Lumii 600W RF Interference !! Massive problem

[sconefirm]

Hey guys,

I've just started my first grow around 2 weeks ago. My lighting setup was : Lumii 600w Dual Spec HPS with Lumii 600w Dimmable ballast and reflector. Yesterday an engineer from my Tv and internet company called and was checking the wires, he then knocked on my door and said there is a massive interference coming from my house, I thought nothing of it and left the lights with timer on. He called again today saying the interference is still there and that he will have to disconnect my services if the interference doesn't stop. I told him to wait a minute, went in to my dr and unplugged the ballast from power and then asked him if the interference is still here and he said no. He showed me a graph and log and it clearly showed the interference only being there when the lights were switched on. This means that either my ballast or bulb were causing a massive interference in the area affecting the nodes. I've unplugged the ballast and HPS and won't be plugging it back in until I know how to sort this issue.

My setup is 1x1x2m and I'm wondering if I buy a 1000w LED on Amazon for £180 will this be enough to replace the 600W HPS? I'd appreciate your help on this one ! It's quite stressful

I hardly doubt these will survive out on the window until I get LED and advice on it

 

[Jimster]

It's the ballast. Many new ballasts are solid state and inherently generate a LOT of RF. Once in Canada I relied on solar power inverters to power my computer and also had a regular radio. I couldn't listen to the radio if the inverter was on, it just made a ton of RF noise. I still use old school magnetic ballasts, but they are 30+ years old. They work great, very little RF, but don't have the flexibility to be dimmable or multi-wattage. If the ballast has any type of certification, it usually has to meet certain requirements for RF emissions, so a different ballast might help considerably. An AM radio will quickly tell you if you have any RF issues as the channels will sound distorted. FWIW.

 

[sconefirm]

It's the ballast. Many new ballasts are solid state and inherently generate a LOT of RF. Once in Canada I relied on solar power inverters to power my computer and also had a regular radio. I couldn't listen to the radio if the inverter was on, it just made a ton of RF noise. I still use old school magnetic ballasts, but they are 30+ years old. They work great, very little RF, but don't have the flexibility to be dimmable or multi-wattage. If the ballast has any type of certification, it usually has to meet certain requirements for RF emissions, so a different ballast might help considerably. An AM radio will quickly tell you if you have any RF issues as the channels will sound distorted. FWIW.

Thanks for your swift reply mate really appreciate it. Is there any ballast you could recommend that worked for you?

 

[Anthem]

Hey guys,

I've just started my first grow around 2 weeks ago. My lighting setup was : Lumii 600w Dual Spec HPS with Lumii 600w Dimmable ballast and reflector. Yesterday an engineer from my Tv and internet company called and was checking the wires, he then knocked on my door and said there is a massive interference coming from my house, I thought nothing of it and left the lights with timer on. He called again today saying the interference is still there and that he will have to disconnect my services if the interference doesn't stop. I told him to wait a minute, went in to my dr and unplugged the ballast from power and then asked him if the interference is still here and he said no. He showed me a graph and log and it clearly showed the interference only being there when the lights were switched on. This means that either my ballast or bulb were causing a massive interference in the area affecting the nodes. I've unplugged the ballast and HPS and won't be plugging it back in until I know how to sort this issue.

My setup is 1x1x2m and I'm wondering if I buy a 1000w LED on Amazon for £180 will this be enough to replace the 600W HPS? I'd appreciate your help on this one ! It's quite stressful

I hardly doubt these will survive out on the window until I get LED and advice on it

DO NOT GET LURED IN BY THE LOW COST 1000W LED's on Amazon. They do not do what they say they do.

 

[MIMedGrower]

Galaxy ballasts are shielded for rf interference and solis tech engineers low distortion. Neither have given me a problem.

 

[Jimster]

Thanks for your swift reply mate really appreciate it. Is there any ballast you could recommend that worked for you?

I mentioned in my original post that I still use a magnetic ballast. If you aren't familiar with them, they are basically a giant transformer with a big capacitor added on. Mine is about the size of a shoe box, maybe slightly taller. It has a perforated steel cover with mesh type ventilation, and a on/off switch. They don't work with pulse or CMH bulbs, and can't be dimmed. They weigh at least 25 Lbs and sometimes hum or buzz. They will also survive a nuclear detonation! There isn't much to go bad on these old timers, but they aren't too flexible. The bulbs themselves shouldn't generate too much RF, but any electrical discharge generates RF in some frequencies. The electronics in teh newer ballasts are responsible for 99% of the Rf, however.

 

[visajoe1]

I have a Viviosun 1000w, no issues

 

[Jimster]

Chinese manufactured electronics are notorious for their RF issues. Go into any store that uses the high efficiency fluorescent lighting and ballasts and try to listen to a radio.

 

[sconefirm]

DO NOT GET LURED IN BY THE LOW COST 1000W LED's on Amazon. They do not do what they say they do.

No problem thank you for the heads up ! I've heard good things about Mars 2 Hydro LED. Any advice? Or maybe any LED products that won't break the bank? Thank you

Galaxy ballasts are shielded for rf interference and solis tech engineers low distortion. Neither have given me a problem.

The problem is the ballast I currently have also claims to be RF shielded. I think I might just switch to LED to save the hassle and worry. Thanks though and I'll definitely look in to the recommendations and consider them :)

I mentioned in my original post that I still use a magnetic ballast. If you aren't familiar with them, they are basically a giant transformer with a big capacitor added on. Mine is about the size of a shoe box, maybe slightly taller. It has a perforated steel cover with mesh type ventilation, and a on/off switch. They don't work with pulse or CMH bulbs, and can't be dimmed. They weigh at least 25 Lbs and sometimes hum or buzz. They will also survive a nuclear detonation! There isn't much to go bad on these old timers, but they aren't too flexible. The bulbs themselves shouldn't generate too much RF, but any electrical discharge generates RF in some frequencies. The electronics in teh newer ballasts are responsible for 99% of the Rf, however.

No worries thank you, I wasn't familiar at all since it's my first grow and I'm only learning ;) Haha they seem to be pretty sturdy by the sounds of it so. I couldn't find any radio around the house so I'll buy one tomorrow and do the test to see if it is the ballast or the bulb. After reading up about the ballast I have "600w LUMii Black Dimmable Digital Ballast" and they claim it is RF shielded. I'm going to look in to the magnetic ballast now, is there anything that could go wrong with these? or cause me any problems ?

I have a Viviosun 1000w, no issues

Great thank you, I'll look in to it now :)

Chinese manufactured electronics are notorious for their RF issues. Go into any store that uses the high efficiency fluorescent lighting and ballasts and try to listen to a radio.

LUMii seems to be from the UK, not sure where they manufacture though. I presume it will be impossible to do :)

 

[sconefirm]

has anyone ever used these? I'm in between these and King plus LED. Hopefully it will get me through the first grow and I'll invest then !

 

[Anthem]

has anyone ever used these? I'm in between these and King plus LED. Hopefully it will get me through the first grow and I'll invest then !

Take a look at the thread titled LED Rage !!

 

[sconefirm]

Take a look at the thread titled LED Rage !!

will do sorry

 

[Jimster]

Magnetic ballasts are monsters but very dependable in my experience. Both of mine are nearly 40 years old and still running without a hitch. They are probably more expensive than regular solid state ballasts due to the difference in the way they work. Modern ballasts can fail at a number of points, while a magnetic has 2 parts... a transformer and a capacitor. They don't have the safeguards built into them like digital ones.
LEDs are the way of the future, as much as I hate to admit it, being an old school HID guy. The technology is improving every day and great bargains can be had if you can do some stuff yourself. LEDs can also generate RF, but it is usually from the power supply. Another option would be to build a Faraday cage around the ballasts in question, which should shield the RF from escaping, A few pieces of metal screening that surround the ballast should help, although ust be grounded. Can you determine if you can find out if the RF is somehow feeding back into the power lines?

 

[MIMedGrower]

Magnetic ballasts are monsters but very dependable in my experience. Both of mine are nearly 40 years old and still running without a hitch. They are probably more expensive than regular solid state ballasts due to the difference in the way they work. Modern ballasts can fail at a number of points, while a magnetic has 2 parts... a transformer and a capacitor. They don't have the safeguards built into them like digital ones.
LEDs are the way of the future, as much as I hate to admit it, being an old school HID guy. The technology is improving every day and great bargains can be had if you can do some stuff yourself. LEDs can also generate RF, but it is usually from the power supply. Another option would be to build a Faraday cage around the ballasts in question, which should shield the RF from escaping, A few pieces of metal screening that surround the ballast should help, although ust be grounded. Can you determine if you can find out if the RF is somehow feeding back into the power lines?

A good electronic ballast puts out up to 30% more light than magnetic.


And the shield that blocks he rf interference is called a farraday cage. A search will show how to construct one for the OP.

 

[sconefirm]

Magnetic ballasts are monsters but very dependable in my experience. Both of mine are nearly 40 years old and still running without a hitch. They are probably more expensive than regular solid state ballasts due to the difference in the way they work. Modern ballasts can fail at a number of points, while a magnetic has 2 parts... a transformer and a capacitor. They don't have the safeguards built into them like digital ones.
LEDs are the way of the future, as much as I hate to admit it, being an old school HID guy. The technology is improving every day and great bargains can be had if you can do some stuff yourself. LEDs can also generate RF, but it is usually from the power supply. Another option would be to build a Faraday cage around the ballasts in question, which should shield the RF from escaping, A few pieces of metal screening that surround the ballast should help, although ust be grounded. Can you determine if you can find out if the RF is somehow feeding back into the power lines?

What would be the best way to determine if the RF is somehow feeding back into the power lines?

Also the store that sold me the grow kit, offered to replace the ballast for exact same one or for magnetic ballast if this is what I prefer. Should I just get it replaced with the magnetic and see how we go from here?

 

[sconefirm]

A good electronic ballast puts out up to 30% more light than magnetic.


And the shield that blocks he rf interference is called a farraday cage. A search will show how to construct one for the OP.

Thanks mate, already had a look at Faraday cage, made a quick one yesterday with aluminium foil and didn't work. I'll get supplies today and try make one with mesh :)

 

[Jimster]

Thanks mate, already had a look at Faraday cage, made a quick one yesterday with aluminium foil and didn't work. I'll get supplies today and try make one with mesh :)

Even with a Faraday cage (all the panels need to be electrically connected to each other, and the whole thing grounded), the wires that exit it and feed your lights could be acting like an antenna. If the RF is broadcast over the wires, which s pretty possible, a Faraday cage won't help. Now, if you built a cage that surrounded the lights, wires, plants and all, it should work.
If I was determined to fix this, I would try different wire orientations to see if it made a difference. Can you disconnect the output wires to see if it stops the broadcasting? Once you find where the RF is leaking from, it is much easier to address. AM radios are great for that... even cheap transistors.

 

[thunderfudge]

I had this happen and the problem was a cable I had screwed into the cable outlet which wasnt screwed into a cable box was picking up all the RF.At six o clock every night the neighborhood would lose internet access.lol