Let's Get Grounded!

As I have battled through the voltage drop testing and further research, I came a across a pretty handy App for my phone called Electrical Calculations. With this App, you can create scenarios to see projected outcomes based on gauge of wire, length of run, temperature, voltage, and amperage draw.

For those nerds (myself included) that really want to have a better understanding of the Power loss that occurs, I have run several different scenarios based on 12 VDC, either a 10 Amp or 40 Amp draw, and either 22 feet (estimated length of ground wire in our 2020 400 BDL) or 50 feet (estimated length of ground and power feed wires combined). 

Please find that document attached for reference or a headache. I have also posted this in the Corrosion thread.

Brad

Wow, @MuttonChops, that's an important finding!  Is this the A/C bare wire ground that goes into the floor in that area?  I guess you'll try to grip the remains of that screw & try to back it out & replace?  Or else maybe drill a new hole for a new screw.  Also wondering whether we still should have a DC ground on the chasis up front near the J-box.  I guess that ground block is aluminum?

I would replace the aluminum ground block with brass, bronze or better yet, stainless steel.
 Cheers 

@MuttonChops, I too believe it is what nuCamp has referred to in the past as the "main" ground to the chassis (see my July 2021 post in this discussion thread.)  In reality, it is, as @ScottG noted, the 120VAC ground.  It appears that the solid copper wire that originates in the power center/converter is connected to the metal lug in your photos.  Interesting find.  Nice to see what it looks like, which is similar to the lug next to the junction box at the front of my trailer (and other trailers, as noted by a few owners on this forum.)  Thanks for posting the info and photos.

i havent processed all this Alde grounding info yet.  I’m installing a Victron shunt and adding a battery to the existing lithium 100ah in my 2023 tab 400. 

I needed to replace the chassis ground wire on my 2019 T@B 320 S Boondock Lite, so I figured I would post a photo showing the ground wire lug attached to the chassis, and how the bare copper wire is routed up through the floor.  While I was under the trailer, I noticed that several of the plastic hold down clamps for the electrical wire conduit/loom, were loose.  The same was true for the plastic entry points/ports where the wiring leads up into the trailer.  They don't support much weight, so it is not really an issue, but if you happen to remove the coroplast cover under the trailer to do some repair work, you might want to re-tighten those screws (they don't appear to be biting into anything of much substance.)

It was very easy to replace the 8 gauge bare copper wire.  After removing the original wire, I found that I needed to route the new wire by pushing it through the bottom (exterior) of the trailer and into the electrical compartment.  When I tried to push the wire through the floor from inside the trailer, it would not budge.  It appeared that the composite wood below the floor was likely broken loose a bit and blocking the path of the wire from that direction.  I purchased 24" of wire, but only used 16 1/2" (but the length will vary with each trailer.)

You may be asking why I had to replace the ground wire.  Well, when nüCamp replaced my flooring in April 2023 (to repair the "floor issue" that was a problem for trailers manufactured around that model year time period), the tech cut the ground wire, but never replaced it (see second photo.)  Over the following six months, I towed the trailer for over 11,000 miles (through western Canada and the U.S.) before I discovered that the ground wire had been cut.  I made a temporary fix after discovering that, but finally replaced the wire this past weekend.  I think what protected my wife and I from a potential electrical shock is that I have a second ground connection to the chassis at the front of the trailer adjacent to the electrical junction box (as I previously described in this discussion thread.)  Needless to say, it was a "shocking" discovery.  I shared the information with nüCamp, along with other problems I found after the floor was repaired (e.g., floor not properly adhering in the kitchen area, misaligned cabinets, and the very sloppy application of caulking.)

MuttonChops said:

Scratching my head, this image seems to imply the busbar is "grounded" by the two phillips screws that attach it to the camper floor. Say it ain't so.