Knock from Cable Company, HID causing spikes

Hint: Whoever stopped by really doesn't work for the cable company.

rkymtnman said:

Hint: Whoever stopped by really doesn't work for the cable company.

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ya I agree with this. Have 5 1000w digitals running for 6 months now and haven't had anyone stop by. My house stinks too my neighbors tell me all the time. They just think I smoke a lot lol

nurrgle said:

I checked the wiring to my beaker and found the ground wire was pretty loose, I just pulled it out of the bus. Fixed that, going to do an am radio test to see if that fixed anything. If not then I guess I better start digging through the storage shed for some magnetic ballasts.

Do you think the ground being loose could have caused the issue?

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yes. The ground is a key part of how they shield the ballasts internals.

rkymtnman said:

Hint: Whoever stopped by really doesn't work for the cable company.

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10 years ago I would have flown home and tore everything down on the spot and moved. I am in Colorado so hopefully I am just fucking everyone’s signal up like a douchbag. I figure if it was going to be trouble they would have hit me last week when it went down. Crossing my fingers though of course.

I ended up switching back to my old magnetic ballasts. Funny thing is my phone never worked at home, as soon as I made the change, my phone worked great.

I wonder if the rf insulation can go out over time inside the ballasts? I have bunch more phantoms running I am going to have to think about replacing. Guess it’s time for 315’s

So the ground didn't fix the issue? Might use the phone to test, maybe just one ballast is bad if the ground didn't fix it. If you have been running those phantoms for a while and they just now came at you with the RFI complaint then something changed, so either the wiring change you did or a ballast somehow went bad and is emitting the RFI.

I had to switch to magnetic ballasts after they came out and replaced my wiring . the risk wasn't worth the heat for me. Go magnetic

rkymtnman said:

Hint: Whoever stopped by really doesn't work for the cable company.

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You're tripping. Multiple members have chimed in saying they have had the same complaint from the cable company. Cmon man, it's almost 2020. You really think feds/cops/thieves are going to go undercover as the cable guy to bust a grow?

magnetic ballast will fix this issue. Digital is the problem

I fixed my ground but still changed the ballasts to mag. My wife called the cable company and they actually saw a spike when my lights came on and then it went away after I changed the ballasts.

I was planning on upgrading to 315’s anyway now I have a reason

This happens. Fact. So ppl can stop saying ‘it wasnt someone frm the cable company’
Cane to my place last yr. ‘hey at 7pm every day the internet in the neighbourhood drops out and we traced it to your place’
All he did was went around and tightened every songle coax connection in my house. He said just cceck em every few months and shoukdnt have any more issues.
Sinple fix.

They really hate it when you live by an airport lol. At least the cable guy I got was an old stoner lookin dude and was cool cause that was before it was legal here.

Instead of magnetic ballasts, upgrade to high quality LED! Fixes the RF issue and you get better performance and efficiency.

Renfro said:

So the ground didn't fix the issue? Might use the phone to test, maybe just one ballast is bad if the ground didn't fix it. If you have been running those phantoms for a while and they just now came at you with the RFI complaint then something changed, so either the wiring change you did or a ballast somehow went bad and is emitting the RFI.

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As I was wiring my breaker up I realized the cable had only three wires. These connect to a double post 50 amp. One red one black and one copper wire are all that are there. I am starting to think it should be four wires with a red black white and copper. Did the electrician screw me by installing my light controller with the wrong cable? This might cause the rf issue??

nurrgle said:

As I was wiring my breaker up I realized the cable had only three wires. These connect to a double post 50 amp. One red one black and one copper wire are all that are there. I am starting to think it should be four wires with a red black white and copper. Did the electrician screw me by installing my light controller with the wrong cable? This might cause the rf issue??

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The white wire isn't required for a 240 volt circuit as it doesn't need a neutral. The neutral is only used for 120 volt feeds.

Renfro said:

The white wire isn't required for a 240 volt circuit as it doesn't need a neutral. The neutral is only used for 120 volt feeds.

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Can’t thank you enough dude!!

nurrgle said:

Can’t thank you enough dude!!

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No problem buddy! I like helping people out. Thats why I am here.

Are you under any specific obligation from the cable company to change the appliances you use inside your house?

indagroove said:

Are you under any specific obligation from the cable company to change the appliances you use inside your house?

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If those appliances interfere with others cable service the cable company has the right to pull your service.

I am having them come out today. When my wife called xfinity they said it looks like the last spike was the prior night around 5. That was just before I switched ballasts. Service was disconnected at the time.

Just to update yall i bought magnetic ballasts that same day after I posted this and have been running them ever since, no problem from cable company.