Forum Discussion
Intermittent no system light on HT1100 modem
I've got green check marks all the way across top to bottom for 48 hours in the diagnostics. I don't think it is anything I did but appears to be fixed.
Hello Amanda,
Last Friday I was about to hit send with the answers to your questions when I got a text from AllPro Satellites wanting me to confirm a Saturday Morning appointment. I called them and talked to Jonathan, the install manager.
I described the problem I was having and told him I needed a few days to check some things on my end and if he would, put the appointment on hold which he did.
The questions you asked about the power and if I was on a surge protector made me think that very well could be the problem. Because it has been on a 2160 joules Philips surge protector for 17 months, I thought I would try it direct to a power outlet.
So, Saturday it went out briefly at 1:30 pm while I was streaming an internet radio station and by checking the diagnostics I saw that it went out for a few minutes early Sunday morning. Those outages are not a big deal to me and I though it was pretty much normal, so I thought my problem was in fact a faulty surge protector.
Sunday, at almost the same time, about 1:30 pm it was going on and off for about 45 minutes. It has always been around that time of day. Friday It was out at 11:00 am but it seems to always be between 11 am and 2 pm which makes me think that it is on my end.
And did I say that I put the modem direct to power? Well, it is on a 50 foot 16 gauge extension cord that is plugged into a laundry room outlet. That outlet is on a double breaker to make it 240.
When I lost power in the 2 living room outlets back in May and moved the surge protector to the extension cord to the laundry room, that could have been the beginning of my problems.
What do you think? Are extension cords bad for a Hughesnet modems?
duke_mabank wrote:
And did I say that I put the modem direct to power? Well, it is on a 50 foot 16 gauge extension cord that is plugged into a laundry room outlet. That outlet is on a double breaker to make it 240.
I guess the old adage that "we learn something new every day" is true, at least for me. I had no idea that the power pack could utilize a 240 volt source. I looked on the back of mine and, sure enough, it says "100-240." Very interesting.
Perhaps someone in here will have an idea about the extension cord, especially with it supplying 240. I know many cords with the standard 125v plug are only rated for 125 volts, but I don't know if that's just because of the plug being a standard 125v plug, or if there is actually a technical aspect that makes the cord itself only be rated for 125 volts.
One thing to keep in mind, though, is that with a 240 volt source in a three pronged plug the ground is that much more important. A standard 125v plug has one hot leg and two grounds, more or less, while 240 volts through a standard 110v plug has two hot legs and only one ground. Make sure both hot legs are getting the same voltage to ground.
BTW, I made an assumption about your knowledge of your home's electricity due to your comment about the breaker. If you aren't quite knowledgeable, please don't mess with anything. The last thing I want is for anyone to get hurt, and especially get hurt due to my advice.
Gabe,
Tell you the truth, i don't know anything about electricity and I assume a lot that is not correct. So, having said that, I misspoke about the 240 outlet.The laundry room has 2 standard outlets. One for a washer and the other for a dryer, at least that is what I assumed. The Hughesnet modem on the extension cord is plugged into the washer outlet. I'm sure of that much. According to Lowes website, a mid-size washer is 120 volts. No mention of amps. That outlet is protected by a 20 amp breaker.
The other outlet I assumed was for a dryer but now I'm not so sure. The breaker labeled Dryer is on a tandem breaker. In other words, two(2) 40 amp breakers tied together by a little plastic thing. That beaker is off since I don't have a dryer or washer for that matter. I just plugged my electric drill into what I thought was the dryer outlet and it worked. So, where is the outlet for the dryer? I have no clue. I bought this place 7 years ago and that is the first time I thought to check it.
I do have a question. When I was on Lowes website and looked at a mid-size dryer, listed in the specs was this VOLTS: 120/240. What the heck does that mean? Does it mean it will work on both? Guess I can call Lowes and ask them.
Dryers use both 120 and 240v... Half the outlet is 120v, and it uses that half for some of the electronics, and uses the 240v for the heating element.
duke_mabank wrote:So, where is the outlet for the dryer? I have no clue. I bought this place 7 years ago and that is the first time I thought to check it.
The 240V outlet for the dryer will be considerably different looking than a normal outlet, with the "blade slots" usually a little thicker, wider, and turned different ways than those of a standard outlet.
What you explained in your successive post makes a lot more sense. I was scratching my head a little with thinking about 240V through a standard outlet, but I've actually seen odder things, so I figured it was entirely possibe. I shouldn't have made that assumption.
I hope everything is still working well for you.
Well, I am no electrician and I may have trouble tracking someone down in here that would be able to give me an answer but I will tell you a short story of a customer I had in the past...
They had a similar set up as you, except the modem was sharing an outlet with their fridge. When the fridge would turn on to cool, the modem would lose power. Keep in mind that the radio transmitter on your dish is being supported through the modem's power source too. Other setups like power strips or surge protectors may create low power situations that impacts performance (slow speeds, intermittent connection).
