My metal siding is shocking need help ele fence

[spidersmouse]

Low impendance fencer, working good for 15 years, put metal siding on the garage where the unit is this summer. Went to plug in, fencer is in the yellow, no shock at the fence. BUT if you put one finger on the metal siding on the outside of the garage near the fencer, and one into the ground WOW OUCH!!! Checked the outgoing cable, its in PVC conduit, appears intact, not touching anything, same for the grounding rod and cable. Please any suggestions? The ground rod is driving right next to the masonary foundation-do I need to move it farther away? HELP.

 

[BeezFun]

I'm guessing the feedthrough you're using that goes through the metal siding isn't rated for the high voltage used by chargers. For example regular wire won't work, you need high voltage wire. You could also have a problem with moisture. If there's moisture in the pvc it could be conducting to the metal siding. I don't know that pvc is sufficient to insulate high voltage either, fence insulators are usually a much harder plastic of some kind that's rated for that kind of service. An easy test would be to bypass the feedthrough and run a long piece of HV wire out the building and to the fence, see if you still have the problem.

 

[grsthegreat]

I'm guessing the feedthrough you're using that goes through the metal siding isn't rated for the high voltage used by chargers. For example regular wire won't work, you need high voltage wire. You could also have a problem with moisture. If there's moisture in the pvc it could be conducting to the metal siding. I don't know that pvc is sufficient to insulate high voltage either, fence insulators are usually a much harder plastic of some kind that's rated for that kind of service. An easy test would be to bypass the feedthrough and run a long piece of HV wire out the building and to the fence, see if you still have the problem.

My thoughts exactly. They make a special highly insulated wire for underground feeds of low impediance fencers. You have to use this wire. Regular house wire is rated at 600 volts. These chargers can put out 5000 volts.

 

[spidersmouse]

using high voltage ignition wire rated for 17,000 volts.

i'm thinking that there is a weak spot in the insulation from years of service, and its snapping thru. we tried extra ground rods, so that's not it. calling around to find more high voltage wire. why is it this always happens when the weather is about to turn crappy.

 

[BeezFun]

using high voltage ignition wire rated for 17,000 volts.

i'm thinking that there is a weak spot in the insulation from years of service, and its snapping thru. we tried extra ground rods, so that's not it. calling around to find more high voltage wire. why is it this always happens when the weather is about to turn crappy.

It can't be a ground problem, or you wouldn't be getting shocked. Not sure where you are but places like tractor supply carry fence wire. I'm not sure ignition wire would be rated to stand up to the UV, it normally isn't outside. That might be breaking down the insulation.

I buy my stuff online from Ken Cove fence, I know you're in a hurry but that's an option if you can't find anything local.

 

[spidersmouse]

replaced the high voltage wire, no improvement. have current when not connected to fence, hitch it up, no shock on fence and get shocked by metal siding. someone has suggested stray voltage, our load center is grounded about 15 feet away from our ground rod. thoughts?

 

[grsthegreat]

replaced the high voltage wire, no improvement. have current when not connected to fence, hitch it up, no shock on fence and get shocked by metal siding. someone has suggested stray voltage, our load center is grounded about 15 feet away from our ground rod. thoughts?

Yeiks, now im not sure myself. How do you have the charger mounted? can the spark be jumping from the terminal to the metal?

 

[Redneck in training]

If everything obvious checks fine then I would check the 110V outlet wiring and the cable to the fencer. Specifically the Neutral wire. It looks like the 110V has N wire interrupted and loop is closed over the ground.

 

[BeezFun]

I'd start eliminating things one by one. Try plugging charger into a different outlet, if the garage is on a subpanel maybe run an extension cord back to the house just to make sure you're on a properly grounded and wired outlet. If you have one of those little outlet testers, plug it in and check for proper wiring and ground.

If the metal siding is still charged, I'd disconnect the high voltage line at the charger but leave the existing ground connected. Connect a new short piece of high voltage line that doesn't go anywhere near the metal siding and verify it has voltage on it. Then see if the building is still charged.

If the metal siding is still charged, leave the short piece of HV line connected and disconnect the ground at the charger. If the building is still charged, see if your neighbor has his charger connected to your building. I discovered once that my neighbor had accidentally connected his fence wire to my fence wire way out in the pasture. Scratched a hole in my hair figuring why my fence always had a weak charge on it.

 

[Ken45101]

I'm thinking maybe a bad ground. If your ground is open, and your siding is attached to that ground, YOU will be the path from the "ground" to the real ground.

Ken