Re: Water heater eating X-10 signal

[ddl@danlan.*com (Dan Lanciani)]

In article <1177470203.376066.127500@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>, graftonfot@xxxxxxxxx writes:

| Sorry for the delay, finally got time to do a little data gathering on
| this issue.
|
| I find my measurement results a bit confusing.
|
| In my breaker panel I have a Leviton HCA02-10E coupler/repeater.  It's
| wired via an existing 2-pole 30A breaker feeding a dryer, and was part
| of my working configuration before this problem started.
|
| To do some measurements, I wrote a small HomeSeer script consisting of
| a loop which sends "B1" "ON", waits 3 seconds, sends "B1" "OFF", waits
| another 3 seconds, then repeats.
|
| With this script running I measured signal levels in the breaker panel
| using an ESM-1 connected via alligator clip leads.

Where did you connect the clips in the panel?

| Here are my (somewhat puzzling) results.  I've arbitrarily labeled the
| phases "A" and "B", and expressed the observed signal strengths in
| terms of number of bars lit on the ESM-1:
|
| Condition: HCA02 breaker OFF, water heater breaker OFF
|     Phase A: approx 1.5 bars
|     Phase B: 0 bars
|
| Condition HCA02 breaker OFF, water heater breaker ON
|     Phase A: approx 1.5 bars
|     Phase B: 0 bars
|
| Condition HCA02 breaker ON, water heater breaker OFF
|     Phase A: 5 bars
|     Phase B: 4 bars
|
| Condition HCA02 breaker ON, water heater breaker ON
|     Phase A: 5 bars
|     Phase B: 4 bars
|
| Apparently the HCA02 is performing its repeater function quite well.
| But what's puzzling is that with the coupler in-circuit, closing the
| breaker for the water heater apparently has no visible effect on the
| signal coupling as shown by the ESM-1 at the breaker panel, even
| though I've repeatedly confirmed that it debilitates my control of my
| front yard lighting.
|
| Shouldn't I expect to see a big drop in Phase B signal with the water
| heater circuit connected?

Are you sure that one or both elements in the water heater come(s) on when
you enable its breaker?  Alternately, do you know that the yard lighting
control is debilitated even when no elements are on?  Or maybe simplest of
all:  were you checking that the yard lighting control came and went as you
closed and opened the breaker during your above tests?

				Dan Lanciani
				ddl@danlan.*com