oldtimer1 Posted January 23, 2006 Share Posted January 23, 2006 I thought I said, the reflector directs the radio waves just like the light beam so most of it is down. So how far it spreads depends on how high the light is. I’m on the side of a hill, the fourth floor looks over the roofs below, thats the direction you receive the signal furthest away. Its also why pirate radio guys set up the transmitter rig and antenna on the top of the highest tower block they can. I had a quick chat with my mate, he said if you used my light in a top floor tower block flat, say 30 floors up, that it would interfere for at least a mile in all directions and maybe a lot more, he should know he used to design and build rigs. He said the best place to use one would be in a cellar for minimum spread. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest gunnaknow Posted January 23, 2006 Share Posted January 23, 2006 Unproven as yet and.......Is it really worth it ??? tt I don't know yet. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest gunnaknow Posted January 23, 2006 Share Posted January 23, 2006 (edited) He said the best place to use one would be in a cellar for minimum spread. Even better than that. A cellar, situated in a valley and it's walls painted with metalic paint. Is there any way to find out from the manufacturers, which digi ballast produces the least interference and the hertz produced? That would make it much easier to choose a digi ballast. Those made in the UK or US might be more likely to be closer inline with regulations. Edited January 23, 2006 by gunnaknow Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest gunnaknow Posted January 23, 2006 Share Posted January 23, 2006 (edited) Even if there is a little interference if it only for about 20 yards i'll stick with it anfd hope that running the lights overnight as usual will help lessen the chance of detection. Live in a semi but neighbour is old so hopefullyno problem. Cheers peds. "Medium wave and short wave radio signals act differently during daytime and nighttime. During the day, AM signals travel by groundwave, refracting around the curve of the earth over a distance up to a few hundred miles (or kilometers) from the signal transmitter. However, after sunset, changes in the ionosphere cause AM signals to travel by skywave, enabling AM radio stations to be heard much farther from their point of origin than is normal during the day." To limit the distance of interference, it would appear to be better to use the ballast during the day. This should be tested. If the distance of interference is not increased for your ballast at night, night time use might be best. Test first, then decide. Edited January 23, 2006 by gunnaknow Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Redseal Posted January 23, 2006 Share Posted January 23, 2006 (edited) Unproven as yet and.......Is it really worth it ??? tt Doubt it.. enough conductive paint to cover a grow area would probably end up costing more than the ballast itself Edited January 23, 2006 by Redseal Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest gunnaknow Posted January 23, 2006 Share Posted January 23, 2006 (edited) Doubt it.. enough conductive paint to cover a grow area would probably end up costing more than the ballast itself Probably. Although it would be very easy to hang sheets of tin foil like wallpaper, with some spray adhesive. Or wallpaper paste, if you want something more permanent. A whole room would take about an hour. Clearly not an option for everyone but to some. Certainly an option for everyone with grow cupboards. Aluminium paint might be an option. It's very cheap. Not sure how well it would work. Edited January 23, 2006 by gunnaknow Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest gunnaknow Posted January 23, 2006 Share Posted January 23, 2006 (edited) Interesting link. Especially answers 2 and 3. http://www.newton.dep.anl.gov/askasci/phy99/phy99245.htm Edited January 23, 2006 by gunnaknow Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest gunnaknow Posted January 23, 2006 Share Posted January 23, 2006 (edited) "A common high school physics demonstration involves placing an AM radio on tinfoil, and then covering the radio with a metal bucket. This leads to a noticeable reduction in signal strength. The efficiency of such an enclosure in blocking such radiation depends on the thickness of the tin-foil, as dictated by the skin depth, the distance the radiation can propagate in a particular non-ideal conductor. For half-millimeter-thick tin-foil, radiation above about 20 kHz (i.e., including both AM and FM bands) would be partially blocked." The thicker the sheeting, the better it will work. Also, something like copper foil will work much better than tin (aluminium) foil. Copper foil is used a lot in some industries to stop RFI (radio frequency interference). Edited January 23, 2006 by gunnaknow Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joolz Posted January 23, 2006 Share Posted January 23, 2006 "A common high school physics demonstration involves placing an AM radio on tinfoil, and then covering the radio with a metal bucket. This leads to a noticeable reduction in signal strength. The efficiency of such an enclosure in blocking such radiation depends on the thickness of the tin-foil, as dictated by the skin depth, the distance the radiation can propagate in a particular non-ideal conductor. For half-millimeter-thick tin-foil, radiation above about 20 kHz (i.e., including both AM and FM bands) would be partially blocked." The thicker the sheeting, the better it will work. Also, something like copper foil will work much better than tin (aluminium) foil. Copper foil is used a lot in some industries to stop RFI (radio frequency interference). its really not worth the time and effort, ( assuming you can readily purchase half-millimeter -or thicker tin-foil) or to have that nagging doubt in the back of your mind the whole time you are growing. We've pulled our range of digi ballasts from the shop, the customers that have bought one have been contacted ( mostly before this thread broke) and offered replacements or refunds, i sincerely hope for the security of the end user that the other suppliers and stockists of digi ballasts do likewise untill the problem can be rectified Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest gunnaknow Posted January 23, 2006 Share Posted January 23, 2006 (edited) Joolz, I'm just into problem solving. I see a problem and I feel compelled to find solutions. Even if they aren't my own problems. I'm weird like that. Let's hope that the manufacturers get the message when their products keep getting sent back. The thing I can't understand is, how it would be possible to keep the frequency high for increased efficiency but stop it from sending out interference. If they increase the frequency or decrease the frequency, the interference will still be present, just on different radio stations. I can't see how they could stop the interference, unless they lower the frequency below 9KHz, where no radio communications occur. Doing so would cause the arc to produce less light. Unless anyone else can see a way around interference, without decreasing the effeciency? Edited January 23, 2006 by gunnaknow Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joolz Posted January 23, 2006 Share Posted January 23, 2006 Joolz, I'm just into problem solving. I see a problem and I feel compelled to find solutions. Even if they aren't my own problems. I'm weird like that. i can see that mate, and fair play to you but at the end of the day, if the manufacturers want us to buy these things, then they need to make them suitable for the job in the first place and none of us can afford to cut corners or cross our fingers when growroom security is concerned Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest HomeGrown Posted January 23, 2006 Share Posted January 23, 2006 my old eco lamp ballast also interfered with AM signals.......not been raided yet.....brb....bolting door Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Alice Posted January 23, 2006 Share Posted January 23, 2006 scarreing the growers with your swag lyrics! trying to scare shut the door and its fine i know of 16 in a house on an estate and not a thing wrong with radio 5 outside the house or down stairs or in the garden! ! are you going to say they can see the light in the loft ? cos thats not true either i think there fine infact after 6 1/2 weeks they looked at least a week ahead and that'll do fine no interference at all when u shut the door Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
S2001 Posted January 23, 2006 Share Posted January 23, 2006 who mentioned radio 5 have ya read the thread? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joolz Posted January 23, 2006 Share Posted January 23, 2006 (edited) scarreing the growers with your swag lyrics! nobody is trying to scare growers just trying to warn them of a potential problem reported from several respected growers here, From the reports in so far it does seem that the branded units may be the worse culprits but untill people come forward we wont know the extent of the prob or how much of a risk it is would you rather we left the growers blissfully ignorant untill the front door caves in or pass on the info as we recieve it and let them make their own minds up ? Edited January 23, 2006 by Joolz Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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