Pedestals open grounds.
I know open grounds are a serious and sometimes deadly safety hazard. Haven't thought a whole lot about it until we stayed at a Thousand Trails last year and our EMS shut us down on an open ground. ...
Forum Discussion
OK verify this by using your own meter, your own hands, your own eyes and your own brain.
Be sure your meter leads can stretch from the pedestal socket to the earth you are standing on.
Set meter to 200 VAC
Insert one probe into what is supposed to be L1
Insert the other probe into what is supposed to be L0 which is neutral
WHAT YOU READ IS VOLTAGE
Extract probes
Insert one probe back into L1
Insert the second probe into Earth ground connector
If there is ANY significant difference between this and the first reading the pedestal wiring is defective.
There should be ZERO VOLTS differential between L0 and Earth ground.
Remember this if nothing else.
It is NOT the ground at the service panel that will kill you if the skin of your rig gets electrified. It's what you are standing on.
If you are paranoid about the efficacy of an 18" stake pounded into the ground pour some water around it. Just like I wrote years ago.
Worried about the ground stake not "being enough". Short circuit between L1 and the stake 40 or 50 times tripping the breaker repeatedly until you are satisfied.
Again and again I emphasize reality always trumps assumption.
When grounding phase loops and spurious eddy currents from defective ground mounted campground transformers, affect the integrity of these types of tests, usually the blare of sirens and flash of fire truck red lights make the anomaly apparent long before you test.
Campground receptacles are ALWAYS suspect. They are installed bare-assed with absolutely no corrosion inhibitor. Use a flashlight and ogle the blue, green, purple and black contact and wiper blades before you plug-in your virgin plug.
A simple spootch of silicone dielectric grease would greatly inhibit contact corrosion. Would they do such a thing? Hahahahahahahahahahahahahaha.
I'll boondock thank you very much. BTW my KATO L0 and the service drop L0 are unity.
Be sure your meter leads can stretch from the pedestal socket to the earth you are standing on.
Set meter to 200 VAC
Insert one probe into what is supposed to be L1
Insert the other probe into what is supposed to be L0 which is neutral
WHAT YOU READ IS VOLTAGE
Extract probes
Insert one probe back into L1
Insert the second probe into Earth ground connector
If there is ANY significant difference between this and the first reading the pedestal wiring is defective.
There should be ZERO VOLTS differential between L0 and Earth ground.
Remember this if nothing else.
It is NOT the ground at the service panel that will kill you if the skin of your rig gets electrified. It's what you are standing on.
If you are paranoid about the efficacy of an 18" stake pounded into the ground pour some water around it. Just like I wrote years ago.
Worried about the ground stake not "being enough". Short circuit between L1 and the stake 40 or 50 times tripping the breaker repeatedly until you are satisfied.
Again and again I emphasize reality always trumps assumption.
When grounding phase loops and spurious eddy currents from defective ground mounted campground transformers, affect the integrity of these types of tests, usually the blare of sirens and flash of fire truck red lights make the anomaly apparent long before you test.
Campground receptacles are ALWAYS suspect. They are installed bare-assed with absolutely no corrosion inhibitor. Use a flashlight and ogle the blue, green, purple and black contact and wiper blades before you plug-in your virgin plug.
A simple spootch of silicone dielectric grease would greatly inhibit contact corrosion. Would they do such a thing? Hahahahahahahahahahahahahaha.
I'll boondock thank you very much. BTW my KATO L0 and the service drop L0 are unity.
