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shadeemry · 10-01-2012, 10:49 PM

Just what the subject says, I used a circuit on all the outlets and they come back fine, why does this happen? Even if I'm in the trailer and touching the door it shocks the hell outa me, what should I start looking for to correct this?

ROBERTSUNRUS · 10-01-2012, 11:04 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by shadeemry

Just what the subject says, I used a circuit on all the outlets and they come back fine, why does this happen? Even if I'm in the trailer and touching the door it shocks the hell outa me, what should I start looking for to correct this?

Hi, the first thing that you should do is buy and use a little yellow polarity checker. Try it in the outlet that you have your trailer plugged into first.

shadeemry · 10-01-2012, 11:13 PM

Hmm, that makes sense, just checked the outlet, have an open neutral?

overlander63 · 10-02-2012, 05:22 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by shadeemry

Hmm, that makes sense, just checked the outlet, have an open neutral?

ZAP!
The circuit is being completed by you.

perryg114 · 10-02-2012, 05:54 AM

You need to look at your supply socket and see if it is wired correctly. Then work your way to the end of the pigtail and sockets inside the Airtream. Are all the sockets in the Airstream doing this or just one?

Perry

dwightdi · 10-02-2012, 05:55 AM

Always ground your trailer. Some part of metal on the trailer should be in contact with damp ground. No wood or plastic blocks under the jack or at least one of the stabilizers. I carry one of those $5 testers in my side door pocket and check the electrical before I spend the time to back into a campsite. Reversed polarity is the most common error.

shadeemry · 10-02-2012, 04:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by overlander63

ZAP!
The circuit is being completed by you.

Thatnk you

VeggieBullet · 10-10-2012, 08:08 PM

did you figured this mistery out?

dwightdi · 10-10-2012, 09:20 PM

An open neutral would not make the trailer body to be hot. I would look for an outlet or place in the wiring harness that the hot wire has contacted the body of the trailer. An open neutral will cause the outlet to be non-functional unless the appliance has a defect where the internal neutral is shorted to the ground terminal.

shadeemry · 10-12-2012, 06:24 PM

I think I got it, the 12 volts hot was crossed at the frame right by the power jack, this probably explained why the power jack was not working correctly, if at all.. I have not been shocked yet, but hopefully I won't be..scares the crap outa me to even touch the shell with it plugged into shoreline power. Is their a way to tell if the trailer body is hot without risking my life by touching it?

perryg114 · 10-12-2012, 07:35 PM

Get a volt meter and put it on AC volts and measure the voltage from the ground to the skin of the trailer. It should not read more than a volt or two MAX. Stick one lead into the ground or better yet something you know is grounded.

Perry

dwightdi · 10-15-2012, 06:10 AM

Unless there is also a defect in the univolt converter, reversing the polariy of the output should not make the trailer skin AC hot. You do need to disconnect the converter from the AC. In most trailers the univolt is actually plugged into AC with a conventional 110 plug. If it is not, you still need to get the converter out of the circuit to further isolate the problem. You will need a fairly good digital multimeter to do the job properly. I use a digital Fluke. It has a broad range with good readability down to .02 volts and good ohmmeter capability. After you get the converter out of the picture, retest the skin voltage. Make sure the soil is damp where you push in the negative lead. The skin should be less than .2 volts DC and AC. These are separate settings on the multimeter. You should also test it again after reconnecting the converter. If the voltage jumps up you have isolated the problem to the converter or connections. You could have the input voltage to the converter switched. That would also cause the problem since the internal AC neutral and DC neutral are interconnected within the converter. The next test would be to plug the little yellow tester into the place that the converter is plugged into to see if the polarity is switched there. If it is OK then you need to take the converter out and have it trouble shot by a certified electrician.

Protagonist · 10-15-2012, 08:11 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dwightdi

Always ground your trailer. Some part of metal on the trailer should be in contact with damp ground. No wood or plastic blocks under the jack or at least one of the stabilizers. I carry one of those $5 testers in my side door pocket and check the electrical before I spend the time to back into a campsite. Reversed polarity is the most common error.

If you're plugged into shore power, the trailer's AC ground bus connects to the ground wire in the shore power cord, and from there back to the pedestal, which takes care of your AC ground without a separate ground wire to earth. Grounding the trailer frame to earth through a jack shouldn't be necessary as long as your shore power cable has a ground wire.

If you're plugged into a portable generator, same thing; your AC ground bus connects to the power cable's ground wire, and thence back to the generator. This is why a portable generator should be grounded to earth when it powers your trailer. Most people don't ground their generators, though, according to responses I've seen on other threads.

It's only different when you're making AC power through an inverter from your house batteries. There, you need to ground the trailer through a separate metal-to-earth connection, since the shore power cord's ground wire isn't there to make the connection to earth for you.

dwightdi · 10-22-2012, 06:08 AM

There is always the possibility of something being improperly electrically connected. The result can be really bad, if not fatal. WBCCI has a rule that all trailers must be grounded when they attend a rally. It is a good rule. Better safe than sorry is my motto.

Aerowood · 10-22-2012, 08:12 AM

Check out the polarity light if you still have one. These lights have been a constant problem because if they fail I believe (someone correct me here if I'm wrong on which leg will go to ground) the neutral will ground. Most folks just remove them.

shadeemry · 10-26-2012, 12:54 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Aerowood

Check out the polarity light if you still have one. These lights have been a constant problem because if they fail I believe (someone correct me here if I'm wrong on which leg will go to ground) the neutral will ground. Most folks just remove them.

I will check that out, thanks a lot

shadeemry · 11-18-2012, 03:19 AM

Alright, found the cause. Their is a grounding wire attached to the rear bumper frame, that was broken lose. To also top it off, the univolt had decided to quite on me. It's spontaneous in its function, but when it works is when the ground fault (shocking) occurs. However thanks to a fellow airstream restore guy, I got the univolt taken cared of with a replacement one that he sold me at an excellent price.

shadeemry · 12-17-2012, 09:56 PM

Just a follow up, in the midst of fixing the plumbing system and yanking out the electric household water heater, i discovered a circuit of 110 that was not wired through the breaker box, it was wired straight from the 30 amp pull. I removed the wire, and wala, no more fault. the wire was not even capped off, which i think , since it was right next to the shell, was causing the isshue. haven't had a problem since, and i did remove the polarity light as well. just as a precaution.

Steve Bryant · 12-17-2012, 10:50 PM

This is a caution and a recommendation to everyone who reads this thread. As I have been doing floor/frame and skin repairs on my 1991 Airstream, this is how solidly the ground wire was attached to the frame...not at all because the screw securing the terminal had been over torqued by the factory and the head pulled off with time and corrosion. Now the ground was touching the steel in places, but nothing was solid in the way this was done. It's worth checking if you ever have the chance. This will be corrected as I reassemble the trailer.

This fault alone would not cause you to be shocked. However, if you get a hot wire connected to the frame/shell of the vehicle, the absence of this ground takes away the safety factor that would normally cause the circuit breaker to blow.

shadeemry · 12-18-2012, 12:18 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Steve Bryant

This is a caution and a recommendation to everyone who reads this thread. As I have been doing floor/frame and skin repairs on my 1991 Airstream, this is how solidly the ground wire was attached to the frame...not at all because the screw securing the terminal had been over torqued by the factory and the head pulled off with time and corrosion. Now the ground was touching the steel in places, but nothing was solid in the way this was done. It's worth checking if you ever have the chance. This will be corrected as I reassemble the trailer.

This fault alone would not cause you to be shocked. However, if you get a hot wire connected to the frame/shell of the vehicle, the absence of this ground takes away the safety factor that would normally cause the circuit breaker to blow.

That's where mine was broken off as well, I suspect the PO had it
Ike that for a good while. This is also really good to know, thx bud!