Finding Hot-Skin/Stray-Voltage with a Non-Contact Voltage Tester

jmsokol

Active Member
With the blessing of Forum Admin, Jim Beletti, I am reposting my recent article on RV hot-skin testing here. I'll also be presenting this demonstration in a seminar at your national rally in June, 2019.

I'm Mike Sokol, an expert on RV electrical hookups and safety, and writer of the No~Shock~Zone and
RVelectricity.com articles on electrical power for RVs. I just produced a short video and companion article on how to use a Non Contact Voltage Tester (NCVT) to find an RV hot-skin/stray-voltage without having to make direct contact with the vehicle. See https://rvtravel.com/rv-electricity-using-a-non-contact-voltage-tester/ for the article and video.

Hot-Skin/Stray-Voltage occurs whenever you have an interrupted ground wire in the shore power hookup of your RV. That allows any leakage currents to create a voltage on all metal of your RV including the skin, chassis, hitch, wheels, and tow vehicle. These shock hazards can vary from low-current (under 5mA) versions due to normal appliance leakages or water in a junction box, to mid-current (1 to 2 ampere) versions due to a water heater element being melted, up to high-current versions (up to 50-amperes) due to wiring insulation being cut or penetrated with a screw. How dangerous any of these conditions are depends on how wet the ground and your hands are, and if you're standing in dry shoes. More of my articles on RV electrical hookups and safety are posted on RVelectricity.com. Please let me know if you would like me to repost any of these other articles here.
 

jmsokol

Active Member
Long time since you last visited - thanks for dropping back in.

Yeah, I've been busy. I'm now writing several full-length articles every week in RVtravel.com and my RVelectricity.com newsletter is taking off rapidly. I will be presenting at least two No~Shock~Zone seminars at your rally in Goshen next June, 2019. I have a lot more NSZ demonstrations set up and will be making short videos of them in the coming months. In the meantime, if you get a really complex electrical question that nobody can answer or agree on, send me an email and I'll look into it. I just don't have time to actively scan the dozens of forums I'm on for questions. But I'll be sure to answer you if I get a direct pm.
 
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