Eddy:
My lights do not use a touch pad. They have two settings via a simple
toggle switch .... Bright and Less Bright. All the switch does is to switch
a diode into series with the AC and "half-wave" the power to the bulbs. I
thought this might cause RFI but I haven't noticed anything. The fixture
housing is steel, and grounded, so maybe this helps.
The Bright setting generates a lot of heat so we never use that setting.
Less Bright is plenty bright. The physical design is poor in that the
fixture's built-in switch is mounted too close to one of the bulbs and it
eventually bakes and falls apart. My cure is to just hard-wire the diode
into the circuit and forget the switch. Main power is controlled by a wall
switch so this simple mod works fine for us.
You might be able to just rewire your fixture to put a diode in series with
all your bulbs and just forget the touch pad. In fact, the touch pad and
associated circuitry might be the source of your RFI.
------------------- Wes Attaway (N5WA) ------------------
1138 Waters Edge Circle, Shreveport, LA 71106
318-797-4972 (Office) - 318-393-3289 (Cell)
Computer Consulting and Forensics
-------------- EnCase Certified Examiner ---------------
-----Original Message-----
From: Diane & Edward Swynar [mailto:deswynar@xplornet.ca]
Sent: Sunday, May 08, 2011 10:25 AM
To: Wes Attaway (N5WA); 'Larry Parker'; rfi@contesting.com
Subject: Re: [RFI] Horrific Ugly Noise Found and stopped...
Hi Wes,
Yes, those are the bulbs, alright: I can only find one source locally that
sells them, & the last time I went there they were some $6.00+ for a pair!
Good tip about skin oil shortening the life of these things: I shall keep
that fact in mind in the future, with thanks.
You say your system causes no RFI: does your system employ the "touch pad"
method of controlling lamp brilliance? Ours here has three settings, "touch
selected" by tapping the touch pad. The noise from this junk, when it's on,
is absolutely awful---and the RFI is reciprocal, too: my CW sending makes
the things flicker & blink away like they had a mind all their own. I can
only imagine what some poor, unsuspecting consumer would think if they had
no comprehension of such things! They'd probably want their money back from
the store...and maybe it'd be a GOOD thing, at that...
~73~ de Eddy VE3CUI - VE3XZ
****************************************************************************
********************
----- Original Message -----
From: "Wes Attaway (N5WA)" <wesattaway@bellsouth.net>
To: "'Diane & Edward Swynar'" <deswynar@xplornet.ca>; "'Larry Parker'"
<ve3edy@cogeco.ca>; <rfi@contesting.com>
Sent: Sunday, May 08, 2011 11:07 AM
Subject: RE: [RFI] Horrific Ugly Noise Found and stopped...
> Eddy ... aside from the noise problem, you mention "expensive mini-bulbs".
> Are you talking about the little 40W-50W halogen bulbs? If so, the key to
> preventing premature burnout is to carefully wipe each bulb with a paper
> towel and then hold it it a piece of paper towel as you insert it into the
> socket. Body oils, in particular, can cause bulb failure as the bulb
heats
> up.
>
> I have some under-counter fixtures that use these bulbs and do not cause
any
> RFI. Once I started wiping the bulbs I haven't had a bulb failure in the
> past two or three years, and some of the bulbs have been burning every day
> for over seven years.
>
> ------------------- Wes Attaway (N5WA) ------------------
> 1138 Waters Edge Circle, Shreveport, LA 71106
> 318-797-4972 (Office) - 318-393-3289 (Cell)
> Computer Consulting and Forensics
> -------------- EnCase Certified Examiner ---------------
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: rfi-bounces@contesting.com [mailto:rfi-bounces@contesting.com] On
> Behalf Of Diane & Edward Swynar
> Sent: Sunday, May 08, 2011 6:48 AM
> To: Larry Parker; rfi@contesting.com
> Subject: Re: [RFI] Horrific Ugly Noise Found and stopped...
>
> Hi Larry,
>
> Are those undercounter lamps the same type that have a master
"touch-button"
> that controls their intensity in three steps...?
>
> If so, fear not: they are just as susceptible to the presence of RF, as
they
> are in generating RFI. Case in point: my son installed a system of
> undercounter lights here of that type awhile back, & every time they were
> on, I experienced the worst noise possible on all the HF bands.
Conversely,
> however, every time I keyed the rig, the lamps would sequentially go "on"
&
> commence their intensity steps in sync with each CW character I sent!
>
> They are pure, unadulterated TRASH, bar none, and have absolutely no
> business being on the market.
>
> My solution here? Initiatally, I'd physically unplug the ^%%#$%^ things
> whenever I'd go on the air. Finally the integral small power supply
> crapped-out on the things, & I now simply plug the lights in manually to
> make them work---no more two-way RFI that way.
>
> But they go through those unique & EXPENSIVE mini-bulbs like there's no
> to-morrow...as I said earlier, they may be nice-looking when installed &
> working, but the bottom line is they're still TRASH, & should rightfully
be
> banned.
>
> ~73~ de Eddy VE3CUI - VE3XZ
>
>
>
****************************************************************************
> *********************
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Larry Parker" <ve3edy@cogeco.ca>
> To: <rfi@contesting.com>
> Sent: Saturday, May 07, 2011 7:20 PM
> Subject: [RFI] Horrific Ugly Noise Found and stopped...
>
>
> I have taken out this style of undercounter lighting from the house I just
> purchased.
>
> The power supply converting the 120 vac to 12 vdc functions at 20 khz.
>
> This generated HF pulse is being accentuated with the length of wire
feeding
> the
> undercounter halogen puck lamps.
>
> In turn producing a 40 over S9 signal on all the HF bands from 160m
through
> 80m and up past 40m where it finally starts to dimminish.
>
> I replaced these offending lighting circuits with the newer low voltage DC
> LED puck lights
> which are so much more energy efficient.
>
> Larry,VE3EDY
>
>
>
>
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------
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> ----
>
>
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