Sender wiring??

[apollo5646]

Ok, I give, been searching the sight for a little info on how to wire up a sender. I found a couple diagrams but my question still is unanswered. The problem i get no reading from the fuel gauge always says E. As of right now i know that the gauge works i removed the send wire from the sender and if i touch it to a mounting screw on the sender it will peg to full, good right? but if i hook it back to the post nothing just E. I was wondering if perhaps the ground is not hooked up right. The ground wire comes to the tank and is attached to a stud on the tank about 10 inches from the sender. Looking at the diagrams i would think that ground should hook right to the sender, but being that the sender is screwed to the tank i would think that would provide the necessary electrical path to provide the ground or should their be a ground from the tank to the sender too. I'm a little puzzled please help.

 

[rwidman]

Re: Sender wiring??

Ok, I give, been searching the sight for a little info on how to wire up a sender. I found a couple diagrams but my question still is unanswered. The problem i get no reading from the fuel gauge always says E. As of right now i know that the gauge works i removed the send wire from the sender and if i touch it to a mounting screw on the sender it will peg to full, good right? but if i hook it back to the post nothing just E. I was wondering if perhaps the ground is not hooked up right. The ground wire comes to the tank and is attached to a stud on the tank about 10 inches from the sender. Looking at the diagrams i would think that ground should hook right to the sender, but being that the sender is screwed to the tank i would think that would provide the necessary electrical path to provide the ground or should their be a ground from the tank to the sender too. I'm a little puzzled please help.

The sender is a resistor that varies with the level in the tank. It has the least resistance when the tank is full, the most when it is empty.

The gauge measures current flow through this variable resistor to negative or ground.

Since grounding the wire from the gauge moves the needle to "full", the gauge itself and wiring as far as the tank is fine.

Did this work at one time and then stop working or did you replace the sending unit and now it doesn't work?

There should be two terminals on the sending unit. One is for the wire from the gauge and the other goes to negative (or "ground"). "Grounding" through the tank itself will only work if you have a metal tank and the screws from the sending unit make electrical contact with both the sending unit case and the tank.

 

[apollo5646]

Re: Sender wiring??

The gauge has not worked since i got the boat. So I'm not to sure as to the origin of the sender. The tank is metal and like I said the ground is attached to the tank and not to the shell of the sender. The sender is how ever screwed to the tank and if I touch the sender end of the gauge wire to a mounting screw the gauge will go to full like it should. I'm leaning toward not getting a good ground for some reason and I should try to move the ground wire to the sender it self and not just on the tank.
On side a note I was just back in Charleston last week, lived there for 5 years while i was in the navy. Loved the city absolutly loved Sticky Fingers.

 

[rwidman]

Re: Sender wiring??

The gauge has not worked since i got the boat. So I'm not to sure as to the origin of the sender. The tank is metal and like I said the ground is attached to the tank and not to the shell of the sender. The sender is how ever screwed to the tank and if I touch the sender end of the gauge wire to a mounting screw the gauge will go to full like it should. I'm leaning toward not getting a good ground for some reason and I should try to move the ground wire to the sender it self and not just on the tank.
On side a note I was just back in Charleston last week, lived there for 5 years while i was in the navy. Loved the city absolutly loved Sticky Fingers.

I think Sticky Fingers is gone. I know the one closest to me is gone.

If there's a ground terminal on the sender, connect a jumper from it to the other ground connection. Leave the tank grounded