transmitters would add more power at sunrise to compensate for the suns interference and switch back at sunset. I don't know if digital signals have similar requirements. Industrial equipment can generate all sorts of interference, got any factories nearby?

Can you access the outside of your window? Perhaps you could mount an antenna, of simply trail a short wire outside.

And yes, rescanning regularly is a very good suggestion.

[NutmegYankee]

10. It's possible the stations changed location or switched from VHF to UHF or vice versa.

Use the FCC channel finder as a guide. https://www.fcc.gov/media/engineering/dtvmaps