Dear friends,
Wow, that's depressing. Could someone give a quick tutorial about what is
generating the RFI? I don't know much about grow lights. Is the noise mostly
SMPS, LEDs, fluorescent bulbs, or what?
73, W9IP
-----Original Message-----
From: RFI <rfi-bounces+nlsa=nlsa.com@contesting.com> On Behalf Of Michael Aust
via RFI
Sent: Wednesday, November 03, 2021 12:15 PM
To: Bob Turner <n2scj-lists@outlook.com>
Cc: rfi@contesting.com
Subject: Re: [RFI] Grow Lights Coming to NJ - What can we do?
Here what to expect from Grow Lights
73
Good Luck
Mike
WB6DJI
https://youtu.be/vm4lkQE6-QE
Sent from my iPhone
> On Nov 3, 2021, at 9:03 AM, Bob Turner <n2scj-lists@outlook.com> wrote:
>
> I grow tomatoes, peppers, cucs, and cantaloupe. I start from seed on March
> 1st and used to put up with VHF desense while my grow was in progress. I did
> not detect anything on HF, but I'm mostly FT8.
>
> This year for the first time I built a "grow box" out of foil lined Celotex.
> I sealed the corners with aluminum foil tape (might not have been needed).
> The foil lined box serves multiple purposes. 1) Keeps heat from grow lights
> and mats inside the box. 2) The foil reflects the grow light onto the plants
> and not into the surrounding room. 3) The box keeps the humidity in the
> plant box and mostly out of my basement. And #4, (drum roll please) the
> foil lined grow box acts as a faraday cage to my noisy grow lights and I did
> not have to hear them this year. Perhaps the home growers will like my
> grow/faraday box idea for reasons #1, #2, #3, and we get the bonus #4. That
> may be wishful thinking.
>
> 7 3 Bob
> N2SCJ
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: RFI [mailto:rfi-bounces+n2scj-lists=outlook.com@contesting.com]
> On Behalf Of Dave
> Sent: Wednesday, November 3, 2021 11:38 AM
> To: rfi@contesting.com
> Subject: Re: [RFI] Grow Lights Coming to NJ - What can we do?
>
> See:
>
> https://www.nk7z.net/rfi-snapshots/grow-lights/
>
> for SDR Spectrograms of several different grow lights... Time runs along the
> vertical axis, and frequency along the horizontal axes. The B/W Spectrograms
> show a 24 hour period of time.
>
> There seems to be so many lights that are not compliant, that is has become a
> loosing battle for me, and I suspect others... With the lack of FCC and
> customs intervention/enforcement on incoming, and existing items, it has
> become a reactive issue for the FCC, not a proactive issue as far as I can
> tell.
>
> This places me, (and soon you), in the unenviable position of RFI first
> contact. We must locate, inform, try and solve, all prior to contact with
> the ARRL or the FCC. Given that the state of Oregon has said it believes
> that most growers are "exporting" the product to areas where it is not legal
> I may be placing myself in the unenviable position of dealing with an illegal
> drug dealer when/if I contact the person(s) involved. I truly dislike this,
> and it is a crying shame that Amateurs are placed in that position.
>
> It took about two years here in Oregon for the lights to become a real
> pain... In some areas, I find several grow light operations per block... I
> suspect they are the small tomato lights sold by the big box stores to people
> for growing, for personal use. They all seem to be driven by a high power
> Switching Mode Power Supplies...
>
> The ARRL took a lot of time, and documented several instances of Big Box
> Stores selling non compliant lighting to homes, (Part 18 vs. Part 15), and
> passed this on to the FCC. As far as I know, the FCC did nothing...
> Perhaps Ed Hare can comment in more detail on that subject, as I believe he
> was involved. The ARRL is doing all it can as far as I see things, but the
> problem is completely out of hand here...
>
> I now work DX during the off hours of the lights. They typically run for 12
> to 18 hours a day, depending on where in the growing cycle their owners are.
>
> Most seem to wipe out 40 meters, 80 Meters, 20 Meters, and in some cases
> 15... Usually all at once...
>
> As you can tell, I am not happy about this at all... I used to have
> an
> S4 noise level on 40 Meters-- looking at my S meter now, I see, S9 +10 db,
> from a grow operation two blocks away. This has gone on for five to ten
> years, now. At some point, my wife and I will pack up and move to the
> country... I contacted the person currently generating my strongest source
> of RFI once several years ago, it got better for about a month, then returned.
>
> Frankly I am a bit worried if he gets turned in, I will find a lit road flair
> coming through my front window at 2 AM one morning... This is one of at
> least three grow operations all within a mile of me...
>
> In working with some growers I have had great luck, but about 20% of them
> could care less... The entire process is now basackwards, as we are the
> contact point, with teh grower, which is a horrid position to be in as far as
> I am concerned. So, I leave it alone, and operate when the lights are off,
> as I suspect a lot of folks are doing.
>
> Good luck...
>
> 73, and thanks,
> Dave (NK7Z)
> https://www.nk7z.net
> ARRL Volunteer Examiner
> ARRL Technical Specialist, RFI
> ARRL Asst. Director, NW Division, Technical Resources
>
>> On 11/3/21 6:39 AM, Christopher Wawak wrote:
>> [please keep this topic ONLY to RFI of grow lights, and not politics,
>> your thoughts on cannabis, your lumbago, or anything like that. I am
>> replacing "cannabis" with tomato from now on.]
>>
>> I recently read that NJ's Governor is open to TOMATO home-grow, which
>> typically involves noisy lights (as I understand it). Tomatoes are
>> recently legal in New Jersey. Whether growing them at home is
>> ultimately allowed or not, grow light RFI is coming to NJ
>> neighborhoods. I understand it's pretty bad!
>>
>> From folks out west, what can I expect from grow light noise? Wiping
>> out the entire spectrum, or a few spurs here and there? I live in a
>> moderately tight suburban neighborhood.
>>
>> Since we know that it's coming, how can I work with my lawmakers to
>> make them informed of the impending impact of grow light RFI on the
>> amateur radio service and other services? Can we teach grow light
>> users and vendors about RFI-clean installations?
>>
>> Thank you,
>>
>> -- Chris KC2IEB
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