K3 transmit audio cuts out

[Richard Fjeld]

> I am looking at this as an rfi issue first and foremost. I am going to clean
> up a little bit inside the shack. That particular K3 has been suffering with
> unusual noise with my new SteppIR three element that was put up less than a
> month ago.

I have an 80 meter loop fed with homebrew ladder-line to an Ameritron ATR-30 tuner with an internal 1:1 balun.  No (known) RFI on all bands, 80-10.

But, I have a commercial tri-band beam fed with coax. (It has a balun at the feed-point).  When I am operating 20 meter CW, it sets off the battery operated smoke detector in the hallway to our bedroom.  Go figure!  Not good when operating at night with my wife sleeping.  She panicked.  That alarm is extremely piercing.  

I put a MFJ-915 RF Isolator in line with the coax. So far, so good, but need more time on 20. It may be frequency specific, also.  If it continues to be a problem, I will relocate the smoke detector to the garbage can.

Richard Fjeld, N0CE


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[Vic Rosenthal]

I had a similar problem with a battery-operated CO detector. I covered
it with aluminum foil, and punched through the foil everywhere there was
an opening in the plastic case of the CO detector. No further issues.

On 7/27/12 10:44 PM, Richard Fjeld wrote:

>> I am looking at this as an rfi issue first and foremost. I am going
>> to clean up a little bit inside the shack. That particular K3 has
>> been suffering with unusual noise with my new SteppIR three element
>> that was put up less than a month ago.
>
> I have an 80 meter loop fed with homebrew ladder-line to an Ameritron
> ATR-30 tuner with an internal 1:1 balun.  No (known) RFI on all
> bands, 80-10.
>
> But, I have a commercial tri-band beam fed with coax. (It has a balun
> at the feed-point).  When I am operating 20 meter CW, it sets off the
> battery operated smoke detector in the hallway to our bedroom.  Go
> figure!  Not good when operating at night with my wife sleeping.  She
> panicked.  That alarm is extremely piercing.
>
> I put a MFJ-915 RF Isolator in line with the coax. So far, so good,
> but need more time on 20. It may be frequency specific, also.  If it
> continues to be a problem, I will relocate the smoke detector to the
> garbage can.
>
> Richard Fjeld, N0CE

--
Vic, K2VCO
Fresno CA
http://www.qsl.net/k2vco/


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