[RFI] POWER LINE RFI SOLVED

[Doug Renwick]

I have been having terrible power line arcing for the last weeks
and it spoiled the WW SSB contest.

The noise was worst on 10 meters (S8) and to a lesser extent on
15 meters and it was directional and intermittent.  On my IC 756
spectrum scope it appeared to be 60 cycle.  The noise would disappear
when it rained or when the frost melted when the sun came out.  But
would reappear under dry conditions.  I was fairly certain that the
noise generation was not from the house.

With my 10 meter beam I was able to get the direction, and with my
Trident TR-2400 handheld scanner set to 29.291 MHz, AM mode and
rubber duck antenna, I was able to pin point the offending pole
(3 bars of noise).

SaskPower (our only power company here) came out and found that both
ends of the jumper wire, from the main line to the line to my place,
were loose.  Tightening those two clamps eliminated the noise.

The power company specialist was polite but not very well trained.
They mostly use the AM broadcast radio to find the noise.  He did
have some other equipment with him but he was not better equipped
than I was.

What a pleasure to listen to 10 meters now.

-- 
Doug Renwick VA5DX
PO Box 50, Clavet, Saskatchewan, Canada S0K 0Y0
VE5RA at sasktel.net
First VE5 9BDXCC
What profit it a ham if he gains all the awards yet forfeits his soul?
I'll run the race and I will never be the same again.