Summary:
Technical team members went to the VE7EGO site and installed an AC relay for PiEGO's shack fan control.
Big thanks to Bud VE7KBK for the donation of the AC relay and mounting socket.
Big thanks to Ted for his expert assistance on very short notice.
Attendees:
VE7TRZ Terry
VE7UIH Ted
VE7KPZ Mike
Access:
The usual route was taken to access the VE7EGO Commonage site. All attendees drove their own vehicles. Fortunately, there was no snow yet on the access road.
Just before heading up to the VE7EGO site, Mike telephoned Kevin at 250-744-0732 who is in charge of exploding/disposing of WW2 munitions still in the hillsides. Upon departure from the site, Mike texted Kevin to notify him of our departure. Kevin likes to know both the ins and outs of our visits to the VE7EGO site. He prefers a call when inbound and a text when outbound.
Events Leading Up To The Visit
The back EMF from the shack fan motor (on stop) was noticed to be interfering with other facilities of the PiEGO. Terry deemed that more isolation between the PiEGO and the fan's AC power source needed to faciliated.
Actions Taken:
Ted installed an AC relay (graciously donated by Bud VE7KBK) in the fan's power supply line. The AC coil control signal was sourced from the PiEGO-controlled power bar's socket that was previously used to power the fan.
Ted and Terry then confirmed that the fan's AC circuit and the PiEGO's AC circuit were on alternate mains load sources.
Next Steps:
Terry will remotely reconfigure the PiEGO to remove the software workaround put in place to handle the back-EMF issue.
On the next trip up to the site, we will install 2 electrical box extenders and the electrical box cover plate to fully encapsulate the AC relay in the fan's junction box.
Terry will continue to monitor the PiEGO for power anomalies and develop/implement solutions when required.
FYI,
Mike VE7KPZ
NORAC Vice-President 2017-2020, Technical team member