[RazorX]

I just finished eliminating the hum so I thought I'd post an update on what I did to eliminate it.

I took off a small section of the lattice where the cable ground block is located and I also had to remove a couple of the planks above to gain enough access to the ground block. To my surprise, there was a ground wire (loosely) attached to the ground block but the other end wasn't attached to anything. I attached the other end of the wire to a clamp that was already on the main power ground wire which was connected to the ground rod. I tested my system to see if I had eliminated the hum and discovered it was still there.

My next step was to use my Dremel with a soft wire brush to remove the corrosion that had built up on the ground wire from the CATV ground block and the main ground wire. I reattached the ground wire from the CATV ground block and retested. The hum was still there. That is when I noticed the screw on the ground block was loose. Next step...

I decided to clean the end of the ground wire connected to the CATV ground block and snug it up. This wasn't as easy as you would think because the deck was built in a way that one of the joists obstructed the ground block. I had to use a small 1/4" wrench to sloooooowwwwwwly loosen the ground block from the wall just so I could get to the screw that applies clamping force to the ground wire. I cleaned this end of the ground wire and snugged it down. Hum test number 3: The hum is gone. Woohoo!!! I went back out and mounted the ground plate in a new location that is easier to access and put the two planks back in place. I will need to put the lattice back at some point but I think I will tweak the sound a bit now that the hum is gone.

I'm glad I was able to get the hum problem resolved and without shelling out $ makes it even sweeter.

I think the cable TV picture actually looks better now too but this could just be a placebo effect. One thing that was also resolved which I know isn't just in my mind is a hum in our phones that was getting worse and worse over the last year...

Thanks for all the information and tips guys. You ROCK!