[RFI] RF noise and ground

[Ken Gordon]

The recent thread on this issue reminded me of an incident I ran into in our own home.

Several years ago, I decided to replace the too-small electrical panel in our home with a 200 
amp capable panel.

Before we bought this home, it had been "modified and upgraded" by two ex-students of the 
professor who owned our home before we bought it.

After installing the new panel (I am a qualified electrician),in the concrete basement I 
investigated the "ground" system the previous pair had installed.

I had been having considerable trouble from RFI to our household applicances, most often 
when I was operating on 40 meters.

When I investigated the "ground" system, I discovered a piece of #8 solid copper wire, 
leading from the buss bar of the old panel, exacly 33 feet long, terminating at a very carefully 
installed clamp to the cold-water feed from the city system....which was plastic pipe.

I replaced that with a much shorter bit of #8 solid copper wire, terminating at two 8' long 
copper-plated steel ground rods about 5 feet from the new panel. I would love to have been 
able to install those ground-rods closer to the panel, but was unable to do so due to the 
surrounding concrete. I DID make it as short as I could.

RFI disappeared.

Ken W7EKB

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