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Wiring question. Battery grounding.


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#1 Cory Kelley

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Posted 05 March 2019 - 02:36 PM

I am adding an AGM battery to my hawk shell. I am adding solar panel and victron batt monitor too. I think I’ve got it all pretty well sorted out but have a question about grounding.

I know that I need to run the neg from battery, solar and loads to the shunt. Do I need to ground the battery to the truck or camper somehow too? If so do you have any suggestions? Wire Gauge and where to ground would be helpful. 2016 f150.

Thank you for all the help. These forums have really helped me sort all of this out.
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#2 Wandering Sagebrush

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Posted 05 March 2019 - 03:45 PM

Cory, I can’t give a definite answer, but I see no reason to ground the shunt to either the camper or the truck. My electrical schooling of 50 years ago has me thinking the shunt only needs to be an in-line part of the circuit. Did the manufacturer say otherwise?

Let’s see what some of the better educated have to say...
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#3 MidAtlantic

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Posted 05 March 2019 - 04:55 PM

Not sure about being better educated, but isn't the battery grounded if the shunt is in-line on the negative side of the battery?

See Fig. 4.

https://www.victrone...70x_part1_2.pdf


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#4 Bosque Bill

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Posted 05 March 2019 - 05:31 PM

Not sure about being better educated, but isn't the battery grounded if the shunt is in-line on the negative side of the battery?

See Fig. 4.

https://www.victrone...70x_part1_2.pdf

 

That PDF shows the battery grounded, yes, but I don't believe that connection is required unless there are loads connected between hot and the frame/chassis (in which case those would not be monitored by the shunt.)

 

I don't believe I've grounded my batteries, but as my camper is currently still in storage I can't check.

 

But then again I've got some weirdness in my system that prevents my battery separator from functioning properly (it started after adding the solar system.) As the solar keeps my batteries charged I've disabled the separator, but even with a degree in electrical engineering I've never been able to figure this one glitch out.


Edited by Bosque Bill, 05 March 2019 - 05:34 PM.

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#5 MidAtlantic

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Posted 05 March 2019 - 06:04 PM



That PDF shows the battery grounded, yes, but I don't believe that connection is required unless there are loads connected between hot and the frame/chassis (in which case those would not be monitored by the shunt.)

 

I don't believe I've grounded my batteries, but as my camper is currently still in storage I can't check.

 

But then again I've got some weirdness in my system that prevents my battery separator from functioning properly (it started after adding the solar system.) As the solar keeps my batteries charged I've disabled the separator, but even with a degree in electrical engineering [my emphasis] I've never been able to figure this one glitch out.

 

The Trimetric installation guide is slightly more informative, including connection of "CHASSIS GROUND (IF APPLICABLE)".

 

F. Load side of Shunt. Negative WIRES from ALL charging sources and loads CONNECT HERE TO MEASURE CURRENT including SOLAR PANELS, CHARGE CONTROLLER, ALTERNATOR, INVERTER, AND CHASSIS GROUND (IF APPLICABLE). Okay to use bus bar as long as connection is ultimately to the shunt. Note: The shunt measures all current to be displayed by the meter.

 

https://www.solar-el..._User_Guide.pdf

 

BTW I think you have also resolved the question of who among us is better educated.  :)


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#6 Vic Harder

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Posted 05 March 2019 - 06:26 PM

I grounded my system through the shunt to the camper frame.  Camper and truck are connected/grounded via the 2g wire from alternator to camper batteries.  Does it need to be grounded?  I dunno. 

 

However, the comment above "unless there are loads connected between hot and the frame/chassis" is true in a lot of cases in FWC, who sometimes use the frame as the return wire.  I'd hate to see what would happen if somehow the battery ground was disconnected and all that current tried to go through the frame to some tiny wire inside the walls of the camper.


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#7 pvstoy

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Posted 05 March 2019 - 06:30 PM

I am adding an AGM battery to my hawk shell. I am adding solar panel and victron batt monitor too. I think I’ve got it all pretty well sorted out but have a question about grounding.

I know that I need to run the neg from battery, solar and loads to the shunt. Do I need to ground the battery to the truck or camper somehow too? If so do you have any suggestions? Wire Gauge and where to ground would be helpful. 2016 f150.

Thank you for all the help. These forums have really helped me sort all of this out.

 

 

Connect the "battery" negative terminal to the negative stud on the battery monitor shunt.  Attach everything negative from... solar, truck alternator charging, all return loads from camper... to the aux side of the shunt.

 

The camper negative wiring is connected to the camper frame from a negative buss bar.  As long as those grounds go back to the shunt then the shunt will see the return current back to the battery.

 

The shunt will tell the battery monitor what is going in and out (closes the circuit loop) from everything attached this way.

 

If you have anything bypassing the shunt and attached to the negative side of the battery directly then the battery monitor will never see this.

 

Picture the battery as a loop, positive out to load and returns as ground back to the battery.  It takes both to complete the circuit.

 

So the ground from the battery should be already grounded to the camper frame at the breaker/fuses location by a buss bar.  Also note that at the buss bar the power inverter has a wire that connects to it and then goes to the battery negative return.  If your camper has standard factory wiring then you already have a attached wire from the camper frame to the battery wired properly, just attach that wire to the input side of the shunt as that is the only negative wire from the camper.


Edited by pvstoy, 05 March 2019 - 06:34 PM.

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#8 PaulT

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Posted 05 March 2019 - 07:03 PM

I think there is a semantic problem in using the word “ground.” I prefer “battery return” as ground is overloaded with different meanings. There are at least the following meanings:
1. Battery return
2. Alternator/truck battery return
3. AC ground in reference to the AC shore power
4. RF ground if you have radio transmitters like Ham, CB, cell booster, satellite units.

What did I miss?

Anyway, the above are enough to cause me grief in understanding what applies when and what best practices are. :)

Paul
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#9 pvstoy

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Posted 05 March 2019 - 07:16 PM

That's ok as in my head I understand what is happening, while my lips or fingers typing don't always say it the proper way. I apologize if it offended the more electrically inclined persons that know the proper terminology. ;)  


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#10 PaulT

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Posted 05 March 2019 - 07:25 PM

That's ok as in my head I understand what is happening, while my lips or fingers typing don't always say it the proper way. I apologize if it offended the more electrically inclined persons that know the proper terminology. ;)  

Didn't mean to imply any issue with your specific post. Just that, in general, the word "ground" makes my head hurt when I am trying to understand what is meant in our short bits of text in posts.

 

Paul


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