The Fm band is just above channel 6. Channel 6 is 82 - 88 MHz. Channel 7 is 174 - 180 MHz.
The paperclip trick would be better than no antenna, and for the AM band, or shortwave, might not be too bad (did you get any AC hum?) Hopefully you picked the neutral and not the hot wire!
I’ve got a long-wire antenna on my shortwave radio right now. You’re right, higher is usually better, especially for the frequencies in the FM band and above, where line-of-sight becomes important.
The currents generated in the antenna are extremely small, and won’t fry anything (unless you happen to be VERY close to a transmitter). What CAN fry something is hooking up a dish to an FM radio while it’s still connected to the satellite receiver. The LNB in the dish is powered from the receiver with a DC voltage (typically 12V or more), which could blow out the front-end of an FM receiver.
Arjuna34
On some occasions I have felt the current when installing a tv antenna. When my ear comes into contact with the antenna. Not much more than the feel of a pin prick. Just enough to not want to do it again.
A small hijack here.
I used to install seamless aluminum guter. We had a job in a small southern Iowa town over near Lake Rathbun. It was a metal building right next to the RR tracks. Also power lines ran very near. When installing the gutter on the side away from the tracks and power lines we were getting a small tingle from induced 60 cycles. When we got to the other side it actually hurt. I don’t know how much voltage there was there but I was glad when we finished the job.
Thank you all for your suggestions and expertise. Tomorrow, if this blizzard stops, I’ll see if I can find an old TV antenna. Failing that, I’ll go to Calais to Radio Shack and get an outdoor antenna for 110 miles and try that out. My attic is on the same level as the second floor bedrooms so I can set up either antenna in there.
We are having wet snow and I have to keep going up to the second floor, hanging out the window, and banging on the dish with a broom because I keep losing the signal. Is it the dish or that round thing that points at the dish that is the problem when I don’t get the signal?
Okey, dokey
The problem is the snow 
The dish collects the signal and bounces it to the round thing on the end of the arm, that points at the dish (the round thing is the LNB, an amplifier). Water (including snow) absorbs some of the radio energy at the very high frequencies used for direct broadcast TV. Any snow that gets between the LNB and the satellite’s signal (including stuff on the dish, but also snow in the air) attenuates the signal. If it gets attenuated enough, you lose it altogether.
You can buy a dish heater such as [url="http://www.skyvision.com/store/mi1500052.html"this one if it gets irritating.
Arjuna34
Arjuna34
Arjuna, this demonstrates that we all know our cups-of-tea.
You are absolutely right on both counts: my PC fed 21 volts DC (I measured it!) to the dish. And I lost all connection , on PC and TV during a massive snowfall or even on cloudy days (gray heavy thunderclouds). Light snow or clouds attenuated the signal, but I still had the connection.
BTW, Suziek, a satellite dish may be a way to get a faster connection than POTS can provide, but not as fast as xDSL or cable.
Dear Arjuna34: Funny you should mention the heater; I was just wondering if there was such a thing. If I keep banging on the dish, one of these days it’s going to fall off the roof, so a heater would be a good idea. Thanks.