Forum Discussion
jpkiljan
Aug 04, 2007Explorer
vpkiljan wrote:
. . .
the basic principals seem plain enough: the neutral should be connected to the ground wire at a single point (and only at a single point) in every electrical hookup--portable or residential. . . .
professor95 wrote:
. . .
One of my points is that a RV is not wired like your house. A RV is wired like an appliance. Therefore, the safety rules and issues change.
. . .
I am definately not here to argue (I doubt that you are either). I am here to share, compare and learn. (I feel that I have learned more than I have given on this forum.) If I am wrong someone needs to convince me why. I need to see a scenario that shows why neutral bonding to the frame on a portable genset used with a RV is safer than letting the neutral float and bonding the frame to earth ground.
Dear Professor95,
Okay, I'll bite. Here's a link to a Department of Interior site--complete with scary cartoons and a fatality--showing a couple of things that can go wrong if the neutral and ground are not bonded when using a portable or vehicle-mounted generator with an appliance.
http://www.usbr.gov/power/data/fist/fist5_13/5-13.pdf
or click HERE.
The first fault scenario sounds very similar to what happened when TKMJ's wife took that near-fatal jolt from their RV.
I've also heard that some manufacturers of light generators supply a 'neutral grounding plug' that one can simply plug into one of the generator's available 15-amp sockets when it is appropriate to do so. I have no idea what a plug like that would do when a generator is switched to its 240-volt position.
All the best,
--John (aka VPKiljan)
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