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G4C12

AMATEUR RADIO PRACTICES · - Interference to consumer electronics; grounding and bonding

G4C12G4C →

Why must all metal enclosures of station equipment be grounded?

  1. AIt prevents a blown fuse in the event of an internal short circuit
  2. BIt prevents signal overload
  3. CIt ensures that the neutral wire is grounded
  4. DIt ensures that hazardous voltages cannot appear on the chassis
Why Bonding every metal chassis to the station's safety ground means that if a hot conductor inside the equipment contacts the case, the fault current has a low-impedance path back to the source, tripping the breaker or blowing the fuse instead of leaving the case energized. Without that bond, a chassis can float at line potential and shock anyone touching it, especially when they simultaneously touch another grounded item like a mic or a rack. The purpose is personal safety: the metal surfaces you touch stay at or near ground potential.
Watch out The choice about preventing a blown fuse is backwards, since a proper safety ground is exactly what lets the fuse or breaker open on an internal short. Grounding the neutral is the job of the service entrance panel, not of your radio's chassis, and RF overload is handled by filtering and attenuation, not by the green wire.
Green wire = people protection. Chassis ground keeps the metal you touch at zero volts.
HamSandwich explanation, first draft. The question and answers are the NCVEC text.
← G4C11 All of G4C

The rest of G4C

  1. G4C01 Which of the following might be useful in reducing RF interference to audio frequency circuits?
  2. G4C02 Which of the following could be a cause of interference covering a wide range of frequencies?
  3. G4C03 What sound is heard from an audio device experiencing RF interference from a single sideband phone transmitte…
  4. G4C04 What sound is heard from an audio device experiencing RF interference from a CW transmitter?
  5. G4C05 What is a possible cause of high voltages that produce RF burns?
  6. G4C06 What is a possible effect of a resonant ground connection?
  7. G4C07 Why should soldered joints not be used in lightning protection ground connections?
  8. G4C08 Which of the following would reduce RF interference caused by common-mode current on an audio cable?
  9. G4C09 How can the effects of ground loops be minimized?
  10. G4C10 What could be a symptom caused by a ground loop in your station's audio connections?
  11. G4C11 What technique helps to minimize RF "hot spots" in an amateur station?
  12. G4C12 Why must all metal enclosures of station equipment be grounded?
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