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May ungrounded outlets cause noise?

post #1 of 11
10/17/09 at 3:23pm
Thread Starter 
Hello,

I think that the outlets in my house are not grounded (they haven't the third pin grounded). Do you think that might cause noise in the audio? Have you had any experience with this? Any of you has non grounded outlets?

I suppose battery powered deviced are not affected by this, right?

Thank you
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post #2 of 11
10/18/09 at 1:44am
If you have mains power then your place is a time bomb,you want to get a sparky in there FAST.
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post #3 of 11
10/18/09 at 3:38am
What the?

If your house wiring isn't grounded, it should be. Install a grounding rod if you can.

Some noise can come from bad grounding, but you're also going to find problems with ground loops, RFI and other common problems.

If you have a noise issue, post the particulars (what it sounds like, etc.) and we'll try to help you out.
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post #4 of 11
10/18/09 at 6:24am
I do not think it is that his whole house is ungrounded. I think that he is just saying he has a wall socket that does not have the three pins, just two.

=nkk
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post #5 of 11
10/18/09 at 10:12am
Quote:
Originally Posted by nkk View Post
I do not think it is that his whole house is ungrounded. I think that he is just saying he has a wall socket that does not have the three pins, just two.

=nkk
They make wall outlets in Spain with no ground,???
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post #6 of 11
10/18/09 at 10:53am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by ford2 View Post
They make wall outlets in Spain with no ground,???
Yes, they do.

If you look at the attached images, the first one is a grounded outlet (pins above and below are for ground), and the second one is an ungrounded outlet.

Quote:
Originally Posted by nkk View Post
I do not think it is that his whole house is ungrounded. I think that he is just saying he has a wall socket that does not have the three pins, just two.
I'm afraid my whole flat* is ungrounded. I mean, no outlet is grounded. I suppose this because the original outlets (the ones that were installed when we bought the flat) didn't have gound pins.

*Here in Spain we also say "house", even when it's a "flat".
LL
LL
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post #7 of 11
10/18/09 at 3:59pm
Your house/flat is grounded. Your wall outlets would be grounded from the neutral pin of 2-prong outlets to a central ground at your sevice panel. This is only hazardous if the flat has been wired incorrectly. You may also have a problem if one of your appliances becomes faulty since the electrical fault can travel back along the neutral to other wall outlets on the same circuit. It might also be hazardous if your flat's central ground is connected to metal water pipes running through the building.
Your outlets don't appear to be polarized. This can potentially cause problems if you don't orient the plug properly.

There can be noise from other electronics travelling along the wiring of any circuit. There can also be voltage drops and spikes caused by other applliances (refrigerators, air conditioners, hair dryers, microwaves, etc.) on the same circuit.

Battery powered devices are not directly affected by this. They may be susceptible to any RFI or EMI generated by any noisy circuits or electrical devices in the immediate vicinity.
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post #8 of 11
10/18/09 at 7:15pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by ranma172 View Post
Yes, they do.

If you look at the attached images, the first one is a grounded outlet (pins above and below are for ground), and the second one is an ungrounded outlet.


I'm afraid my whole flat* is ungrounded. I mean, no outlet is grounded. I suppose this because the original outlets (the ones that were installed when we bought the flat) didn't have gound pins.

*Here in Spain we also say "house", even when it's a "flat".
For your whole flat to be wired this way seems strange.This article below states that these sockets are 2.5 amps max.
The link for the article is here.::Electricity around the world: everything about plugs, sockets, voltages, converters, etc.

This two-wire plug is ungrounded and has two round prongs. It is popularly known as the europlug which is described in CEE 7/16. This is probably the single most widely used international plug. It will mate with any socket that accepts 4.0 - 4.8 mm round contacts on 19 mm centres. The plug is generally limited for use in class II applications that require 2.5 amps or less. It is, of course, unpolarised. It is commonly used in all countries of Europe except the United Kingdom and Ireland. It is also used in various parts of the developing world. Whereas type C plugs are very commonly used, this is not the case for type C sockets. This kind of socket is the older and ungrounded variant of socket types E, F, J, K and L. Nowadays most countries demand grounded sockets to be installed in new buildings. Since type C sockets are ungrounded, they are currently being phased out in many countries and replaced by type E, F, J, K or L (depending on the country). A type C plug fits perfectly into a type E, F, J, K or L socket.
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post #9 of 11
10/18/09 at 7:37pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by NightOwl View Post
Your house/flat is grounded. Your wall outlets would be grounded from the neutral pin of 2-prong outlets to a central ground at your sevice panel.
Do you mean that my flat must be grounded even if my wall outlets only have 2 prongs? One of them must be connected to ground?

Quote:
Originally Posted by NightOwl View Post
There can be noise from other electronics travelling along the wiring of any circuit. There can also be voltage drops and spikes caused by other applliances (refrigerators, air conditioners, hair dryers, microwaves, etc.) on the same circuit.
This would happen because my wall outlets are 2-prong or it happens also with 3-prong outlets?

Quote:
Originally Posted by NightOwl View Post
Battery powered devices are not directly affected by this. They may be susceptible to any RFI or EMI generated by any noisy circuits or electrical devices in the immediate vicinity.
I suppose you mean any electric device (with or without battery) can be affected by that.
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post #10 of 11
10/19/09 at 5:09pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by ranma172 View Post
Do you mean that my flat must be grounded even if my wall outlets only have 2 prongs? One of them must be connected to ground?
It appears from the information provided by ford2 that your 2 prong outlets may be ungrounded (a scary thought). Older electrical services that didn't provide a separate grounding wire from the main transformer usually utilised the neutral/return wire to the house service panel which then connected to a separate ground. Your flat may or may not be grounded. You will have to get someone to check.

Quote:
Originally Posted by NightOwl View Post
There can be noise from other electronics travelling along the wiring of any circuit. There can also be voltage drops and spikes caused by other applliances (refrigerators, air conditioners, hair dryers, microwaves, etc.) on the same circuit.
Quote:
Originally Posted by ranma172 View Post
This would happen because my wall outlets are 2-prong or it happens also with 3-prong outlets?
It happens with all services.

Quote:
Originally Posted by NightOwl View Post
Battery powered devices are not directly affected by this. They may be susceptible to any RFI or EMI generated by any noisy circuits or electrical devices in the immediate vicinity.
Quote:
Originally Posted by ranma172 View Post
I suppose you mean any electric device (with or without battery) can be affected by that.
Yes.
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post #11 of 11
10/20/09 at 10:49am
Thread Starter 
Thank you very much for your help.
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