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Kitchen stove effects my computer

H

HansSvetty

Member
Odd post.

When I plug in a USB device, I hear the normal windows "new device" sound. I've been hearing it from the kitchen when the computer was on, and was very concerned with my history of data corruption that has led to multiple reformats, and a recent total system upgrade.

Now I have confirmed that can produce that sound by turning on one of the gas burners on my stove.

Voltage drop or something is affecting the computer. The wires in this house are pretty old, some immediate post WW2.

I want to ensure clean regulated power to the computer without a big cash outlay. (student) I was thinking about a cheap UPS, but I need constant regulation of current rather than backup battery power.

Please advise?

Hans
 
Originally posted by: Evadman
a UPS does power regulation, not just battery backup.
Click to expand...
Some of them do, but not all of them. The UPS has to have AVR, or automatic voltage regulation, before it will boost sagging voltage. A cheap UPS doesn't do anything at all, until the electricity completely stops coming from the wall plug/circuit.
 
Gas stove?

They use hardly any electric. However "pilotless" models have an electronic ignition system that uses a CD (capacitor discharge) power supply to create a high voltage to jump a small gap near the burner to light it. If you have a grounding issue, spurious broadband RF energy may show up in neighboring branch circuits, including your PC. A decent power conditioner between your PC and the wall socket can prevent this from happening.

A bargain basement UPS has minimal filtering and may not be enough, however.
 
A decent power conditioner eh? Sounds plausible. I have to confess not knowing what would make one decent.

Does anyone have advice at the item level--any recommendations on which particular unit might be acceptable for this?

Or a more general question, a guideline: how much should I pay USD to get a decent one?

Hans
 
yeah just get a UPS with AVR. its the most economical way to both protect the pc from bad power sources and at the same time give some minutes to shut down in the event of no power at all.

i like apc models. i have an 800va model that has AVR, and i can tell you it works great. i have a window AC right next to the pc, and it will make the UPS kick in and out every single time it runs. it does this all summer, for two years now. the ups is still going strong, and i can tell my pc likes it too. no weird problems, no failing parts, just goodness.
 
again, a $100 apc battery backup alone will suit 99% of people's needs out there just as well as those $300 power conditioners. i know people will dispute that, but unless your running pc's off generators you really dont need a whole lot of fixing.
 
Originally posted by: HansSvetty
This one? (Rather expensive?)

Belkin protector
Click to expand...

also, thats a ripoff. surge protectors are overrated. a ups will have surge protection in it, and so will line conditioners. and the cheap stand-alone power surge protectors do very very little for protection.
 
Originally posted by: zig3695
again, a $100 apc battery backup alone will suit 99% of people's needs out there just as well as those $300 power conditioners. i know people will dispute that, but unless your running pc's off generators you really dont need a whole lot of fixing.
Click to expand...

The cheap UPS have RC filtering with MOV's. About as good as a $20 power strip "protector".

If something is injecting a lot of noise into the line it's going to require better filtering or even isolation which in the case of the latter, is expensive.
 
Originally posted by: Rubycon
Originally posted by: zig3695
again, a $100 apc battery backup alone will suit 99% of people's needs out there just as well as those $300 power conditioners. i know people will dispute that, but unless your running pc's off generators you really dont need a whole lot of fixing.
Click to expand...


If something is injecting a lot of noise into the line it's going to require better filtering or even isolation which in the case of the latter, is expensive.
Click to expand...

"Something" Do you mean by this, a reference to my gas stove ignition? And by better filtering or isolation, do you refer to a device, rewiring the house, or... ? Sincerely, I'm not snarky, just clueless. Can I buy something, plug it in, and have a fair chance of stopping my trouble, in your opinion?

Hans
 
Originally posted by: zig3695
yeah just get a UPS with AVR. its the most economical way to both protect the pc from bad power sources and at the same time give some minutes to shut down in the event of no power at all.

i like apc models. i have an 800va model that has AVR, and i can tell you it works great. i have a window AC right next to the pc, and it will make the UPS kick in and out every single time it runs. it does this all summer, for two years now. the ups is still going strong, and i can tell my pc likes it too. no weird problems, no failing parts, just goodness.
Click to expand...

What model is the one that seems to work for you?

hans
 
Originally posted by: HansSvetty
This one? (Rather expensive?)

Belkin protector
Click to expand...

I have something similar. Bought is specially for the Z-5500 speakers that were popping so loud when switching on/off the lights in the house that the windows would rattle.
I now power the computer like this:
A Belkin power protector connected to the house power line.
A set of Z-5500 speakers and 2 UPS units plugged into the Belkin.
One UPS is a cheap Trust 400VA, powering the monitor.
The other is a 1000VA QCM Powercom Line Active UPS, powering the computer.

I cannot power both the monitor and computer with the QCM, it gets overloaded.

If you think noise and interference in the power lines is your problem, the Belkin will do fine. If you deal with surges, spikes and short power outages, a UPS will do you good.
 
I have just obtained a used PK Blackout Buster locally from a fellow via craigslist. I am looking for software to use it now.
 
" Now I have confirmed that can produce that sound by turning on one of the gas burners on my stove. "

This is the funniest thing I have read in quite some time. I really cannot believe the GAS Burner has anything to do with your computer problems. That little firestarter arc isn't doing anything to the line power in your house.

" I have just obtained a used PK Blackout Buster locally from a fellow via craigslist. I am looking for software to use it now. "

" No luck: the stove still turns on and off my USB. "

This is not a power problem, as you have already proved. But very well may be a grounding problem or a loose neutral wire in your house wiring. Then again it could just be a coincidence.

pcgeek11
 
You should be able to get one of those circuit testers locally for a lot less than that. They have been as low a $2.00 here on sale and you can get them with ground fault outlet testing capability too. Should easily be able to find one for under $5.00.

Ditto to eTECH. I have a feeling that the outlet you are feeding your equipment from has either no ground or not a true earth ground. You need a true earth ground for your computer system. Your gas stove should have a true earth ground for the chassis too to help keep that spark energy from the starters from affecting other equipment. The neutral wires should also be bound to earth ground at the entry box (breaker/fuse box). No way that turning on a burner should cause a signal on your USB circuit... The tester can give some good evidence, but you might need to pay a professional electrician to verify that your wiring is proper since you admit being clueless. OTOH, you could choose not to remain clueless and check a book on basic electrical wiring theory and practice. It's not rocket science...

Tip: If you care about your equipment, avoid Belkin power products. Their business model is not one that promotes the development of quality products.

.bh.
 
I too find it bizarre, but there is no question of any mistake. It is easily repeatable again and again-- turn on gas stove burner-- windows makes the USB connect sound in the next room.

I will take that advice to learn about electrical wiring. There must be a way to check and repair my grounds, if that is the trouble. True, I am quite clueless.

I ordered this from tiger direct.

UPS
 
Bzzzzzt! Ultra is similar to Belkin when it comes to power products. Maximize profit margin at all costs...

.bh.
 
Originally posted by: Zepper
You should be able to get one of those circuit testers locally for a lot less than that. They have been as low a $2.00 here on sale and you can get them with ground fault outlet testing capability too. Should easily be able to find one for under $5.00.
Click to expand...
The cheapo three lamp testers are only capable of reliably indicating certain wiring faults, but cannot be relied upon to indicate correct wiring. If the tester indicates a problem, its a safe bet there is one, though not necessarily the particular fault condition indicated. It also cannot test the 'quality' (impedence) of the ground path or harmonics due to a defective or poorly designed appliance. These testers will pass a lot of properly connected but piss-poor grounds.

Its a shame, really, these devices are even allowed to be sold at all for the purpose advertised, given the potential consequence of incorrectly concluding there is no problem. If the NEC weren't 30 years out-of-date, there are fairly inexpensive and not very complicated ways to build testing IQ into a residential wiring system, that could be exploited by inexpensive testers with very reliable results (but not the three lamp testers as they currently exist).
 
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