When I'm Tig'n in the garage the Mrs. stars complaining about the interference in the house. I'm using a Miller Syncrowave 200 and the doorbell, stereo, and phone keep "popping" while I'm welding. Do I need to ground everything in the garage (water lines, stereo, electrical conduit and phone lines), or is this common and unavoidable? Any suggestions?

Thanks, Jon

the instructions have a drawing showing how to ground everything. i use mine in an all metal building and all that i can tell is getting messed with is the radio. my welding table is grounded electrically so that is probably a big help.

The door bell too? That is one crazy MF HF.

Make sure that the spark gap is properly adjusted and that you put the cover on it.

It sounds like it's probably the transformer for the bell....but it's hard to tell since it only happens when I'm welding and can't trouble shoot it. I checked the manual and saw the diagram. Do I need to ground the welder itself? I assumed it would be grounded through the wiring:confused: I'm working on a wood bench and the concrete floor. Would this cause a poor ground?

I'll check the spark gap tomorrow. It's a new unit so I didn't think the gap may be out. Thanks for the tips.

-Jon

I have had similar problems in the past, so I contacted the Lincoln customer tech guys via the web, and this was what they sent me back...

" MACHINE GROUNDING AND HIGH FREQUENCY
INTERFERENCE PROTECTION
The welder must be grounded. See your local and national electrical
codes for proper grounding methods.
The high frequency generator, being similar to a radio transmitter, can
be blamed for radio, TV and electronic equipment interference problems.
These problems may be the result of radiated interference. Proper
grounding methods can reduce or eliminate radiated interference.
Radiated interference can develop in the following four ways:
1. Direct interference radiated from the welder.
2. Direct interference radiated from the welding leads.
3. Direct interference radiated from feedback into the power lines.
4. Interference from re-radiation of "pickup" by ungrounded metallic
objects.
Keeping these contributing factors in mind, installing equipment per
the
following instructions should minimize problems.
1. Keep the welder power supply lines as short as possible and enclose
as much of them as possible in rigid metallic conduit or equivalent
shielding for a distance of 50 feet (15.2m). There should be good
electrical contact between this conduit and the welder case ground.
Both
ends of the conduit should be connected to a driven ground and the
entire length should be continuous.
2. Keep the work and electrode leads as short as possible and as close
together as possible.
Lengths should not exceed 25 ft (7.6m). Tape the leads together when
practical.
3. Be sure the torch and work cable rubber coverings are free of cuts
and cracks that allow high frequency leakage.
4. Keep the torch in good repair and all connections tight to reduce
high frequency leakage.
5. The work piece must be connected to an earth ground close to the
work
clamp, using one of the following methods:SQUARE WAVE TIG 175
A-4
a) A metal underground water pipe in direct contact with the earth for
ten feet or more.
b) A 3/4" (19mm) galvanized pipe or a 5/8" (16mm) solid galvanized
iron,
steel or copper rod driven at least eight feet into the ground.
The ground should be securely made and the grounding cable should be as
short as possible using cable of the same size as the work cable, or
larger.
Grounding to the building frame electrical conduit or a long pipe
system
can result in re-radiation, effectively making these members radiating
antennas.
6. Keep cover and all screws securely in place.
7. Electrical conductors within 50 ft (15.2m) of the welder should be
enclosed in grounded rigid metallic conduit or equivalent shielding,
wherever possible.
Flexible metallic conduit is generally not suitable.
8. When the welder is enclosed in a metal building, the metal building
should be connected to several good earth driven electrical grounds (as
in 5 (b)
above) around the periphery of the building.
Failure to observe these recommended installation procedures can cause
radio or TV and electronic equipment interference problems and result
in
unsatisfactory welding performance resulting from lost high frequency
power."



Hope this helps...

Chad-

Yeah, what Chumly said...

The transformer for your door bell is probably in (or close to) your garage (mine is) Adding shielding or a cover might help. The high freq from Tig can screw up nearby computers, cell phones, TVs, etc. A buddy of mine fried his brand new Treo cellphone(left it in his pocket while Tig Welding...oops, good thing he had the replacement coverage)

Spark gaps are notorious for broad band interference-that's hwy they were outlawed in radio transmitters. Something in your home is either being horribly overloaded by RF, or there is something in the circuit that is resonant at a harmonic of the frequency of your TIG.

On a related note my plasma will make my cell phone go nuts if its in my pocket, it has an HF start. Same problem?
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Spark gaps are notorious for broad band interference-that's hwy they were outlawed in radio transmitters. Something in your home is either being horribly overloaded by RF, or there is something in the circuit that is resonant at a harmonic of the frequency of your TIG.

Any idea on the other sources for the RF? The bell transformer clicks when we have lightning in the area and even with static discharge (not much humidity around here).

I think I've has my leads further apart than normal so I'll see if keeping them close together helps. I'll also ground the work piece separately from the welder ground.

I'll try the other tips as well. My power supply only runs 4' from the panel and is grounded 6 ga. so I thought it would be good. The electrical panel is in the garage and the grounding rod is just outside so it would be pretty easy to ground everything just to be safe.

-Jon

my 350x synchrowave really messes with my neighbors TV...... it's funny to
hear them yell at the TV, and the welder is barely making any noise....

--Sherpa