IR and Powermid strength

[mm]

1) Can the infrared sensor on IR remote control receivers get weak, or
do they normally just fail.

If the IR receivers get weak, can they be replaced? Or repaired?
Change the IR-unit itself? a nearby cap?

The most important one that seems to have gone bad is in my 3-year old
300 dollar DVDR w/HDD. (Not a lot of money by some standards but it
is by mine. Plus, if I replaced it, I'd like to get a better model but
there is none (that is designed for over the air))

It's been getting weaker, I think, for a couple weeks. But tonight it
won't work at all and there is no way to change stations on the box
itself. (Only on/off, play, stop, record, eject.)

2) Also, my two new-used my Powermid pyramids seem very weak.

Thanks again to whoever suggested I get Powermids to control my dvd
player from the other rooms. They work really, really well. I got 3
new sets. (4 at first, but one transmitter was no good.)

Last week at a hamfest I got two old used sets with the Radio Shack
brand. 2 dollars a pair. They work a little, but not well**. (He
implied they worked when he set he got new cable stuff that made them
unnecessary, but I'm not mad at him, I just.)

**(Testing is complicated because it seems I bought a package of bad
AAA batteries at Walmart. The date on the package is 2014, but they
only work for a week or two in a remote, and then they seem to work
only on alternate days!! On bad days, the remote had to be held only
an inch from the DVD IR sensor, even though when shone at a good
Powermid, the remote would work from 10 feet away. But even on the
good days, the DVD remote doesn't work well with the new-old units.
And even on the batteries' bad days, the DVD remote does work with
with the new-new Powermids. I keep meaning but forgetting to buy
more batteries.)


3) The interesting thing about Powermid is that they have a red led
that goes on when I shine a remote control at one. These two new old
used transmitters, when installed in the bathroom, have the light on
whenever the bathroom ceiling light is on! I don't rememmber if that
is a CFL or not and it's surrounded by a frosted globe. One of them
also has its light on whenever the CRT TV underneath it is on. Isn't
that strange? I haven't looked inside yet. Any chance they can be
fixed by a medium-level-amateur techie?


Thanks a lot.

 

[mm]

CFLs are a known problem with IR systems...make sure any you buy are
Energy-Star qualified:

http://news.consumerreports.org/home/2007/11/cfl-problems.html

I guess I'm "lucky". They havent' changed my channels yet.

Okay, Engergy-star it is. I thought that only related to power-usaage
efficiency, but I guess it is inefficient to make IR that no one can
use to see. In fact I assumed all CFLs would be energy-star because
they are all so efficient, I thought.

"Energy Star-qualified CFLs likely won’t cause this
interference,.......... Our advice is that your friend not use CFLs in
fixtures near her TVs, radios, remote controls, or cell phones" So
they likely won't cause a problem, but don't use them. LOL

"If interference occurs, she should move the CFLs away from the
electronic equipment or plug the light fixture and the electronic
device in different outlets." Plugging into different outlets!! That
doesnt' sound to me like it would help. After all, it's the light
from the bulb that goes in through the IR sensor in the device. No
one claims the IR light from the light fixture goes back into the
electric wires and then goes into the TV through the power cord. So
why do they say things like this. Did he copy and paste from an
article on something else?


I dont' remember what is up there, but it's probably one of the new
actually inexpensive ones from Home Depot. They warm up almost
immediately, and the are Eco-Smart (tm) but not Energy Star. It won't
hurt me to buy some Energy-Star, even if only the bathroom "needs"
one.

Above the sink, which bubls I've turned off, are two 40-watt
equivalents, which I think I bought early on just to try out CFLs.

The cheap ones at HD 3 months ago were only 50 and 100 watt equiv.
The 40 and 75 watt were still expensive for some reason. Maybe by now
that has changed, but after I find am energy star brand that works for
the ceiling, I'll buy some for above the sink.

I use these CFLs in the basement too, and my bedroom, and the office,
all in ceiling fixtures, but they've never caused a problem (except
maybe with the digital to analog converter, that I posted aobut a long
time ago. But I've learned to get around that problem.)

You can tell how 'bright' your transmitter is by looking at it with your
digital camera - the IR LEDs will look white when on.

Very good to know. I'll try it.

John :-#)#

Thanks a lot.

 

[mm]

"Powermid" is a pair of 4" high black pyramids, one a transmitter and
one a receiver, by which one can convert an IR remote to radio waves
and relay the IR signal to another room in the same house. Usually
works very well.

Have you replaced the batteries?

John

Thanks for your reply

For sure. The problemhas been that the IR receiver on the DVDR seems
to be getting weaker. Even when the Powermid can receive the remote
signal from 10 feet away, the DVDR itself, with all but the strongest
newest battereis, sometimes won't work from 2 feet away, or even 2
inches or a half-inch. It has to be right up at faceplate of the
DVDR.

Or is it normal for something controlled by Powermid to work with such
a weak remote signal, while a directly controled device won't?


John's post may weil have solved the bathroom problem, but for those
who find it interesting, I have more info about the problem with
Powermid in the bathroom. When the tv and all the lights are off, a
remote control will actuate the Powermid. But when the ceiling light
is on (I don't remember if there is a CFL inside, but I suposed so)
and the red light is on the Powermid, even putting the remote right up
to the face of the Powermid won't make it work. Sometimes the light
can be on and the red Powermid light not on!, but otoh time doesn't
seem to be the factor. I've taken a 30-minute bath and the red light
never goes off.


I could change the ceiling light to a regular incandescent, but also
when the TV is on, the Powermid red light goes on, and there's little
point to controlling the DVD player when the TV is off. Oh, that
problem isn't solved, but maybe that problem will just go away.

 

[William Sommerwerck]

Or is it normal for something controlled by Powermid to work with

such a weak remote signal, while a directly controled device won't?

It's possible that the Powermid transponder (or its extender) puts out more
IR than the remote control itself. Regardless, you have a problem of some
sort, either with the remote or the receiver in the device.

By the way, regular fluorescent lamps can cause problems with IR-controlled
devices.

I have no idea what would make a particular CFL eligible for an EnergyStar
label. Fluroescents produce about four times as much light (for a given
power input) as regular incandescent lamps. They are inherently
energy-efficient.

 

[mm]

It's possible that the Powermid transponder (or its extender) puts out more
IR than the remote control itself. Regardless, you have a problem of some
sort, either with the remote or the receiver in the device.

By the way, regular fluorescent lamps can cause problems with IR-controlled
devices.

Thanks. I didnt' know that. (Just as I didn't know about the CFL's
until less than a year ago.)

I don't have any regular fluorescents.... but I have bought a fixture
for my kitchen. Ugh. I guess that would likely increase my problems.

It came with two long U-shaped bulbs, 2 to 3 feet long. I don't
suppose those are a known exception and don't emit IR.

I have no idea what would make a particular CFL eligible for an EnergyStar
label. Fluroescents produce about four times as much light (for a given
power input) as regular incandescent lamps. They are inherently
energy-efficient.

That's what I thought. Maybe the Energy-Star people are bluffing or
lying, but it's worth a few dollars to find out, regarding CFL's. But
in the kitchen, I would think those long U-shaped ones are expensive,
to replace brand-new bulbs when I have no other place to use them.

I guess what I have to do is connect the fixture without attaching it
to the ceiling, and see what effect it has.

Then if I have to, I can give away the whole fixture. (I also spent
about 30 dollars to replace the wall switch timer with a special
fluoresent-compatible wall switch timer, to keep the house looking
lived in when I'm away.

Thank you for bringing this up. I definitely would not have thought
to do testing before installation if you hadn't.


(In order to get more light in the kitchen, I exceeded the 60 or 75
watts allowed in those glass spheres (there are three of them). and it
didn't cause a fire of course, but over the course of a decade or
more, the bakelite? or plastic that surrounds the threads of the
socket turned brittle and somewhat fell apart, largely in one case,
and also there's not as much to hold the metal threads in place, and
one socket won't work anymore, probably no longer makes contact with
the center of the bulb. I coudl repair all this or, I think, buy a
brigher non-fluorescent fixture, bigg but I thought fluorescent would
look nice. Modern, since I'm stilll living in the 50's anything from
the 60's seems modern to me. )

 

[David]

"William Sommerwerck" wrote in message

Or is it normal for something controlled by Powermid to work
with
such a weak remote signal, while a directly controled device
won't?

It's possible that the Powermid transponder (or its extender)
puts out more
IR than the remote control itself. Regardless, you have a problem
of some
sort, either with the remote or the receiver in the device.

By the way, regular fluorescent lamps can cause problems with
IR-controlled
devices.

I have no idea what would make a particular CFL eligible for an
EnergyStar
label. Fluroescents produce about four times as much light (for a
given
power input) as regular incandescent lamps. They are inherently
energy-efficient.
***
I have no idea what energy star has to do with remote control
interference. The basic problem is an I.R. remote modulates its
I.R. output between 35 and 45 KHz. The receiver is tuned to
listen in that frequency band. If the electronic ballast happens
to operate in that frequency band, then interference can be the
result. I doubt energy star has anything to do with the frequency
the ballast happens to use.

David

 

[mm]

Follow-up on IR remote remote

I figured that just like light fills the whole room when you turn on a
light, so did IR!

But no, I noticed that if I held my hand between the CFL ceiling light
and the Powermid pyramid, the red light on the pyramid went off.

So rather than change the bulb, I was going to make a little paper
awning that would keep the IR from the light away from the pyramid.

But I noticed again that turning on the tv also lights the red light,
and that no place I put a paper shield made any difference.

So I'll do more testing, with a pyramid and mostly with other
televisions. Or moving the pyramid. I may have to install another
outlet -- the room only has one.

I have five of these in operation, but only the bathroom gives me a
problem, maybe because that ceiling light is only a foot in front of
the pyramid and because only there does the pyramid sit right on the
tv.

Thanks again for all the advice.

 

[mm]

Follow-up on IR remote remote

I figured that just like light fills the whole room when you turn on a
light, so did IR!

But no, I noticed that if I held my hand between the CFL ceiling light
and the Powermid pyramid, the red light on the pyramid went off.

I ran the power cord across the sink, though I didn't want to do that,
and moved the powermid to almost 3 feet from tv, so the tv doesn't
cause the red light to go on anymore.

But I'd still like to know why the IR doesn't bounce off the white
walls and fixtures and fill the room, like the visible light does.

 

[mm]

CFL's, LCD and plasma displays have a habit of interfereing with the
operation of IR sensors depending on design. I have a Powermid, but
haven't used it in a while.

Thanks all. The TV is a CRT, but nonetheless, it does make the red
light on the Powermid transmitter turn on, and when the light is on,
nothing from my remote gets relayed, except sometimes if the remote is
only an inch or so from the Powermid. But the bathtub is 8 feet
away!

But as you can see in my other posts today, other than finding a way
to run the power cord to the right of the sink without going over the
sink, I've solved the problem, even before I had time to shop for
lightbulbs.

 

[[email protected]]

I ran the power cord across the sink, though I didn't want to do that,
and moved the powermid to almost 3 feet from tv, so the tv doesn't
cause the red light to go on anymore.

But I'd still like to know why the IR doesn't bounce off the white
walls and fixtures and fill the room, like the visible light does.

If the IR doesn't bounce off of the tiles it is because the tiles are
absorbing the IR. Many substances that are opaque to visible light let
IR shine through. This is why law enforcement agencies sometimes use
IR cameras to look for pot growing operations by flying above homes.