USB Charger causing radio static

A

AA5Bman

Line Up and Wait
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Jun 14, 2009
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He who ironically no longer flies an AA5B
Recently, my radios have seemed to develop a major case of static and interference. I’m a slow learner, apparently, and finally figured out it’s the USB charger I’m using in the cigarette lighter to power my Sentry Mini that is causing the problem! Now, this is an old plane that I bought recently with pretty crappy radios which I intend to rip out eventually, but they’re tolerable without the charger being plugged in. Trouble is, I bought the Sentry Mini (another stop-gap measure for weather, traffic, and GPS position that will be addressed via the panel redo) which does not have an internal battery and must be plugged in to work.

In your experience, is the static and interference caused by using the wrong charger /cigarette plug adaptor, or is it a case of using the adaptor at all? Is there a higher quality charger that will not cause this, or is it kind of a dead end?
 
AA5Bman said:
Recently, my radios have seemed to develop a major case of static and interference. I’m a slow learner, apparently, and finally figured out it’s the USB charger I’m using in the cigarette lighter to power my Sentry Mini that is causing the problem! Now, this is an old plane that I bought recently with pretty crappy radios which I intend to rip out eventually, but they’re tolerable without the charger being plugged in. Trouble is, I bought the Sentry Mini (another stop-gap measure for weather, traffic, and GPS position that will be addressed via the panel redo) which does not have an internal battery and must be plugged in to work.

In your experience, is the static and interference caused by using the wrong charger /cigarette plug adaptor, or is it a case of using the adaptor at all? Is there a higher quality charger that will not cause this, or is it kind of a dead end?
Click to expand...

Do you get static if you use the charger with something like a phone or other device? Does the static start as soon as the adapter is plugged into the socket or does it also have to be plugged into the Sentry device for the static to start? I would assume the Sentry (being an aviation device) would have decent enough components to not cause the issue, so my first guess is the charger itself causing the issue.

I had similar issue converting the headlights in my old Jeep to LED. The cheap components in the LED power converter caused static in my AM/FM radio. I got some ferrite rings to snap onto the power lines which helped a bit, but it's still 'noisy'.
 
AA5Bman said:
In your experience, is the static and interference caused by using the wrong charger /cigarette plug adaptor, or is it a case of using the adaptor at all? Is there a higher quality charger that will not cause this, or is it kind of a dead end?
Click to expand...
Some chargers cause radio noise. I've had mostly good luck with anker chargers.

USB Charge Ports - RV10 Community Wiki

rv10.org rv10.org
 
AA5Bman said:
Recently, my radios have seemed to develop a major case of static and interference. I’m a slow learner, apparently, and finally figured out it’s the USB charger I’m using in the cigarette lighter to power my Sentry Mini that is causing the problem! Now, this is an old plane that I bought recently with pretty crappy radios which I intend to rip out eventually, but they’re tolerable without the charger being plugged in. Trouble is, I bought the Sentry Mini (another stop-gap measure for weather, traffic, and GPS position that will be addressed via the panel redo) which does not have an internal battery and must be plugged in to work.

In your experience, is the static and interference caused by using the wrong charger /cigarette plug adaptor, or is it a case of using the adaptor at all? Is there a higher quality
Click to expand...

AA5Bman said:
Recently, my radios have seemed to develop a major case of static and interference. I’m a slow learner, apparently, and finally figured out it’s the USB charger I’m using in the cigarette lighter to power my Sentry Mini that is causing the problem! Now, this is an old plane that I bought recently with pretty crappy radios which I intend to rip out eventually, but they’re tolerable without the charger being plugged in. Trouble is, I bought the Sentry Mini (another stop-gap measure for weather, traffic, and GPS position that will be addressed via the panel redo) which does not have an internal battery and must be plugged in to work.

In your experience, is the static and interference caused by using the wrong charger /cigarette plug adaptor, or is it a case of using the adaptor at all? Is there a higher quality charger that will not cause this, or is it kind of a dead end?
Click to expand...
Switch mode power supplies can be hideously noisy. It’s not your sentry, radios, or aircraft. It’s the proximity of the usb power supply to your radios and audio panel. Just get a new usb adaptor, search for low Rf noise if buying on Amazon, I’ve had great luck with this one https://www.amazon.com/Charger-Adap...fa3-4b59-9b48-be03e11f8b58&pd_rd_i=B08N4WKJMT
 
AA5Bman said:
In your experience, is the static and interference caused by using the wrong charger /cigarette plug adaptor, or is it a case of using the adaptor at all?
Click to expand...
You'll find the cheaper electronic devices like chargers, LEDs, adapters, etc emit higher levels of RF noise. And similar devices designed specifically for aircraft manage that RF issue but at a cost. However, as mentioned there are some non-aviation brands that do quite well in aircraft. Just need to find the ones that work in your aircraft.
 
Charger/adapter. Try various until you find a clean one without noise. You’ll find one.
 
I have struggled with this quite a bit with my sailplane. Small Cockpit so not easy to get it very far away from the radio. I have tried a handful of chargers with not much success, priced up to about $20. I would pay up to $50 for a good one that worked without causing radio noise. Hasn't got to the point to trying a $400 aviation charger. For the past few years I have been using portable chargers (battery). I just carry a couple of these with me and have attached them to my PDA Mount with a short cable to my PDA that it powers. I can also charge my phone from them.

Brian
 
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Boyfalldown said:
Switch mode power supplies can be hideously noisy. It’s not your sentry, radios, or aircraft. It’s the proximity of the usb power supply to your radios and audio panel.
Click to expand...

This ^^^

I mounted my USB power output in the cargo area behind the seat (two seat side by side) and use a long cable to power my iPhone in flight.
 
Aircraft Spruce claims this one has NO radio interference. It's $50.00 https://www.aircraftspruce.com/catalog/elpages/mgfmicrocharger13-15538.php?clickkey=2408592 I've had a dual port unit I bought from Amazon in my plane for a couple of years and it has worked fine without causing any interference. I don't remember the brand name, but it was about $10. Prior to my success with the current charger I had a series of chargers that would work fine for a while and then suddenly start making noise on all of my radios. I changed chargers multiple times before having any lasting success. It might be cheaper to just spend the $50 and buy the one from Aircraft Spruce that is advertised to be noise free from the get go.
 
Had same problem. Disappeared when I replace the charger. It was an Anker brand but others may work too.
 
Anker surprised me by coming out with a 100W PD USB cigar lighter adapter. I don't know how that even works on 12V (10A breaker I assume?) but it's great in 24. It runs my starlink and two of my other inflight toys without complaint. I can't imagine needing more wattage in the future... 640K is enough for anyone :P

Zero issues with Anker's stuff ever.
 
schmookeeg said:
Anker surprised me by coming out with a 100W PD USB cigar lighter adapter. I don't know how that even works on 12V (10A breaker I assume?) but it's great in 24.
Click to expand...
Ha! I wondered the same when I upgraded the nugget+cable for my plane to usb-c.
 
Another option - remove the guts of the charger and install in a metal box. Use ferrite rings (like the lage bulges you see on some quality USB cables) and wrap the input and output wires a couple turns on them before taking out of the box. You'll have a much quieter converter.
 
I'm fighting this in my airplane, too. Ditched the no-name chinese panel-mount dual USB port and installed a Blue Sea Systems 1039 with ferrite chokes on all the wires, and I'm still getting a periodic chopping/popping sound through the radio when the circuit is energized. I'm really hoping to find a solution that doesn't involve a $400 Appareo/Stratus charging port.

My main com radio is a Sportys PJ2+ with an external Sirio dipole antenna; I suspect it's more susceptible to interference than the typical aviation radio installation. I had to install a Mini Circuits ZBSF-95-N+ band-stop filter to suppress FM broadcast radio interference on the low end of the air band (In case someone finds this thread in the future via web search, the filter solved my interference problem and you can transmit 'through' it - it's not a receive-only device.) I think the radio nerds call my situation front-end overload?
 
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ColinD said:
I'm really hoping to find a solution that doesn't involve a $400 Appareo/Stratus charging port.
Click to expand...
Linear voltage regulator. Doubles as a heater in winter time. Two transistors, a diode and a couple resistors. You can build it in an hour.
 
It's hit or miss. I've had some cheap USB adapters that make my radio break squelch, and other cheap ones that don't. Anker is usually pretty good.
 
AA5Bman said:
Recently, my radios have seemed to develop a major case of static and interference. I’m a slow learner, apparently, and finally figured out it’s the USB charger I’m using in the cigarette lighter to power my Sentry Mini that is causing the problem! Now, this is an old plane that I bought recently with pretty crappy radios which I intend to rip out eventually, but they’re tolerable without the charger being plugged in.
Click to expand...
Well, I have a relatively new plane with great radios and I had the same problem for a while...

AA5Bman said:
In your experience, is the static and interference caused by using the wrong charger /cigarette plug adaptor
Click to expand...
Yes.

AA5Bman said:
Is there a higher quality charger that will not cause this, or is it kind of a dead end?
Click to expand...
I've been through a bunch. Some are noisy right off the bat, some became noisy later. But I've had an Anker in there for years now with zero issues.

You may notice a theme:

FORANE said:
anker
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bradg33 said:
Anker
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GeorgeC said:
Anker
Click to expand...
eb87f said:
Anker
Click to expand...
schmookeeg said:
Anker
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Dana said:
Anker
Click to expand...

Anker makes good stuff. I've bought enough crap power supplies to know quality, and I no longer bother with anything but Anker, in the plane or otherwise. Their stuff isn't cheap, but it *is* reasonably priced, especially considering the quality.

 
Well, this was a productive thread! Just ordered and Anker dual USB charger. Will report back!
 
AA5Bman said:
Well, this was a productive thread! Just ordered and Anker dual USB charger. Will report back!
Click to expand...
I have used 2 different generic cig lighter power adaptors with no noise in the past. Both were USB out. I needed one that has USB-C? out. I was at Sportys couple days ago bought one there that I am sure has been tested. It was not expensive. I used it yesterday with no noise. Bonus is it has a voltage readout. Just a FYI.
https://www.sportys.com/flight-gear-usb-12-24v-slimline-charger.html
 
FPK1 said:
Glad it works for you. The reviews are pretty bad...
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The reviews were pretty bad and I agree. The voltage read out was very faint. I mainly wanted it for the voltage reading.
I returned it this afternoon, Sportys was great about it, they took it back.
 
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