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Appliance module keeps prematurely turning off

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mikeybmars:
I use X10 macros via a Cm15A to contol props in my Halloween display.    All work fine except for one, which is having sporadic issues.  It is a timed macro that at one point sends a command to a three pin appliance module to turn a mirror ball motor on and then sends a second command 26 seconds later to turn it off.   

The problem is that command in the macro doesn't work consistently.  Sometimes it executes the sequence properly, but more frequently it turns the appliance unit on but then turns it off prematurely (about 10 seconds after it turned it on).

I have already done troublshooting to see if other modules in my setup are causing this problem, and came up empty.   The mirror ball motor doesn't draw a big load (it's rated at 3 W, <0.1 A ) so I don't think that's the issue.

Does anyone have any suggestions as to what else I should be doing to fix this?

 

Brian H:
If you turn it On directly through AHP. Will it sty On until you turn it Off?
It is possible it is making power line noise and falsely triggering it back Off.

Would you happen to know if it is new enough to be the CFL Friendly one?

mikeybmars:
Thanks for the reply.   The appliance module I am using is a AM466, which is older so I don't think it is CFL friendly.  If I go into my AHP software and flip the switches for that appliance module, yes, it can be manually turned on and stays on until I manually turn it off. 

However, if I run the macro from the computer, I encounter the same premature turn off problem I described.

One other point I can add is the appliance module always prematurely turns off at the exact same point in the macro, right after a universal module in it executes a momentary closure of the relay it contains (which triggers a sound card to start running).   The appliance module turns off immediately after the second "click" comes from the universal module, which signfies it's relay going back to open mode.   
 
When you mentioned the possibility of line noise, are you referring to that being possibly created by the appliance module itself or are you referring to that being perhaps  being created by the mirror ball motor it is controlling, or some other external noise source?    Asking because I could try plugging that motor into an XPPF filter and then plugging that filter into the AM466.   

Brian H:
Thank you for the information.
I think you macro maybe sending an off when you momentarily pulse the Universal Module and it also is turning off the AM466.
Can you post the macro?
The Universal Module is not an the same X10 address as the AM466?

mikeybmars:
Thanks for you thoughts.   I will post the macro once I copy it.  My functioning copy of original AHP software is on another (aging) computer, which I only turn on to access it and will do tomorrow.

As for the macro sending an off signal when it sends a command to the universal module, the macro is written to only send an "on" signal to it (since the module is set on momentary, it doesn't need an off signal and I don't think AHP automatically creates one).   Lastly the universal and appliance modules have different addresses.

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