I know I need the same gauge ground as the power, but does the end of the ground need to touch bare exposed metal. My group is touching the chass, but it is covered with paint. Should I scratch the paint away? Also, I have an amp with 2 30A fuses. My fuse at the battery is only 40. Should I replace it with a 60 to be safe? Is this an immediate hazzard?
for fuses it's fused to the wire not the amp. the wire like 4 guage is 60 amp so that's a rough figure to go by for you. there is no hazzard with the amps fuses being mor eit would pop the power before the wamp so it's better acctually. next the cleanest ground the better. u need a clean ground to pass the current correctly. making it clean as possible is always better but only thing the paint does is ether make it not work or a poor ground which could make ur amp work harder and draw more power.
Defiantly remove the paint!! Any component with poor grounding has to work harder there by decreasing the life span of the internal circuitry . Your amplifier will run hotter and be more likely to develop " alternator whine" or other noise and power problems .
Find yourself a wire wheel or nylon wire wheel and STRIP the paint off using a drill.The wheels are about 3-6 dollars and they won't leave the metal destoryed and won't grind the metal away.They'll leave a nice clean and smooth metal after the paint is gone and if you need to...you can paint it later on fairly easily.You can find the wheels at your local auto parts store or sears or home depot or wherever.
The fuse near the battery is based on the size of the wire. Do not install a larger fuse than you wire is rated for.
Yes you need to sand the metal that you are grounding to. All you need is a piece of sandpaper. I use a sanding sponge and it cleans all the dirt and grit off a 15 year old cars frame with very little effort.
Just don't sand too large of an area that won't be covered by your wire terminal, cause unpainted steel will rust.
Jamey - amps actually run MORE efficiently at lower voltage, they just don't produce as much power.
How do you get that from my post ?????
I am very aware that an amplifier that is powered by 12 volts uses that current more effiectly than one powered by 13.8 volts. I am just wondering what this has to do with poor grounding.