RE: Grounding Question

["Tesla list" <tesla-at-pupman-dot-com>]

Original poster: "John H. Couture" <couturejh-at-mgte-dot-com> 


Adam -

I believe your post is meant for me.

I assume your TC system is 5 KVA or smaller. In your wiring diagram connect
point 3 to your electric service ground. This should be a separate wire and
not your electric service neutral wire. Also connect this ground to the
power transformer enclosure ground connection and the control equipment.
Points 1 and 2 are both hot and go to 240VAC.

It should be noted that a Tesla coil may not be an approved device to
connect to your electric utility lines.

John Couture.

-------------------------------------


-----Original Message-----
From: Tesla list [mailto:tesla-at-pupman-dot-com]
Sent: Saturday, November 01, 2003 10:06 AM
To: tesla-at-pupman-dot-com
Subject: RE: Grounding Question


Original poster: Yurtle Turtle <yurtle_t-at-yahoo-dot-com>

I'm not sure I understand how you have your coil
hooked up. Is it like:

http://www.hot-streamer-dot-com/adam/temp/coil1.jpg

If not, I've numbered the nodes so you can tell me
where to connect/disconnect so I understand.

thanks
Adam

<snip>

  > Hi John, all,
  >
  > You bring out some good points here. I've always
  > wondered
  > how you can completely isolate the RF and the mains
  > grounds
  > from each other, especially when operating with one
  > side
  > of the power transformer tied to ground. Of course,
  > w/ NSTs
  > this option isn't possible since the HV secondary
  > coil is
  > internally mid-point grounded. With most pole pig
  > powered
  > coils, though, you have the option to ground one
  > side of the
  > HV terminals of the transformer so that you only
  > have to
  > run one "hot" HV transmission line from the
  > transformer to the
  > tank circuit and the return being tied to ground. I
  > believe
  > John shows his 5 kVA pig powered coil in his "Tesla
  > Coil
  > Construction Guide" wired in this way. I'm not
  > saying that
  > you can eliminate the dedicated RF ground in any
  > way, just
  > that they at some point do tie in together even if
  > only
  > through the soil itself. I run one "hot"
  > transmission line
  > w/ the return as the AC mains ground from my pole
  > transformer
  > power supply cabinet to the RSG's inputs inside the
  > tank
  > circuit and at the groundside of the RSG, it is also
  > tied
  > into the RF ground. Note that I am not running the
  > Tesla
  > coil as an "autotransformer" where the bottom of the
  > Tesla
  > secondary coil is "floating" at the "hot" end of the
  > Tesla
  > primary coil but rather where both the primary and
  > secondary
  > coils are tied in at one common point to the RF
  > ground. The
  > "autotransformer" would be a very dangerous setup
  > indeed for
  > a medium to large Tesla coil since the mains HV 60
  > HZ component
  > would definitely be impressed into the output
  > streamers indeed.
  > Not that streamers are ever safe to touch in the
  > first place,
  > but this would really make the output streamers an
  > electro-
  > cution hazard!
  >
  > David Rieben
  >
  >