Jack Painter wrote:

"Michael McNabb" wrote

I had a thought the other night. My wireless keyboard has limited
range when my Home Theater PC (HTPC) is enclosed in a cabinet. I have
already tapped into the keyboard receiver to access the antenna trace
on the circuit board by adding a long wire which I string away and
outside of the cabinet. This improved the range. Then I had my
thought, what about wiring my external antenna wire into the ground of
a 3-prong power outlet. I thought about testing the voltage and
current between the antenna wire and ground prong but decided what the
heck it is suppose to be grounded. Well, the range is well extended
now, but I am wondering what are the risks? I am probably risking
damage to my keyboard receiver but so far it works great. I am a very
amateur electronics person so I know some stuff but I don't know what
would be the best solution to protecting the receiver from damage, if
it is needed at all. My questions are why shouldn't I do this, what
are the risks, and is there anyway to do this while minimizing the
risks?

Hi Michael, you are correct there is no voltage on your home ground wiring
under normal conditions. And there is normally no more noise on ground than
is also present on the line and neutral wiring. But, if you are in an area
prone to thunderstorms, or if there are equipments in your home capable of
generating surge currents, AND you use standard MOV-type surge protecting
"power strips" there is a risk. Any transisent surge voltages on your
circuits could be referenced to ground by those surge protectors and right
into your receiver's front end.

Also, what about 802.11b? I am thinking that is even more risky since
the AP is both a receiver and transmitter and grounding the
transmitter signal would probably diminish its range substantially.

It could also cause harmful interference to other equipment including it's
own receiver.

Best regards,

Jack Painter
Virginia Beach, Va


If you have access to an oscilloscope you might find it interesting to
take a look at what is riding on your ground wire - it can be quite an
education.

Dave