[TVARC] another HF noise source

[Ed Deichler]

FB on tracking down the noise, TIm.  I remember when MV lights were the
usual culprit for trash on the bands.  I have noticed when listening to AM
radio in the car that a number of areas have noise levels messing up
reception.  The worst is a spot near the woodshop on Rolling Acres road.  A
tried and true method is to walk around with a small radio tuned to AM to
find a guilty pole.

73 de Ed

On Thu, Jan 16, 2025 at 1:40 AM Tim Leonard <tfleonard at pacbell.net> wrote:

> For the past month I have been plagued by S9 plus noise on the HF bands.
> The noise viewed on the spectrum analyzer was pulsed noise spaced every
> 2.5khz starting around 5 Mhz and ending around 25 Mhz.  While the noise
> appeared as spikes on the spectrum analyzer, it sounds like a frying pan
> sizzle in the receiver.  The noise was S9 for 30 to 40 seconds and then
> disappeared for about 30 seconds and then cycle would repeat.  It started
> at about 6 pm each night and lasted all night.
>
> Yesterday I was looking out my back window and I noticed one of the street
> lights come on for a short period of time and then abruptly shut off.  I
> timed it and then compared it to the noise I was hearing on HF.  They
> matched!  The light is about 150 feet from my vertical antenna and 200 feet
> from my attic dipole, both of which exhibited the same received noise
> levels.
>
> This morning I got the number of the light off the light post, went to the
> SECO web site and submitted a Street Light issue.  At about 1 PM a SECO
> truck pulled up to the light, the guy changed out the lamp.and left - total
> time to repair was about 10 minutes.  Tonight, the street light is on and
> NO NOISE!
>
> The point of all this is to make everyone aware of yet another source of
> HF noise, one that can be easily identified and can be easily remedied.
>
> Tim
> AA6DQ
>
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