IMPORTANT NOTICE, PLEASE READ BEFORE TRACING
�
Avoiding signal cancellation problems with a separate ground connection
The signal generated by the Transmitter creates an electromagnetic field around the wire. This field is what is
detectable by the Receiver. The clearer this signal, the easier it is to trace the wire.
If Transmitter is connected to two adjacent wires on the same circuit (for example, hot and neutral wires
on a Romax cable), the signal travels in one direction through the first wire and then returns (in opposite
direction) through the second. This causes the creation of two electromagnetic fields around each wire with
opposite direction. These opposing fields will partially or completely cancel each other out, making wire
tracing difficult if not impossible.
To avoid the cancellation effect, a separate ground connection method should be used. The red test lead of the
Transmitter should be connected to the hot wire of the circuit you wish to trace, and the green/black lead to a
separate ground, such as water pipe, ground stake, metal grounded structure of the building, or outlet ground
connection of an outlet on a different circuit. It is important to understand that an acceptable separate ground
is NOT the grounding terminal of any receptacle on the same circuit as the wire you wish to trace. If hot wire is
Energized and the Transmitter is properly connected to a separate ground, the red LED on the Transmitter will
light up. The separate ground connection creates maximum signal strength because the electromagnetic field
created around the hot wire is not being cancelled by a signal on the return path flowing along an adjacent
wire (ground or neutral) in the opposite direction, but rather through the separate ground circuit.
100
999
8kHz
33kHz
50Hz
Radio
15