Flourescent lights make the radio static.

[kwired]

We threw the boxes away. It's only 8 lights. But each light has four 4ft tubes. I'll check out the brand and get back to you all.
We're going to be forced to replace them. But with what?

I think we're going to stop credit card payment to see if we can get their attention. .

As far as safety goes. If your not listening to the radio. You could miss an emergency broadcast. Say if a meteorite was going to hit the earth. Or if a local train had spilled dangerous chemicals. You'd miss it and could perish simply because you had no radio to warn you.

In this case, the owner likes to listen to talk shows. I forgot the name, but it starts with an R or Rush something like that. The title sounds like a 70's rock and roll band to me.

Stopping credit card payment isn't going to fix the problem it is just going to create a hardship over payment for goods purchased. Most of the fixtures they have with electronic ballasts or LED drivers are likely going to have similar problems, as well as similar luminaires sold elsewhere - so they do not have a problem that is unique to their products. I guess you can get some incandescent lights and problems will go away - unless you put them on a dimmer that causes interference, those can do that too.

You want to cut down interference - you need to spend more money on something designed for that purpose. Those items you purchased likely do meet current FCC standards and as mentioned those standards may be more restrictive for some items then others depending on their intended use. Read instructions that come with the fixtures - as the store may tell you when trying to collect payment that this issue may be mentioned in them and it is not their responsibility to design/select products for your application, and chances are they didn't anyway. This is a little like filling the tank on a diesel truck with gasoline and then stopping payment on the purchase when you find out it wasn't a smart move.

 

[Buck Parrish]

Thanks kwired. I respectfully disagree with the part about diesel fuel. Most cars are designed so that the desiel will not fit in a gas car.

The owners bought and picked out the lights. At least I'm free of that worry.
Hopefully others will learn from this thread about these lights.
Regards

 

[grich]

Since the scope of my work is at radio and TV stations, interference like this is a big deal.

We have had issues. Some have been defective ballasts, swap with another and the noise is gone. Other times, using ballasts from a different manufacturer has solved the problem. Our fixtures are properly grounded, so that's not been an issue.

The interference can be so strong, even if you have a receiver on an outside antenna, the reception is wasted.

I'm guessing we've had half-a-dozen RF-noisy ballasts in the 15 years they have been in our facilities.

 

[Buck Parrish]

Thanks, Can any body recommend a ballast that won't interfere with the radio ?


These 8ft. lights have four 4ft T8 tubes
I would like to change them out.

 

[PetrosA]

I've seen this on one job and it was a horrendous problem there. Luckily for the EC, the building was just a storage shed and the owner didn't care, but man, not one station would come through on our work radios, AM or FM.

I have a six tube high-bay over my workbench in the basement that causes interference on the weaker stations UNTIL I plug in my soldering iron, at which point the interference goes away. In that case everything is run off of one switch which controls the light and a plugstrip that everything else is plugged into. That light came from a supply house, BTW. I don't trust the box store fluorescent fixtures. They seem to die really fast.

 

[kwired]

Thanks kwired. I respectfully disagree with the part about diesel fuel. Most cars are designed so that the desiel will not fit in a gas car.

The owners bought and picked out the lights. At least I'm free of that worry.
Hopefully others will learn from this thread about these lights.
Regards

Well for one thing I said putting gasoline in a diesel powered vehicle - the nozzle does fit as the diesel dispensers often have the larger nozzle for high volume delivery, the small opening in gasoline powered vehicles started back in the days when they still had lead in the gasoline and the smaller hole was a rejection feature so the larger nozzle used on leaded fuel dispensers wouldn't fit into the filler neck of the car designed for unleaded only.

Seems to be the owners problem then if they bought and picked out the lights to me. But buying fixtures at supply house doesn't automatically mean you will not have interference, I've seen it on allegedly good brand ballasts as well as unknown brands. Seem to be worse with T5 ballasts, but does happen with T8 as well.

 

[Dennis Alwon]

I agree with Don. There are some fluorescents that do not cause this interference while others do. It is the problem with the design of the ballast.

 

[Electric-Light]

I've seen this on one job and it was a horrendous problem there. Luckily for the EC, the building was just a storage shed and the owner didn't care, but man, not one station would come through on our work radios, AM or FM.

I have a six tube high-bay over my workbench in the basement that causes interference on the weaker stations UNTIL I plug in my soldering iron, at which point the interference goes away. In that case everything is run off of one switch which controls the light and a plugstrip that everything else is plugged into. That light came from a supply house, BTW. I don't trust the box store fluorescent fixtures. They seem to die really fast.

and they are probably not approved for residential use. (which require FCC class B).
Older electronic ballasts used core and coil power factor corrector and these are much better on conducted emission.

 

[gar]

150519-9827 EDT

One person mentioned that they did noi know how to install a filter. Following is a photo of the Corcom 5VR1 filter. Two input wires, two output wires, and a ground wire that is simply a connection to the filter case. Probably no explicit ground wire is needed if lockwashers that bite into the metal are used.



Mount the filter inside the fixture enclosure.

.

 

[kwired]

Having to add those after the fact to a room with 50 luminaires probably kills your bid or estimate, and if you have multiple circuits to any luminaires(multiple light levels and or emergency lighting section) you need additional units.

Ballast manufacture can likely provide this within their products much cheaper then what field installs cost and would be nice if it were more less the standard item available - and probably is a standard item - but suppliers are likely purchasing the other ones so the buyer sees less cost (which drives all decisions when you don't know the technical differences) but isn't aware of the problem

 

[Buck Parrish]

Thanks,
I was wondering if a filter would work. Since the static comes on 120 volt radio or battery radios

 

[PetrosA]

and they are probably not approved for residential use. (which require FCC class B).
Older electronic ballasts used core and coil power factor corrector and these are much better on conducted emission.

That could be, but honestly, this thread is the first time I've ever heard that some fluorescent fixtures are NOT rated for residential use. Either way, I'm not giving up my six-tube light over the work bench

 

[Electric-Light]

That could be, but honestly, this thread is the first time I've ever heard that some fluorescent fixtures are NOT rated for residential use. Either way, I'm not giving up my six-tube light over the work bench

Residential setting is very sensitive to sound noise as well as RFI noise. Many dimmable :lol: able type lamps for example constantly draw complaints about buzzing.

The RFI has to do with electronic ballast / aka driver. It only becomes an issue when there are interference problems. You have to replace them or suck it up if it's your own facility. If another tenant or a neighbor experiences reception issues because of your devices, it becomes enforceable by the FCC.

 

[grich]

Thanks, Can any body recommend a ballast that won't interfere with the radio ?


These 8ft. lights have four 4ft T8 tubes
I would like to change them out.

I'll see what is currently being used the next time I'm on-site. May not be until Memorial Day weekend, though.

 

[mopowr steve]

150519-9827 EDT

One person mentioned that they did noi know how to install a filter. Following is a photo of the Corcom 5VR1 filter. Two input wires, two output wires, and a ground wire that is simply a connection to the filter case. Probably no explicit ground wire is needed if lockwashers that bite into the metal are used.

View attachment 12544

Mount the filter inside the fixture enclosure.

.

I would be willing to try this but is that filter listed to be installed within a fixture? Or for that matter listed at all to be installed in anything other than a product which is listed as it being a part of a complete assembly?
What does the NEC have to say about installing something like this?
I agree that it may be a solution but to whose liability?

 

[GoldDigger]

Since it is a backwards RU, it is a recognized component only. That does leave some concern in installing it into a listed fixture in the field.
But not any more so than retrofitting ballast disconnect connectors into an existing fixture.

 

[Electric-Light]

It's essentially what's in those expensive power strips that have staged noise reduction. I think it was Monster Cable that was offering something that was xx dB reduction on far end, xx on the next set of two outlets and so on.

The most effective place to place the filter would be before wires/conduit exit into the "air" or no longer inside the metal EMT.

You could try one of those stereophile filtering power strips or the in-line filter just as a rule-out.