That quantum physics YouTube rabbit hole I fell into last month actually explained why my compass was off by 5 degrees

I thought the guy was full of it until I measured the magnetic field around my desk with a cheap sensor and found my speaker was messing with the needle the whole time, has anyone else had their home electronics throw off basic navigation gear?

3 comments

3 Comments

dylan_brown3011d ago

Read somewhere that old CRT monitors can mess with compasses from like 6 feet away. Bet most folks don't realize how much interference is floating around their house. Did you try moving your speaker to see how far the effect goes?

price.ray10d agoTop Commenter

Yeah the CRT thing is actually more like 2-3 feet for most, not 6. They can throw off a compass but you gotta be pretty close.

west.casey11d ago

Wait, so your speaker was strong enough to throw it off that much? That's wild. I had a similar thing happen with my old air purifier. I thought my compass was just broken until I turned it off and the needle snapped back like it was alive. It's crazy how much magnetic junk we just have sitting around us all day. I ended up mapping out my whole house with a cheap sensor and found my fridge was the worst offender. Makes you wonder what else is getting messed up that we don't even notice.