Electric Fence RFI - The OFCOM View

Ever since I've operated at this QTH, there has been 'clicking' RFI from electric fences in the area.  As a farming and equine community, it's to be expected.

For all those years, the RFI has been sufficiently low level not to cause a problem and a simple press of the noise blanker button eliminates it completely.

Electric fences are very eaay to install now, and often tend to be permanent.

But recently, a new fence has gone up to contain a new group of horses.  The RFI under certain weather conditions is severe, hitting over S9 in roughly one second pulses.  Whilst the noise blanker continues to get rid of it most of the time, if a JT signal is present, for example, the noise blanker can let the RFI through.

OK, so this is not the worst RFI problem ever encountered.  That much I grant you.  The irritation comes from the fact that it is still RFI, and RFI that can easily be eliminated altogether if only the farmer paid attention to the wiring and insulation quality of his installation.  After all, if it's producing RFI, the fence won't be as effective as it would be if it was radio quiet.

So, I decided that I'd call OFCOM.  As usual, they were very quick to respond.

When I called them back this morning, they said there was nothing they would be doing, because it was "not sufficiently persistent" and I "can work around the interference".  He said I should speak to the farmer, even though I'd told him that he was more likely to put up more bad fences in retaliation to an approach (farmers here are used to having things their own way and not being concerned about others) than try to fix the existing one.  I underlined the futility of approaching an uncooperative farmer by saying that, without any backup to the complaint from the law or OFCOM interest, I'd simply be told to get lost,and the consequent contempt for amateur radio that would foster.

The assertion by OFCOM that electric fences are "not persistent" in that they "won't be there for very long" is a very odd and entirely ignorant one.  Cheap, easy to install and designed in very consumer-friendly ways these days, electric fences around here are a permanent means of containing animals, with the added benefit of taking just minutes to reconfigure in another part of the field.

So, whilst I reluctantly agree with OFCOM that I can work around the RFI, if not altogether successfully, the harsh reality is that those of us operating from the countyside, and which is often very radio quiet, can't expect any protection under the law - or at least from those charged with upholding it.