digital ballast RF is screwing up my cable and internet.

I got 3 1000w digital greenhouse ballast and 2 600w digital greenhouse ballast in my basement and whenever they turn on my cable and internet go out. Is there any way to block the RF?

im sure you can buy rf sleeves for the wires but not sure which wires you would need to cover.

here, found this on ebay http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/140635483111

Move the ballasts away from your cable box/modem, and from each other (cross interfeerence).

I suggest you read up on DYI RF shielding.

Rather than trying to shield the cables, build a faraday cage for your ballast.

Do those RF sleves really work? And do the faraday boxes really work? Thanks for your replys!

My 600 w Greenhouse ballast also causes interference with speakers, kind of makes me miss my 400 w RF-Shielded Lumatek.

Zdeezy said:

Do those RF sleves really work? And do the faraday boxes really work? Thanks for your replys!

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Yes they work (30 years electronics tech), that's why the military uses them.

heres an article which isnt too technical so even the simpletons like me can understand how they work

http://www.endtimesreport.com/faraday_cages.html

Hugo Phurst said:

Yes they work (30 years electronics tech), that's why the military uses them.

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The faraday box or the RF sleves?

faraday boxes lol. military dont use rf sleeves. you can make a faraday cage from a foil insulated cardboard box and a distant enough grounding rod.

Zdeezy said:

The faraday box or the RF sleves?

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The shielding is built into the cabinets and racks (and grounded), so I'd have to say the set up is more like a cage.

I just thought of something! I have some old steel cabnets in the other side of my basement. Think if i moved these into my room and mounted my ballast in side them it would work? Its about 1/8th inch steel

the steel would need to be grounded still.

brettsog said:

the steel would need to be grounded still.

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- Yep.
Can you find the ground for the house? I'd use that.
Lolz, I know electrically speaking the ground spike and a grounded plug are the same, but for some reason I wouldn't want to ground my shield on the house side of the power panel. Weird eh?

Same thing happened to me! Only when my ballasts turned on, it would shit off my entire streets cable and phone lines. I just had the cable company come out to my place and install a bullet on the cable lines. Problem solved for me.

Shitty ballast send em back now and save yourself the headache. I have lumateks and a nexgen and no problems here.

So how do i go about grounding it? Its hung up, the inside is lined with aluminum foil and the ballast are in. Now what?

matt1420 said:

Same thing happened to me! Only when my ballasts turned on, it would shit off my entire streets cable and phone lines. I just had the cable company come out to my place and install a bullet on the cable lines. Problem solved for me.

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Can any cable company do that? Im all legal but i still dont want my business out there

use a different breaker for your lights

oceangreen said:

use a different breaker for your lights

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What does that have anything to do with RF from the ballast? They are hooked up on their own 40amp breaker.