TV-Monitor blacks out when appliance is used

[RJ Tagayon]

I have a Toshiba TV used as a PC monitor connected via HDMI to my computer. Using a seasonic 520W power supply, whenever our helper washes clothes using a washing machine, the display randomly blacks out for a moment and turns back on. This also happens when I switch my electric fan on my room on and off. By now I've learned that, yes, they are all in the same circuit and it would cost us just to change how the house is wired. I just want to know if buying a surge protector would solve this problem for me, like the ones sold by huntkey or belkin. Thanks in advance

 

[englandr753]

Try picking up a $5-10 breaker and replace it on the control panel first. If that doesn't do it then I would get a good quality surge protector that filters the power going into your system.

If that doesn't make it go completely away I would get an electrician to check out your house wiring. There could be bigger issues if my first two recommendations don't work.

1 more thing! Check the outlet and make sure the wiring is tight and you may want to upgrade the outlet plug, $6-8 bucks at the depot or lowes and that may correct the issue. Builders use the base builder grade outlets so those do go bad often.

 

[Karadjgne]

Buying a surge protector would be useless. The issue isn't one of surge, but of brown-out. Somewhere in that circuit there's a bad connection. This is extremely common in high traffic circuits where an installer just uses the stab connection in the outlets instead of securely wrapping the screws. The stabs are just a tiny piece of spring brass, and over its usable life sees many hours of a decent current, which creates heat, which weakens the spring, causing a bad connection that only gets worse with use, until you get voltage leaps (think spark plugs) and eventually this creates enough heat to start fires.

AC is alternating current, in the US that's 60Hz, which is identical to a 60Hz sound wave, it's a vibration. The 2nd most common occurrence is in the breaker panel itself, there's 2 wires that are important, the white (neutral) and black (120v hot). 2 things can happen, both the same result. Either the hot in the breaker was not tightened correctly and over time has vibrated loose (dead giveaway is brittle or burned insulation at the breaker and the copper is blackened) or the neutral was either over-tightened and almost cut in half, or was under tight and has vibrated loose (looks yellow/brownish).

Any of the above are relatively easy fixes, checking each outlet in the line is just tiresome, and if you go that far, better to start over and replace the outlets, wiring them correctly.

 

[RJ Tagayon]

Thanks guys, I'll look into your recommendations. Probably I'm better off buying an AVR for now