0

Recently moved into this house, built in 1994:

  • Computer monitor resets: This happens periodically (possibly when large electrical appliances kick on like the fridge), but it also happens almost every time when a fairly proximate ~15w LED light is switched on. I have it on a MinuteMan UPS now, but it doesn't help. It is not on a circuit with any large appliances.
  • TV resets: This also happens seemingly randomly, though again, it could be correlated with e.g. the fridge compressor. Again, no large appliances are on this circuit, nor is it on the same circuit as the monitor above. The TV peripheral devices (AmazonFire stick, Chromecast, etc.) are also affected (e.g. a movie will stop and need to be re-initialized, though that could be the result of the TV restarting).
  • Bang/clicking noise: Sometimes at night I'll hear a single bang/click noise seemingly from the wall, though there are no nearby appliances of which I am aware--I think this noise may be correlated with e.g. the TV resetting (maybe I'm hearing the furnace jolt through the duct?).

Not sure if all of these are related, or if I should focus on resolving them individually. Given that the house is new to me and the electronics are not (and were working fine in a previous residence), I'm assuming it's the house's (or the community's) electrical problems.

Update: I've removed all of the lights from the hallway light that was giving the monitor problems. The lightswitch still affects the monitor, albeit seemingly less often.

Improve this question
2
  • Do the lights flicker at all? – Tyson Feb 6 '18 at 12:21
  • No, not that I've noticed, they're mostly LED fwiw. – Tahlor Feb 6 '18 at 20:15
1

How often is this happening? If it is happening frequently enough, I'd turn off some of the circuit breakers and see if something on one of them is causing the issue.

Call your utility company. A few years ago I was having a power quality issue in an apartment that would cause my computer and network UPS's to click on and back off momentarily every 20-60 minutes. Since it was a new issue and nothing had changed in the apartment, I called the utility company. They suggested LED lighting could be affecting the power but I said I hadn't installed any recently. They ended up attaching a power quality analyzer to diagnose the issue and they were able to fix it. I never heard what the issue ended up being, but it wasn't just my apartment. It was just such a subtle one that no one else had detected it and reported it.

Improve this answer
7
  • The monitor goes out all the time (e.g. 3+ times in an hour, mostly because of the hallway light switch being used). For the TV, I can expect it to go out ~1 time in a 2 hour movie at night. – Tahlor Feb 6 '18 at 20:16
  • @Tahlor try replacing the light bulbs in the hallway. Half rectified loads could be the cause – Jon Feb 6 '18 at 20:18
  • Thanks for the advice, I took out the light bulbs and now the monitor resets when I turn the lightswitch on (albeit seemingly less frequently). Nothing else is on that switch as far as I know, I'll probably give the electric company a call and see what they say. – Tahlor Feb 7 '18 at 2:16
  • @Tahlor Is that switch a dimmer? The fact that the switch in your house causes this seems to rule out a utility supply problem. I'd call an electrician. They make meters to detect power quality issues but they're expensive amazon.com/dp/B01HAWNUAC – Jon Feb 7 '18 at 15:44
  • Wow, that is expensive. It's just an ordinary switch. – Tahlor Feb 7 '18 at 16:09

Your Answer

By clicking “Post Your Answer”, you agree to our terms of service, privacy policy and cookie policy

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged or ask your own question.