X10 Community Forum

🔌General Home Automation => Automating Your House => Troubleshooting Automation Problems => Topic started by: luis84 on July 23, 2012, 08:00:01 PM

Title: Random X10 Failure
Post by: luis84 on July 23, 2012, 08:00:01 PM

Hello Everyone,

I have been using an X10 system for about a month with no issues at all.

Today out of the blue my x10 signals started to fail to one room in particular.  I later noticed it was to half the house.  It is not a phase coupling issue.

So I am curious as to what it could be, I can't seem to find anything that was newly connected.  I know something must be generating interference.

What would be a good way to troubleshoot this?

Title: [Solved] Random X10 Failure
Post by: luis84 on July 23, 2012, 08:22:55 PM

Solved: It was my Xbox 360.  It has it's own power supply which evidently causes issues when connected.

Update: I thought maybe something on the phase/circuit might be causing the issue.  So I identified other plugs on the same breaker, I then tried the x10 modules in those - they work just great!

The issue is isolate to one specific room where X10 was working fine before!!!!!!!!!!!!

This is strange! Any ideas?

Title: Re: Random X10 Failure
Post by: Brian H on July 24, 2012, 05:59:50 AM

What are you using for phase coupling? If half the house was effected. It does sound like a phase coupling issue. Like maybe you are using a passive coupler and the signal being coupled is full of noise or too weak.

If the X10 power line signals are marginal. Any small change in noise or signal absorption could cause a problem.

I forget where you are located but do know some countries have poorly regulated and noisy power sources.

http://jvde.us/x10_troubleshooting.htm
http://www.act-remote.com/PCC/uncle.htm

Title: Re: Random X10 Failure
Post by: dhouston on July 24, 2012, 06:23:27 AM

The first question is whether the country you are in uses split-phase power or whether it is single phase. Is your house fed with 240V that gets split into two phases or is the feed 120V?

Title: Re: Random X10 Failure
Post by: luis84 on July 28, 2012, 01:26:59 AM

Hello,

The lines here are 2 - 120v to make 240.  However, here they do some weird stuff and the signal makes it across the lines with no phase coupler.

The whole problem turned out to be a video game console though , my Xbox 360 has it's own power supply and surge protector built into the plug, it seems like it sucks down the X10 signal.  The second I disconnect it, everything works.

Title: Re: Random X10 Failure
Post by: Brian H on July 28, 2012, 06:07:23 AM

Small switching type power supplies are one of the common power line signal troublemakers.

Title: Re: Random X10 Failure
Post by: pomonabill221 on August 02, 2012, 04:37:47 PM

Quote from: Brian H on July 28, 2012, 06:07:23 AM

Small switching type power supplies are one of the common power line signal troublemakers.

AMEN!!!!  I use Jeff's XTBM to find the noisy ones and the signal suckers!  GREAT TOOL!!!