Guess I am lucky. I added three arc fault breakers about three years ago
when we added on a room. They are the Q O series of Square D brand. Only
trouble I have now is one will trip once in a great while when we turn on
the laundry room flourscent light.
H F , V H F or U H F doesn't seem to affect them.
Ron
--------------------------------------------------
From: "Steve Dresser" <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Wednesday, November 27, 2013 11:19 AM
To: <[log in to unmask]>
Subject: Re: Arc Fault circuit breakers
> Not surprising, Jim. They were being triggered by RF from the air, not
> from
> your power lines.
>
> Steve
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Jim Gammon" <[log in to unmask]>
> To: <[log in to unmask]>
> Sent: Wednesday, November 27, 2013 12:11
> Subject: Re: Arc Fault circuit breakers
>
>
>>I would blow the arc fault breakers even running my Hf rig off of
>> a battery. Jim WA6EKS
>>
>> ----- Original Message -----
>> From: John Miller <[log in to unmask]
>> To: [log in to unmask]
>> Date sent: Wed, 27 Nov 2013 07:13:30 -0500
>> Subject: Re: Arc Fault circuit breakers
>>
>> I've had a GFCI pop with RF, once in a place I stayed on
>> vacation, and once
>> at a special event setup. The vacation place I had to find
>> another outlet,
>> the other time I ended up going to a battery.
>> ----- Original Message -----
>> From: "Colin McDonald" <[log in to unmask]
>> To: <[log in to unmask]
>> Sent: Wednesday, November 27, 2013 1:20 AM
>> Subject: Re: Arc Fault circuit breakers
>>
>>
>> wow, that is very interesting.
>> I've never had a GFCI pop in the presence of RF, but it's a
>> really good
>> thing to be aware of.
>> I haven't been around AFCI breakers with rf yet.
>> I wonder if new automobiles have similar systems and if they are
>> prone to
>> being tripped by RF...might prove rather interesting if they do
>> start
>> using
>> similar devices.
>>
>> 73
>> Colin, V A6BKX
>>
>> --------------------------------------------------
>> From: "Jim Gammon" <[log in to unmask]
>> Sent: Tuesday, November 26, 2013 8:44 PM
>> To: <[log in to unmask]
>> Subject: Arc Fault circuit breakers
>>
>> We moved into our house a little over a year ago. It took me
>> several months before trying my Hf station on a temporary Alpha
>> 1
>> antenna. The first day I did, I blew 4 Arc Fault breakers in
>> the
>> main panel. It took me about 4 months to figure it out then a
>> few days ago I got this info from a friend from the ARRL. This
>> may also help some of you guys. The upshot was that I changed
>> out 4 arc fault breakers replacing them with regular ones and
>> the
>> problems went away. Here's what the ARRL said about it. You
>> might find this interesting.
>> From today's ARRL newsletter
>> Your League: ARRL Helps Manufacturer to Resolve Arc Fault
>> Circuit Interrupter RFI Problems
>> The ARRL Lab has worked with a manufacturer of arc fault circuit
>> interrupter (AFCI) breakers to resolve complaints that Amateur
>> Radio RF was causing certain breaker models to trip
>> unnecessarily. Like the more common ground fault circuit
>> interrupter (GFCI), the AFCI is a safety device. Primarily
>> designed to detect problems that could result in a fire, AFCIs
>> detect potentially hazardous arc faults that result from often
>> unseen damage or poor connections in wiring and in extension
>> cords and cord sets.
>> "Several months ago we started receiving reports from amateurs
>> that when they transmitted, their AFCI breakers were tripping,"
>> said Mike Gruber, W1MG, the ARRL Lab's EMC specialist. He noted
>> that the issue has been a topic of online ham radio discussions
>> as well as on homeowner sites; it seems that stray RF is not the
>> only thing that can cause a "nuisance trip" of an AFCI. Gruber
>> pointed out that the National Electrical Code (NEC) already
>> requires AFCIs in some household circuits, but not all US
>> jurisdictions have adopted the requirement.
>> W1AW Station Manager Joe Carcia, NJ1Q, with the AFCI test
>> stand. [Mike Gruber, W1MG, photo]
>> Gruber said that as AFCIs became more common in new construction
>> in the US, reports started coming in that AFCIs in the vicinity
>> -
>> not just in the radio amateur's home - would trip in the
>> presence
>> of RF from an Amateur Radio transmitter. While each
>> manufacturer's design is proprietary, most AFCIs detect arcs by
>> monitoring the shape of the alternating current waveform,
>> changes
>> in current levels, voltage irregularities, and the presence of
>> high frequency emissions or "noise." The ARRL Lab dug into the
>> problem.
>> "Last summer we built a test fixture in which we could test any
>> type of circuit breaker," Gruber said. It involved using W1AW
>> as
>> an RF source. Gruber said he bought one of "every AFCI that I
>> could get my hands on," but when the Lab began testing them
>> during W1AW transmissions, none of the devices tripped..
>> A ham in New Mexico who had reported AFCI problems sent some of
>> his breakers to the ARRL Lab, "and those tripped when we tested
>> them," Gruber said. The problematic breakers were certain
>> models
>> made by Eaton Corporation. "We already had an Eaton breaker, an
>> older model, but it did not trip," he noted, adding that the
>> breaker had a yellow button. The newer model, which had a white
>> button, did trip in the presence of RF, however, even at power
>> levels down to about 50 W on 17 meters.
>> Gruber contacted Eaton, and two of the manufacturer's engineers
>> visited ARRL Headquarters in August. "Eaton was extremely
>> cooperative and eager to resolve this," Gruber recounted. "They
>> spent the day with us, going over our test methods and took some
>> of the problematic breakers back with them, eventually
>> developing
>> a modified version.
>> "We have just finished testing the new version of the breaker,
>> and it did not trip during W1AW transmissions and in other
>> tests," Gruber reported. He said the new breaker is still in
>> the
>> queue for UL approval.
>> Eaton Engineering Director Andy Foerster said arc fault
>> detection
>> is challenging, in part because so many common household devices
>> - such as vacuum cleaners and power tools that use motors with
>> brushes - create arcing. In information provided to ARRL Eaton
>> engineer Lanson Relyea said that because AFCIs rely on HF
>> emission detection to verify arcing, "any signal that conducts
>> or
>> radiates a signal within the detection band of the AFCI can
>> cause
>> interference and cause the device to trip without the presence
>> of
>> a true arcing condition."
>> Eaton and ARRL agreed that when the manufacturer comes out with
>> any new models of breakers, it will ask the League to test them
>> at W1AW. "It's a win-win situation," Gruber said. Eaton also
>> has agreed to work with anyone having a problem with RF tripping
>> its AFCIs.
>> Hams experiencing unwanted tripping problems with their or their
>> neighbors' AFCIs should first contact the manufacturer. In the
>> case of Eaton breakers, contact Bob Handickgg412-893-3746) or
>> Joe
>> Fello (412-893-3745). Read more.
>>
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