Troubleshooting An Antenna That Only Works When The Lights Are Off

Updated 01/15/2024 | Published 01/14/2024

Products Featured in This Question

Gustafson 12V RV LED Reading Light - 5" Tall - Textured Black

(293)

$32.58

Digital Multimeter with 42" Long Test Leads - LED Display

(3)

$21.89

Question:

We replaced two puck lights with this reading lamp fixture. After doing so the King Jack tv antenna system doesnt work when the lights are on. Turn the lights off and the tv signal comes back...literally with on / off. Any ideas or suggestions as to why... Thank you.

asked by: Kathy

Expert Reply:

The Gustafson 12V RV LED Reading Light # 277-000494 should only pull around 0.25 amps so it's unlikely that you're dealing with a power draw issue, but it wouldn't hurt to check anyway. With a multimeter # PT89ZR test the power at the antenna with the lights off and on. If you're receiving less than 12 volts at the antenna when the lights are on but getting a full 12 volts when the lights are off then they're just drawing too much for the circuit to fully power the antenna.

This could also just be a wiring issue since this problem only started after changing the lights out. I recommend checking the wiring to ensure that everything is correct.

expert reply by: Kevin C