[Elecraft] Tracking Local QRN

[Mark J. Schreiner]

When nobody else is home and I want to find noise in the house (or 
eliminate that the noise is coming from my house) I have my K2 connected 
to a battery and I go over to the circuit breaker panel and start 
flipping breakers off.  I can start with everything off if I want to be 
thorough and then gradually add one at a time back on, or I can flip one 
at a time off and back on.  My hamshack, luckily, is near the breaker 
panel so I can instantly hear if the noise is switched on/off with the 
breakers.  If I do find that a particular breaker quiets down the noise 
at least I can figure out what is all on that circuit (not so easily 
done in a house that was built in the '20s with various "generations" of 
wire from knob-n-tube to much nicer modern wiring that was put in by 
myself or the previous home owner about 8 years ago.  Oh, of course 
there are various things that have battery backups such as security 
systems, smoke alarms, UPS for computer (many computers aren't 100% off 
unless completely disconnected from a power source), etc.

If your hamshack isn't so close to the breaker panel you could get more 
resourceful and use another battery operated transmitter (hmm, maybe 
that would be a good use for a baby monitor once your baby is all grown 
up, assuming those things are battery operated, I think the Rx is 
usually, at least) or if you have somebody else that can work the 
breakers while you listen to the radio.  I have 3 different dimmer 
switches and haven't noticed a problem with them (yet).  I have some 
flourescent lighting in the basement, which I always considered to be a 
no-no, but it doesn't seem to raise my noise floor more than other 
neighborhood noises.  I was a bit worried about some of those new 
efficient outdoor security floodlights but I've got several installed 
around the house and up at the garage and all seems okay with them as 
well.  The most noise I had and eliminated quite easily was my computer 
monitor which was replaced about 1 year ago with an LCD monitor, WOW, 
big difference!

Using a portable radio like a KX1, K1, K2, mobile rig, SW broadcast 
radio, etc. to go walking around the neighborhood might get you noticed, 
unless you do it at night (especially if it is near new moon, oh, unless 
your neighborhood is well lit like most modern neighborhoods tend to 
be).  You may be able to identify noise that is coming from particular 
utility poles and then be able to attempt to contact the utility company 
to have them check it out (keep a log of when you hear the noise, what 
frequency, weather conditions when you hear it and don't hear it, etc) 
if you are nice enough to give them the pole number or some other 
identification of location of the pole to help make their job easier.  
Our local power company just sent out with the monthly bill a notice of 
an IR camera that they have to help find problem areas, a great tool to 
really zero in on the cause and location of the noise after you get them 
into the general vicinity. 

73,

Mark, NK8Q