RFI from Air-X Wind Gen
 

I have a new Air-X Marine wind generator installed aboard a sailboat. The
unit is mounted on a ten foot pole and is wired as per the instruction
manual directly to the 630 amp hour battery bank. All works great. the wind
generator is putting out plenty of charge, however, the RFI/EMI picked up by
the SSB radio, (Icom M-802) is extreme. The RFI noise is across all bands
and makes the radio unusable. I can shut off the Air-X with the optional
switch but I was wondering if anyone can confirm that this is a common
experience with other owners of the Air-X Marine wind generator. If so, I
will not look further for a solution. If I am the only one with this problem
than I can assume the RFI is a result of some defect in the electronics. One
Note: the backstay antenna is about five feet away from the wind generator.
Thanks.

Richard Cassano wrote:

snip All works great. the wind
generator is putting out plenty of charge, however, the RFI/EMI picked up by
the SSB radio, (Icom M-802) is extreme.

Are there any ferrite loops on any of the wiring involved? Like on the
output leads from the charger, the power leads to the radio, and the
speaker leads on the radio?

--
Jack Erbes in Ellsworth, Maine, USA - jacker at midmaine dot com

Hi Richard,

"Jack Erbes" wrote
Richard Cassano wrote:

snip All works great. the wind
generator is putting out plenty of charge, however, the RFI/EMI picked
up by
the SSB radio, (Icom M-802) is extreme.

Are there any ferrite loops on any of the wiring involved? Like on the
output leads from the charger, the power leads to the radio, and the
speaker leads on the radio?

Good point. But before you try adding RF chokes, take a portable AM radio
tuned to any non-bcst frequency (that detects the interference) and see how
far away it is detectable. If you pick it up several feet away, that wind
generator is a real incidental radiator and no amount of chokes could ever
help. But that would be at odds with claims the manufacturer makes for
similar Air-X equipment.

Perhaps your Air-Marine instructions did not have these comments (pg 45) on:
http://www.solarpanelsaustralia.com....irx_manual.pdf

Radio Interference
#29 What effect does radio interference have on my AIR-X?
The internal circuitry of the AIR-X is shielded and filtered to prevent
radio interference,
and has been tested to insure electro-magnetic compatibility.
#30 What effect does my AIR have on radio transmissions?
The AIR-X normally does not affect radio transmitters. Care should be taken,
however, to route power lines from the AIR-X away from the power and antenna
lines
of a radio transmitter. An old ham radio operator's trick is to twist
positive and
negative wires together to provide an even distribution of EMF noise across
both
wires, which serves to cancel out the electrical noise created. This
technique can be
used on the AIR-X power lines, on the radio's power lines, and on
transmission wires.
Transmission lines should always be kept as far from power lines as is
practically
possible. Proper grounding of the AIR-X and other system components must
also be
observed.
#31 Will it affect the regulation of my AIR-X to install an RF (radio
frequency) filter?
An RF filter should not affect the regulation of the AIR-X, but any
electronic devices
placed in line with the turbine must be rated for the proper current and
voltage. It is
best to place any line filters on the power lines for the load device
(transmitter) that
requires it, and as close to the device as possible.
--
Contact the manufacturer if your unit is a real radiator, they should
replace it.
Best regards,

Jack Painter
Virginia Beach VA

In article ,
Jack Erbes wrote:

Are there any ferrite loops on any of the wiring involved? Like on the
output leads from the charger, the power leads to the radio, and the
speaker leads on the radio?

--
Jack Erbes in Ellsworth, Maine, USA - jacker at midmaine dot com

Better to stop the RFI at the source, than trying to keep it out of the
radio. Install a "Quality" alternator noise filter as close to the
alternator as possible. Numar makes some good ones. Install noise
filters on all your DC motors. ( Refer, domestic water pump, ect)
Ferrite Filters are nice for filtering poorly designed Marine Electronics
devices, but they just don't have the capabilities for filtering MAJOR
noise sources.

Bruce in alaska
--
add a 2 before @

"Jack Painter" wrote in message
news:9uT8d.7678$%t3.6816@lakeread01...
Hi Richard,

"Jack Erbes" wrote
Richard Cassano wrote:

snip All works great. the wind
generator is putting out plenty of charge, however, the RFI/EMI picked
up by
the SSB radio, (Icom M-802) is extreme.

Are there any ferrite loops on any of the wiring involved? Like on the
output leads from the charger, the power leads to the radio, and the
speaker leads on the radio?

Good point. But before you try adding RF chokes, take a portable AM radio
tuned to any non-bcst frequency (that detects the interference) and see
how
far away it is detectable. If you pick it up several feet away, that wind
generator is a real incidental radiator and no amount of chokes could ever
help. But that would be at odds with claims the manufacturer makes for
similar Air-X equipment.

Perhaps your Air-Marine instructions did not have these comments (pg 45)
on:
http://www.solarpanelsaustralia.com....irx_manual.pdf

Radio Interference
#29 What effect does radio interference have on my AIR-X?
The internal circuitry of the AIR-X is shielded and filtered to prevent
radio interference,
and has been tested to insure electro-magnetic compatibility.


I assume that statement refers to the product being tested to AS / NZS
4251.1 for EMI. Is that what the manufacturer claims? Does the manufacturer
market this product with a "C-Tick" marking, declaring compliance with the
Australian Framework requirements? If so, then what does the manufacturer
have to say about your specific interference problem (since that shouldn't
be happening if their product really is compliant).

Ed
wb6wsn

I spent a couple of weeks at sea on an Air-X equipped sailboat this year,
and I don't recall any problems with RFI. It also was mounted on it's own
mast on the quarter and the SSB antenna was in the back stay. I have no idea
what the other details of the installation were.

"Richard Cassano" wrote in message
. ..
I have a new Air-X Marine wind generator installed aboard a sailboat. The
unit is mounted on a ten foot pole and is wired as per the instruction
manual directly to the 630 amp hour battery bank. All works great. the
wind
generator is putting out plenty of charge, however, the RFI/EMI picked up
by
the SSB radio, (Icom M-802) is extreme. The RFI noise is across all bands
and makes the radio unusable. I can shut off the Air-X with the optional
switch but I was wondering if anyone can confirm that this is a common
experience with other owners of the Air-X Marine wind generator. If so, I
will not look further for a solution. If I am the only one with this
problem
than I can assume the RFI is a result of some defect in the electronics.
One
Note: the backstay antenna is about five feet away from the wind
generator.
Thanks.