Ron hath wroth:

Lately we have ben getting a lot of noise on channels 5 & 6, usually
at certain times of evening and night; almost never during the day.
This interference usually lasts about fifteen minutes, then cuts off.
Is this something caused by my neighbors? Can I call the FCC to track
it down? It's really ****ing up my videotapes.

The FCC will send you a color broshure detailing several mostly
useless options. Basically, unless you can identify the source, and
they're obviously in violation of some rule or reg, you're on your
own.

Best bet is to identify the source of intereference with a directional
antenna and a portable spectrum analyzer. If that's too messy, try
running around the neighborhood with a battery operated TV receiver
and look for the strongest areas. It's going to be quite a rush
because you only have 15 minutes to find the source.

Assuming you're talking about over the air channels, and not cable or
satellite channels:
CH 5 76-82 MHz
CH 6 82-88 MHz
Hmmm, you probably can also hear it at the bottom of the FM broadcast
band.

With the information you've supplied, I can't even begin to speculate
what the RF source might be. A 15 minute single run in the evening
kinda sounds like a microwave oven cooking dinner. However, those
operate a 2400MHz and are unlikely to cause problems on TV ch 5 and ch
6.

"Certain times of evening and night" implies that you know those
times. Could I trouble you to disclose them? Also, any particular
pattern on the TV screen?

Anyway, if you don't have the equipment or transmitter hunting skills,
try asking for help from the local ham radio operators.

Incidentally, video tapes are kinda like old technology. You might
want to look into recording the shows on a hard disk with a DVR, or a
DVD burner.

--
Jeff Liebermann
150 Felker St #D http://www.LearnByDestroying.com
Santa Cruz CA 95060 http://802.11junk.com
Skype: JeffLiebermann AE6KS 831-336-2558