Grow Light QRN or Something Else??!!

[vhavrilko]

ALCON,

This may be a tough one, but if anyone knows what this is, I would appreciate some feedback.

I have come across a bit of a frustrating mystery regarding some kind of open carriers, spurs, or harmonics across the HF spectrum. The Bandicam recordings I have provided links to show what they look like across my waterfall spectrum and to what I think is the tuned frequency.  Example #1 is tuned to what sounds like an open carrier on 21051.8 kHz.  Example #2 is tuned to the same type of signal on 20929.7. Example #3 is the 21051.8 kHz signal showing the nulling effect of my Pixel magnetic loop.  The signal is strongest E-W and weakest N-S. Example #4 is what my spectrum normally looks like on any given morning prior to a week ago.  The station featured is Echo of Hope on 6003 kHz and it not pertinent to this discussion...it is just a sample signal.

https://www.dropbox.com/s/utm6akw575bccgi/UNID_21051.8%20kHz_Other_NA_1411-1412_04-22-2016.avi?dl=0

https://www.dropbox.com/s/vxk800mbtqvu7yk/UNID_20929.7%20kHz_Other_NA_1413-1415_04-22-2016.avi?dl=0

https://www.dropbox.com/s/q4e9b7rp9uiz23b/UNID_21051.8%20kHz_Other_NA_1450_04-22-2016_nulled%20N-S.avi?dl=0

https://www.dropbox.com/s/fi5xmzhxw0lgtwl/Echo%20of%20Hope_6003%20kHz_AM_03-09-14_1248.avi?dl=0

I turned off all of the power in my house and garage and it was still present on my Sangean ATS-909X.  All of my other receivers in the house, e.g. Perseus, Radio Jet 1305P received these spurs, too.

I thought about broadband over power lines, but we do not have any service like that available here. Broadband over power lines creates noise and not just an open carrier from the ARRL samples I heard.  There is only Century Link DSL and cable Internet available in Mountain Home.  I have Century Link DSL (20 mbps) but not sure if it would be related to that.  I scoured the ARRL QRM data bank and found one possible source...a grow light, but I am not sure.

It looks worse that it actually is because of the compressed look of the spectrum on my Excalibur.  It is not a show-stopper for HF listening/DX'ing, but I would like to know if anyone has run into this at their location.  Fortunately, there is NO carrier present on 6925 kHz, but there is one just above 6915 kHz (too bad Brother Scare!). Our power lines in my block are buried under the ground, but there are above ground lines about 100 yards away.  This does not appear to be power line noise, though.  I can null out the interference with my MFJ-1026, Pixel loop, and notch filters when needed.  This QRM appeared about a week ago.

I also tried a high quality low pass filter in the event it is a signal from the higher bands since a lot of electronic gadgets use higher frequencies, but it did not work.

I am trying to guess if a neighbor bought some device like a wireless camera, alarm system, or something.  I know my neighbor across the street placed a motion activated light on his porch that goes off when you pass it in the street so I was wondering if these have been known to cause spurs? The only other thing I noticed around town was a construction crew adding a new section to the local hospital about a mile down the street. My neighbor may also be using a grow light, too.  The signal is strongest in the E-W direction on he is to my east.


Any ideas would be much appreciated.

[Josh]

Is it always present? If so, that kinda implies the source of the signal is nearby.

[skeezix]

I've got something here that on 15 MHz and some freqs higher that sounds like a sort of clicking noise. Turned the loop and it does decrease, but then get other noise.

In 2001 when I moved in, was quiet as a mouse. In 2016... RFI everywhere.


Dear FCC, please do something about this crap. I know you won't, but I ask anyway.


P.S. DSL at 20 Mbps? I have CL ADSL at 1.5Mbps down & 832kbps up. Can't win here. At all.

[Shortwave Pirate]

I've got something here that on 15 MHz and some freqs higher that sounds like a sort of clicking noise. Turned the loop and it does decrease, but then get other noise.

In 2001 when I moved in, was quiet as a mouse. In 2016... RFI everywhere.


Dear FCC, please do something about this crap. I know you won't, but I ask anyway.


P.S. DSL at 20 Mbps? I have CL ADSL at 1.5Mbps down & 832kbps up. Can't win here. At all.

It's getting harder and harder to listen without RFI. The CFL light bulbs in my house that are saving us money also generate noise. I turn them all off when I listen, but at some point, that stops becoming practical. I wonder if LEDs have this same issue?

[ChrisSmolinski]

I have not run into any issues with the LED bulbs in our house, but I also never had problems with CFLs.

[Pigmeat]

Stay away from cheap Chinese cfl's. The ballasts are crap and run hot.  They can oscillate in the lower part of the 80 meter ham band. I ran across a ham site about a decade ago where a guy was using one as the basis of QRP CW rig.

I picked up a box of el cheapo Chinese Dollar General CFL's about a year ago that I ended up taking back. The two I tried in a lamp in my radio room kicked the noise level up a good 3-4 S-units across MW and HF.