Starlink – without 230 V

Reading time 11 minutes

Aktualisiert – November 8, 2024

The Starlink antenna and router require 230 V AC voltage to operate. In winter, because of the built-in antenna heating (to melt snow) there is correspondingly more power.

An inverter, which is necessary here if there is no shore power available, also consumes power, even when idle, which puts additional strain on the already limited resource of electricity.

What to do? Fortunately, there is a simple solution that does not require any modification to the Starlink router or antenna and can be put into operation by anyone using the plug-and-play method.

Any router can be connected. The included Starlink router can remain in its packaging.

Update Starlink-Mini

Starlink-Mini wurde für Reisende entwickelt, die unterwegs sporadisch Internet benötigen, aber kaum Ressourcen hinsichtlich Batteriekapazität haben.

Daher ist die Antenne kleiner, besitzt weder Motore zur Ausrichtung auf den Satelliten, noch eine Heizung, um Schneeablagerungen zu schmelzen. Damit gehen jedoch Verbindungsabbrüche bei Telefonie- oder Video-Konferenz-Applikationen, geringere Download- / Upload-Raten und Ping-Zeiten wegen mangelnder Ausrichtung und geringerer Antennenfläche einher.

Natürlich kann man diese Version auch im Wohnmobil / Wohnwagen nutzen, aber mit den o.g. Einschränkungen. Für beruflichen Einsatz ist die nachfolgend, auf der Standard-Antenne beruhenden Ausstattung, beschriebene Lösung empfehlenswerter.

Plug and play

Network components often work with 48 V DC (direct voltage), including Starlink. Either the product (e.g. WLAN access point) comes with a plug-in power supply or a POE adapter, which provides the required voltage.

Such a POE adapter converts 230 V AC (alternating voltage) into 48 V DC and makes it available to the end device (here the antenna) via the LAN cable (CAT7). This POE adapter is included in the included Starlink router, which itself requires 230 V AC. So the Starlink router needs to be replaced.

A DCDC converter fed with the 12 V available on board, this transforms to the required 48 V DC and thus supplies the separate POE adapter. This feeds the 48 V DC into the (currently not available) LAN adapter (the image shows an untested alternative product). The LAN adapter converts the non-standard Starlink antenna connection to the CAT7 network standard and supplies the antenna with the supply voltage of 48 V DC, thus also enabling data traffic between the antenna and any router.

The DCDC converter must have sufficient load capacity under all conditions (e.g. motor drive of the antenna). For this reason, a DCDC converter with a lower performance class should not be used. 48 V at 8 A may seem oversized at first, but it still offers enough reserves for heating the antenna if required.

As an alternative to the POE adapter mentioned above from Yaosheng The more expensive but higher quality POE injector from Exsys EX-60315 be used.

By using the original Ethernet adapter from Starlink for 40 euros, you can avoid any incompatibilities or loss of quality at a price that is often even lower.

RJ45 standards

Network cables are available in two different pin-out standards, namely T568A and T568B. If you have existing LAN cables, you should first check which standard they comply with, as the LAN adapter complies with the T-568 standard.b The first-mentioned device comes with an explicit notice that using the wrong cable can cause permanent damage to the components!

The arrangement of the colored wires reveals the standard:

Since the T-568A standard has largely been replaced by T-568B, most available LAN cables comply with the T-568B standard.

… and Starlink’s own path

However, Starlink components differ from the RJ45 standard not only in terms of the connectors, but also in their pin assignment (note wires 3 – 6):

This means that – before Plug & Play – ONE RJ45 plug each, both from the Starlink antenna OR Starlink Ethernet adapter connection cable, as well as from the LAN cable leading to your own router, must be cut off and replaced on each of the two RJ45 connection sockets of the POE injector (POE and LAN) with an RJ45 plug assigned as shown in the illustration above.

Connector assembly

Please work with great care here to avoid damaging the system due to incorrectly connected wires!

Do not use connectors without metal shielding / ground contact.

When stripping the cable, make sure that none of the individual wires or their insulation are damaged. The braided shield should also be retained in order to maintain good interference immunity and ground connection.

A LAN cable consists of four pairs of twisted cables, with colored wires in orange, green, blue and brown. The corresponding white cable has either printed rings in the same color or a line of the same color running lengthwise.
Some cable manufacturers do not color-code the white cable. It is therefore important to ensure that the cable pairs are not separated and the assignment is not mixed up. Otherwise, the cable would no longer function and the connected devices could be damaged.

When choosing an RJ45 connector, it is important to consider only those connectors that are NOT ONLY suitable for installation (rigid wires), but also for patch cables (flexible wires with a diameter of 7.5 and 8.5 mm). POE++ (power up to 90 watts) compatible wires have a larger cross-section than pure signal cables in order to be able to transport the increased power requirements.

The connection cable of the Starlink Ethernet adapter contains four pairs of thicker and four pairs of thinner wires. The thinner wires are not needed and can be cut flush with the partially stripped cable sheath.
The Starlink antenna cable, on the other hand, only has four thicker wire pairs.

The four wire pairs are distributed to the eight contacts on two levels, four wires each, as shown in the following illustration. Before connecting the wires, don't forget: the metal union nut must first be pushed over the cable so that it can later be screwed onto the connector thread!

The printed numbering is useful as a guide for correct assignment (pictured: wires 3,6,7,8):

The two bare wires serve as shielding and must be wound around the connector thread or the metal pins provided on the connector halves before screwing on the union nut.

Assembly of electronics

Since the cable of the Starlink antenna is unfortunately connected to it with a non-standard connector and cannot be shortened for warranty reasons, the cable has to be hidden somewhere - temporarily, for the duration of use.

Almost every motorhome usually has a satellite antenna. If this is closed, the space under the mirror can be used as a storage place for the rolled-up cable.

The end of the cable, which is equipped with the Starlink plug, which also deviates from every standard, is led down to the side, near the entrance door (if no awning is installed) on the opening side. Otherwise, the driver's side is a good option.

In an accessible place and in a good position for the CAT7 cable feedthrough and routing to the inside, a suitable junction box is attached in the immediate vicinity of the antenna, which is suitable for receiving a LAN coupling for the antenna connection.
Whether the can is screwed on or has a clip-on lid is a matter of taste. A snap closure is quicker to open and a screw closure is safer. A good compromise might be this, with IP65 protection, a box and equipped with hold-down bars.

If the antenna is not to remain mounted during the journey, the antenna plug on the antenna and the clamping screw on the antenna standpipe are loosened in order to completely dismantle the antenna. The remaining cable is rolled up and stored under a solar panel and secured against slipping.

A 20 mm hole is drilled into the base of the box, through the mobile home wall, ideally ending up in one of the wall cupboards. In order to make the LAN coupling disappear in the hole and to make room for the LAN plug of the antenna cable, the corners for the LAN coupling are reworked with a square file.

In the downward-facing side wall of the housing, another hole of 18 mm is drilled in the middle using a step drill, which accommodates the waterproof cable gland for the antenna cable.

The antenna cable is cut to the appropriate length, led through the cable duct and the side wall of the motorhome, the cable duct is screwed tightly, and the lid of the box is locked watertight with the two snap fasteners.

After the plug has been attached to the antenna cable as described above, this plug is connected to the POE++-LAN output of the Exsys POE adapter. Its surface temperature is around 38 °C without additional ventilation.

Another CAT7 cable is connected to the socket with the plug modified as described above. LAN of the POE adapter and the other end is connected to the WAN port of the router.

The DCDC converter, which is to be mounted near the POE adapter, is connected with its 48 V output to the plus/minus connections of the POE adapter. On the input side, the plus/minus connections are connected to 12 V DC lines and protected with 15 A (e.g. flying fuse).

The voltage supply to the DCDC converter is based on the existing cable cross section. There is nothing wrong with thicker cables, especially with longer cable routes, but there is no objection to smaller cross-sections!
The current consumption with the antenna aligned without antenna heating is approx. 3 .. 4 A at 13 V, during alignment (motor operation) 6 A, the surface temperature without special ventilation is about 30 °C.

Operation with original router after modification

If a component of the equipment following the antenna should ever stop working, you can immediately fall back on the original router (assuming you have a 230V inverter).

After modifying the Starlink Ethernet adapter, a piece of cable with the original connector remained.

If you equip this end with an identically assigned plug, you can plug the original Starlink plug into the Starlink router and use LAN connectors and a conventional LAN cable of the appropriate length to establish the connection to the antenna via the LAN connector in the side wall of the motorhome.

Mounting the antenna

Typically, you place the antenna somewhere nearby with an unobstructed view of the sky using the stand provided. However, the antenna is not always protected from carelessness by third parties or dogs.

A flange clamp connector with a 35 mm pipe diameter is therefore recommended. This is glued about 15 cm below the top edge of the roof and then screwed together (so the four holes for the upper flange are below the aluminum connecting profiles from roof to side wall (to be checked in individual cases)). The bonding serves in particular to seal the holes and the spaces between the flange and the vehicle surface.
Exclusive gluing is not recommended, as only the outer aluminum or GRP layer has to bear the wind pressure loads and there is a risk of detachment from the substrate (the insulation). Apart from that, it may be difficult to secure the flange clamp connector against slipping until the adhesive has set.

Since the standpipe, which is permanently attached to the antenna, is too short to ensure a completely collision-free operating radius of the antenna in the downwardly offset mounting position, a pipe extension of around 30 cm in length must be added.

Therefore, two pipes, each 30 cm long, are required. The outer one has an outside diameter of 40 mm and a wall thickness of 2.0 mm, and an inner one has an outside diameter of 35 mm and a wall thickness of 2 mm (or more).
Both are inserted into each other, with the inner one protruding about 6 cm from the outer one. This is pushed into the flange clamp connector and fixed, while the tapered tube end of the antenna standpipe is inserted into the top of the outer 40 mm tube.

Thanks to the taper, the pipe cannot slip through and only needs to be secured with a clamping/grub screw. Any gap that may exist between the individual tubes can be compensated for using shrink tubing.

Minimize optical obstacles

It has proven to be useful to provide two of these pipe brackets if necessary, as this can minimize potential obstacles. One bracket was installed on the driver's side at the front and one at the back, which creates a distance of around six meters and significantly reduces signal attenuation.

Adjustment of the antenna

Since the antenna is on a Storage location can be driven, which results in an almost parallel alignment to the standpipe, this position - with a fixed installation - is useful as a driving position, provided that the antenna is positioned with the narrow side pointing in the direction of travel and thus results in the lowest possible wind load. It should therefore be noted that although the antenna is brought into an almost vertical position, it is not necessarily automatically parallel with the narrow side. This should be done manually before starting the journey by turning the mast in the clamp bracket.

Router configuration (RUTX50)

Thanks to DHCP on the part of the Starlink antenna, no further configuration of the WAN port is required. The default settings are sufficient for smooth commissioning. This is probably why there is no further information on this on the Internet. Anyone who is not familiar with the variety of setting options of the Teltonika products will be happy to find - verifiably - confirmation of what is the basis for it "just like that".

The order of the interfaces can be changed by clicking and dragging the icon in the upper left corner of each of the four entries.

Normally, you will want to route Internet traffic via Starlink and not the mobile Internet at the expense of the data volume of the mobile phone plan. So WAN, where Starlink is located, and the mobile interface mob1s1a1 in second place. If you have two SIM cards, you will end up mob1s2a1 in third place. wan6 represents the IPv6 address that Starlink assigns exclusively to each participant.

The following images show the standard (factory) settings of the RUTX50 and are intended to compare them with your own installation:

Installation

After the 48 V DC of the DCDC converter has been checked, the yellow (+) and black (-) cables can be connected to the DC input of the POE adapter - in a voltage-free state.

The router is also switched on and the WAN port is connected to the LAN socket of the POE adapter.

The LAN (Ethernet) adapter is connected to the POE socket of the POE adapter via a CAT7 network cable.

Finally, the Starlink antenna connector is plugged into the LAN adapter, which also supplies the antenna with power. Unfortunately, there is no indicator light to indicate whether this is the case or not. So you have to wait until the antenna is horizontal after a short time and begins to fix the best satellite position.

On dishy.starlink.com The status of the satellite connection can be tracked. A speed measurement is not possible here due to the lack of a connected original router. As soon as the status On-line is displayed, the connection is established.

Starlink app

Whether you're using a mobile phone or a tablet, the Starlink app is available for iOS and Android devices alike. After successfully downloading and starting the app, the following steps will lead you to your goal:

• Start setup
• Installed Starlink version according to graphical representation choose and confirm
• I have a location
• Starlink is set up
• My Starlink is powered
  (The message 'Starlink was successfully paired' appears)
• Further
  (Connection status and other menu items appear statistics, Obstacles, Speed test, Settings and Support))

Troubleshooting

Disconnections

When using the Yaosheng-POE and LAN adapters have occasionally been reported to be problematic, such as connection failures, unreliable positioning, etc.
The POE adapter must support POE++, i.e. be able to provide 90 W of constant power. This seems to be the problem if such problems are observed.
Since the use of the Exsys POE++ adapters make these things a thing of the past. Quality has its price, as has been proven repeatedly here.

Antenna does not move

If the wire assignment of the – modified – plug connections is correct, the cause is usually a missing or interrupted ground connection.
This can happen, for example, if plugs without a metal housing (as they are often included with rudimentary LAN cable products) were used, the ground wire was accidentally cut off during stripping or was not connected to the metal plug housing, or was cut too short and therefore no solid contact was made.

Poor download values

If poor data rates are achieved after a change of location, whereas normal values prevailed before, either the antenna alignment has not yet been completed or there are obstacles such as trees, branches and foliage in the antenna's field of view.
The antenna does not receive signals like a satellite TV antenna with a “beam” bundled by the parabolic mirror, but with a hemispherical view of the sky, i.e. almost from horizon to horizon, in order to be able to receive a large number of satellites in parallel.

The alignment procedure therefore begins with an almost horizontal alignment. This is followed by a triangulation calculation to determine the geographical location of the antenna. According to the booked plan, the satellites that can be assigned to the location are determined. From these, the satellite with the strongest reception is selected for the Internet connection and a secure connection is established.

If visibility deteriorates due to rain, snow, clouds, trees, etc., the antenna may be re-aligned to a satellite with less interference. This process may lead to a very brief interruption in the connection.

The longer you stay in one place, the more precisely the optical obstacles are detected and largely compensated for.

All information provided without guarantee and at your own risk!

The warranty expires if a defect results from the use of components other than those certified by the manufacturer.

ps If you need personal support in the implementation for a fee, you are welcome to Ticketing make!