[Lowfer] GFCI trips when transmitting on 2200M

Dexter McIntyre W4DEX dexter.mc at gmail.com
Fri Dec 7 09:53:04 EST 2012


My AC power meter and primary AC panel box is located less than ten feet 
from my LF coil and vertical wire.  I've never had a problem with the 
ground fault breakers in that box tripping when transmitting on 137 
kHz.  That is until I placed some Christmas lights a bit over one 
hundred feet from the other end of the house from where the panel box is 
located.  The lights are powered with 125 feet of cable laying on the 
ground.  The RF return current this cable is carrying measures just a 
few milliamps, apparently just enough to occasionally trip the breaker.  
Attaching multiple clamp on chokes around the cable made on difference.  
The GFCI was installed 25 years ago.  I just read that newer ones are 
much better at preventing false tripping due to RF.  I could just 
replace the breaker but being a tight wad I had rather find a cure for 
this temporary problem rather than to replace a working breaker. 

Any thoughts about what to try next?

Dex

Hummm......I may try an isolation transformer.  The lights are LED and 
operate at only 16 watts for 250 C9 size bulbs.


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