contest trailers with ground problems

beam boys bbq · 04-29-2009, 08:22 PM

plow boy and me and jeff brinker when we plug in to an genorator at an contest our ground falts pop all the time

then this weekend brewmaster nate telles me to get ride of the ground and it will stop (it worked i had full power)

didn't know if any others had this problem

york

Plowboy · 04-29-2009, 08:31 PM

I don't know that I'd want to get rid of my ground with my electronics on board.

Gerrit_Boys · 04-29-2009, 08:37 PM

This happens because the grounds and the neutrals are tied together (paralleled). If you have an electrical panet in your trailer then they are probably all tied under the same ground bar. Because your trailer panel will always be subfed off of whatever you plug into these should be isolated.

Gerrit_Boys · 04-29-2009, 08:38 PM

By the way, getting rid of the ground is never a good idea, it's in there for a reason.

beam boys bbq · 04-29-2009, 08:54 PM

have an electriction look at it

and see what the problen is

york

Gerrit_Boys · 04-29-2009, 08:59 PM

I'm an electrician, come and cook the contest in Huron, SD in early June and I'll fix it for free!

beam boys bbq · 04-29-2009, 09:07 PM

an little to far from st louis

but thanks

River City Smokehouse · 04-29-2009, 10:27 PM

Nate is right....We had the same problem in October at Bass Pro in Columbia. I think Nate's dad was having the same issue too.

Brewmaster · 04-29-2009, 10:47 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by River City Smokehouse

Nate is right....We had the same problem in October at Bass Pro in Columbia. I think Nate's dad was having the same issue too.

Well it works in a pinch when you have no other choice.

Big Tom · 04-30-2009, 08:34 PM

I had the same problem on a trailer we used to have. The problem that I found was that a neutral and ground wire were connected together in a junction box.

Due to the way the GFCI's work the ground and neutral wires have to be separated.

Ford · 05-01-2009, 06:24 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Big Tom

I had the same problem on a trailer we used to have. The problem that I found was that a neutral and ground wire were connected together in a junction box.

Due to the way the GFCI's work the ground and neutral wires have to be separated.

It drove me crazy and I finally paid an electrician to fix it. Started with the input to the panel, then the panel, and finally each outlet. Found one where wires were to close together and when plugged into a GFI it would cause a fault. Minor adjustment and no problems since.

For the original poster, don't play with safety. The cost may be higher than you want to pay in the long run.

Brewmaster · 05-01-2009, 07:31 AM

First off, I am not an electrician, nor do I claim to know a lot about the subject. But this thread got me thinking about something. Everyone is worried about plugging into an outlet without a ground and they probably do it all the time without realizing it. I have even done it myself without thinking about it. The people who run generators at contests, unless they have a copper rod planted in the ground, are running ungrounded power. I was reading on a couple websites that they recommend 8' of copper rod to ground a generator. I have seen a lot of rigs doing this and wanted to give everyone a heads up.

Cheers,
Nate

paydabill · 05-01-2009, 07:37 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Brewmaster

First off, I am not an electrician, nor do I claim to know a lot about the subject. But this thread got me thinking about something. Everyone is worried about plugging into an outlet without a ground and they probably do it all the time without realizing it. I have even done it myself without thinking about it. The people who run generators at contests, unless they have a copper rod planted in the ground, are running ungrounded power. I was reading on a couple websites that they recommend 8' of copper rod to ground a generator. I have seen a lot of rigs doing this and wanted to give everyone a heads up.

Cheers,
Nate

Actually you are totaly correct - if you are running ot a generator - there is no true ground. Plain in simple. Home generators that are a backup for your house power, will ahve a ground, because the ground is already installed.

Big Mike's BBQ · 05-01-2009, 01:23 PM

Nate, I am not an electrician either but I do now that what you said is not entirely accurate. When running a generator you do not have a "ground" connected, that is true. However the purpose of a "ground wire" running from your equipment is to protect you in case something shorts, or you have a faulty neutral wire. In a generator you still have this protection it just goes to the generator instead of the ground rod. That is why people have problems with GFCI's and generators. As stated above GFCI's do not like to have the neutral and grounds connected.

Big Mike's BBQ

pigpen269 · 05-01-2009, 02:00 PM

I am sort of an electrician, No license but i work with electricity on the job all the time. A GFCI will not work correctly on an ungrounded system and a portable generator is an ungrounded system. So if you are relying on a GFCI in a trailer to save your butt in case something gets wet than you are not completely protected. It may work it may not. You would have to have an external ground rod in the ground and have the ground wires in the panal completely seperate from the neutral wires in order for it to work. If you don't have the ground rod in the ground than nothing is grounded.

04-29-2009, 08:22 PM	#1
beam boys bbq is one Smokin' Farker Join Date: 10-15-06 Location: washington mo	contest trailers with ground problems plow boy and me and jeff brinker when we plug in to an genorator at an contest our ground falts pop all the time then this weekend brewmaster nate telles me to get ride of the ground and it will stop (it worked i had full power) didn't know if any others had this problem york __________________ MOFO Chapter - BBQ Brethren KCBS CBJ - Beta Beta Que jim beam black coke

04-29-2009, 08:31 PM	#2
Plowboy somebody shut me the fark up. Join Date: 10-09-06 Location: Blue Springs, MO	I don't know that I'd want to get rid of my ground with my electronics on board. __________________ Pork Pullin Plowboys (and Smoke on Wheels) Save a hog, ride a plowboy! www.plowboysbbq.com Todd Johns (me); Blue Springs, MO Randy Hinck (PigBoy); Concordia, MO Andy Groneman (Hodedo); KC, KS (Cameo Appearances) FEC-500SS; FEC-100 (Right handed); FEC-100 (Left handed); Country Smoker Tailgater; Big Green Egg (2-large, small, mini); Cookshack Pellet Fired Charbroiler

04-29-2009, 08:54 PM	#5
beam boys bbq is one Smokin' Farker Join Date: 10-15-06 Location: washington mo	have an electriction look at it and see what the problen is york __________________ MOFO Chapter - BBQ Brethren KCBS CBJ - Beta Beta Que jim beam black coke

04-29-2009, 09:07 PM	#7
beam boys bbq is one Smokin' Farker Join Date: 10-15-06 Location: washington mo	an little to far from st louis but thanks __________________ MOFO Chapter - BBQ Brethren KCBS CBJ - Beta Beta Que jim beam black coke

04-29-2009, 10:27 PM	#8
River City Smokehouse is One Chatty Farker Join Date: 09-25-05 Location: Jefferson City, Missouri	Nate is right....We had the same problem in October at Bass Pro in Columbia. I think Nate's dad was having the same issue too. __________________ "Please let me be the person my dog thinks I am." ~Author Unknown 8 x 18 Haulmark Trailer Fast Eddy FEC 100 Traeger Texas BBQ 075 UDS "Cool Hand Luke" 3 Weber Kettles and a Yellow Thermapen KCBS Certified BBQ Judge #8425

04-29-2009, 08:37 PM	#3
Gerrit_Boys Full Fledged Farker Join Date: 03-29-08 Location: Huron, SD	This happens because the grounds and the neutrals are tied together (paralleled). If you have an electrical panet in your trailer then they are probably all tied under the same ground bar. Because your trailer panel will always be subfed off of whatever you plug into these should be isolated.

04-29-2009, 08:38 PM	#4
Gerrit_Boys Full Fledged Farker Join Date: 03-29-08 Location: Huron, SD	By the way, getting rid of the ground is never a good idea, it's in there for a reason.

04-29-2009, 08:59 PM	#6
Gerrit_Boys Full Fledged Farker Join Date: 03-29-08 Location: Huron, SD	I'm an electrician, come and cook the contest in Huron, SD in early June and I'll fix it for free!

04-30-2009, 08:34 PM	#10
Big Tom On the road to being a farker Join Date: 06-06-07 Location: Owensboro, KY	I had the same problem on a trailer we used to have. The problem that I found was that a neutral and ground wire were connected together in a junction box. Due to the way the GFCI's work the ground and neutral wires have to be separated. __________________ Big Tom Pigs-R-Us cooking team

05-01-2009, 07:31 AM	#12
Brewmaster is One Chatty Farker Join Date: 07-05-07 Location: St. Louis	First off, I am not an electrician, nor do I claim to know a lot about the subject. But this thread got me thinking about something. Everyone is worried about plugging into an outlet without a ground and they probably do it all the time without realizing it. I have even done it myself without thinking about it. The people who run generators at contests, unless they have a copper rod planted in the ground, are running ungrounded power. I was reading on a couple websites that they recommend 8' of copper rod to ground a generator. I have seen a lot of rigs doing this and wanted to give everyone a heads up. Cheers, Nate

05-01-2009, 01:23 PM	#14
Big Mike's BBQ On the road to being a farker Join Date: 03-19-09 Location: Huxley, Iowa	Nate, I am not an electrician either but I do now that what you said is not entirely accurate. When running a generator you do not have a "ground" connected, that is true. However the purpose of a "ground wire" running from your equipment is to protect you in case something shorts, or you have a faulty neutral wire. In a generator you still have this protection it just goes to the generator instead of the ground rod. That is why people have problems with GFCI's and generators. As stated above GFCI's do not like to have the neutral and grounds connected. Big Mike's BBQ

05-01-2009, 02:00 PM	#15
pigpen269 Full Fledged Farker Join Date: 09-13-07 Location: Sugar Creek, MO	I am sort of an electrician, No license but i work with electricity on the job all the time. A GFCI will not work correctly on an ungrounded system and a portable generator is an ungrounded system. So if you are relying on a GFCI in a trailer to save your butt in case something gets wet than you are not completely protected. It may work it may not. You would have to have an external ground rod in the ground and have the ground wires in the panal completely seperate from the neutral wires in order for it to work. If you don't have the ground rod in the ground than nothing is grounded. __________________ Large Spicewine Bandera Green UDS (UGD) Blue UDS (UBD) Homemade 18"/36" Grillzilla Lang 60, (RIP) Home Built Trailer (500gallon Oil drum).(RIP)

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