Portable and Mobile Radio RFI Solutions
Portable operation is fun but also brings challenges to the radio operator concerning receiver “noise” levels, RF interference from adjacent sources including close by transmitting stations, and RFI from portable generators. A typical scenario and some suggested Palomar product solutions are shown in the picture.
Portable operation is typical of ham radio operating events such as Field Day, Summits on the Air, Route 66 events, National Parks on the Air, California QSO party, DXpeditions, and emergency operation command posts, etc.
Suggestions
Each low power operating station with a generator should have:
- Generator RFI Kit (Part # RFI-GEN) with FSB31-1 ferrite filters at each end + Nylon ties for security
- Transceiver RFI Kit (Part # RFI-XCVR)
- Laptop RFI Kit (Part # RFI-1C)
- Coax Cable Noise Filter (Part # CMNF-1)
- Bullet-55 portable HF end fed antenna system
AM broadcast transmits on a low frequency with large antennas. Consequently it takes a large antenna to receive the signals. Typical “antennas” are AC house wiring, phone lines, long satellite or cable TV cables, DSL/CAT5 lines running between rooms, etc. The device wires that connect to these “antennas” need to be choked with as many turns through the ferrite as possible. Some installation examples are shown below on this page.
For AC/ DC power cords and coax cables the F240-77 (2.4″ OD, 1.4″ ID) “Donut” toroid is the most popular. Also available are smaller toroid donuts and Mix 77 beads. Shown below is a graph with 8, 10, and 12 turns through the toroid – obviously more turns has higher choking impedance. Mix 77 toroid products are HERE and Mix 77 small beads (for small wires) are HERE
F240-77 Turns Comparison from .1 – 8.1 Mhz
Shown below is a graph of frequency response verses choking magnitude for a F240-77 in the AM Broadcast band for a 12 turn coil around the toroid. (Same info as above but different frequency range).
F240-77 Choking Impedance in AM Broadcast Band
Typical Installations for Donut/Ring Toroids
 AC Cable on F-240 Toroid – 6 turns |
 Ethernet Cable on F-240 Toroid – 7 turns |
 Audio or Mic cable on F240- 12 turns |
Extra Mix 75 Snap On Beads HERE – VERY effective for AM Broadcast RFI