CB Interference Problem

**nyclewis** · 03-16-2011, 01:15 PM

Hardwired CB into 7.5A Accessory/Radio fuse (Civic '05).

I have a 12V 3 plug w/USB adapter for the cigarette/accessory socket. When I plug in my Garmin GPS...doesn't matter 12V or USB...the CB goes static crazy.

Would some ferrite beads be a smart (aka cheap) purchase for this problem?

**switch626** · 03-16-2011, 03:25 PM

Your best bet is to wire the CB directly to the battery. The battery will act as a big capacitor and filter much of the noise out(if not all). It will better isolate the CB from other devices that may introduce line noise.

**stano0098** · 03-16-2011, 03:26 PM

I would wire the cb to a different fuse and see if the problem continues.

But the best thing to do is wire it right to the battery.

**AirMoore** · 03-16-2011, 05:29 PM

X2 on the battery idea... cbs are finicky little buggers at times.

**nyclewis** · 03-16-2011, 05:39 PM

Had a feeling I'd have to run it to the battery. I'll have to google, find the easiest route through the firewall. Also give another fuse a try, what the hell, nothing to lose. Thanks guys...

My XM radio is also screwing with the CB. When that's on and plugged in, CB static. When it's on, but running on battery, no static. So it's not the FM modulator. Google'd this one and found others with the same problem, but no fix. Hoping battery run does the trick.

**nyclewis** · 03-16-2011, 08:06 PM

Screw waiting for the weekend...just finished running it to the battery. There was a huge hole on the passenger side near the floor, fished the line through the grommet. It fixed the static because of the Garmin 100%. The XM power cord causing the CB static? It's better, not perfect, but I can live with it. I did throw some ferrite(s) on the XM power cord.

**srtga** · 03-18-2011, 05:25 PM

What type of radio is it? Not sure if you're that familiar with CBs but they have a lot of static. Does the interference change with engine RPM or anything?

**Motor On** · 03-18-2011, 06:21 PM

Originally Posted by nyclewis

Screw waiting for the weekend...just finished running it to the battery. There was a huge hole on the passenger side near the floor, fished the line through the grommet. It fixed the static because of the Garmin 100%. The XM power cord causing the CB static? It's better, not perfect, but I can live with it. I did throw some ferrite(s) on the XM power cord.

Open up the bottom of the FM cable and check the fuse, make sure it's clean, make sure when it's install that it's tight. Cheap electrical cables that will have weak connections which will cause the electricity to spark and create static easily heard by AM and SSB radios. Also make sure that it's seated firmly in the 12v outlet, and that the connection from the wiring harness to the outlet is solid.

**nyclewis** · 04-20-2011, 12:03 PM

Final solution. Bought 14-gauge wire and a bag of wire/tubing protector. Ran the wire through the firewall to the battery and the car frame (ground). Wrapped the tubing around that wire from the battery to the firewall. Spliced & connected the CB wires to new wire I had run. Looped the power cord near the CB around a ferrite and also put one on the XM car adapter plug. I bought a Noise Reducing Car Audio AUX Cable to bypass the FM modulator. The XM is crystal clear as well as the CB. Is the XM power adapter still causing interference? To some degree, but on a scale of 1 to 10, when the problem was an 11...I'd say it's in the 1 to 2 range and that's only with the Gain almost all the way to the left. If I unplug the XM, there's just a little bit less static compared to non-stop static.