Chuck your feedback needs to be posted on the Newsletter reply as well. Please do this so that others have the opportunity to ready your thoughts.

God Bless, Mike Holt, 1-352-429-5577

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From: Charles Untiedt [mailto:uuc@mncgp.com] Sent: Tuesday, August 14, 2007 4:25 AM To: distjimb@aol.com; Lawcrosdik@aol.com; 'Janelle Holzersmith'; jlush@brookings.net; 'Hugh Chester-Jones'; 'mrdairy'; 'Mike Holt, of Mike Holt Enterprises, Inc.' Subject: Stray Voltage

Hi Jim;

I read your paper in Mike’s newsletter and have a couple issues that I would like to have clarified, if you would be so kind.

First let me identify myself, my name is Chuck Untiedt and I’m just a “dumb dairy farmer”, when it comes to electricity but I have more than a little understanding about my life’s work, spanning over 50 years, which is taking care of my dairy animals to the best of my ability and without, outside problems being “injected” into my operation.

If you would be so kind, please tell me what person said that it was alright to shock even one cow with known intent and without good reason? Please consider this, if you had one hundred children and someone said that it was alright to shock 10% of them, would you find that acceptable? Would it be okay to shock 5% of your children or even 1% of your children? Personally, I find this completely unacceptable.

Your following statement also concerns me;

“For most of my career, spanning over 40 years, the term “stray voltage” has meant one thing, i.e. the voltage between the neutral conductor and the earth, resulting from unbalanced current. Since unbalanced current is an integral part of a 4 wire multi-grounded system, it was considered normal.”

My question is who defined normal? If you refer to the NEETRAC publication you will note that it clearly states in the section entitled “Evolution of Distribution Systems”, the following statements that I find extremely easy to understand, please see if you agree with the following.

Solidly Muti-Grounded Systems, NEETRAC states under,

“Disadvantage”, “Results in a neutral to earth (N-E) voltage, which can contribute to stray voltage.”

Ungrounded system, which I understand are used very successfully in Europe and many other parts of the world. NEETRAC states under,

“Advantages:” “Does not contribute to stray voltage”

Solidly Unigrounded System;

“Advantages:” “Does not contribute to stray voltage”

Resistively or Reactively Grounded System;

“Advantages:” “Does not contribute to stray voltage”

Additionally, there are transformations which are fully approved non-standard distributions that can be utilized to safely and reliably help alleviate situations were a multi-grounded neutral system may not be the optimum choice for safety and reliability. I would like to point out that Mr. Frank Denbrock, of D & A Consulting Engineers, has expressed a very insightful and true statement concerning ungrounded distribution systems and I will quote Mr. Denbrock, whom I understand to also be intensely involved in IEEE and the National Electrical Safety Code Committee;

“There are thousands of miles of delta primary distribution systems in service throughout the country operating safely and reliably.”

I feel the following is also inappropriate;

“The only issues that arose were from the dairy industry and occasionally from a pool owner. Stray Voltage was not considered dangerous , especially to humans, so the interest level in the industry was relatively low.”

The very first people to recognize that “Stray Voltage is Real” were correct and concerned for the well being of the dairy animals and hopefully to help dairy people from being “kicked in the head” or even more unsettling a young child permanently injured. The earliest recommendations from USDA and Minnesota Extension were to reduce the level of Neutral-to-Earth Voltage below the level that a dairy animal could feel it and I still believe this to be the only proper and humane way to treat a dairy animal and those levels are attainable with the cooperation of “ALL” involved.

I just recently worked with an extremely dedicated group of individuals, to help alleviate a stray voltage problem at a dairy farm and we were successful because the electrical engineers, the utility, the linemen, the electricians and the dairy people all joined forces to determine the causes and work to develop a plan based upon sound electrical measurements, good engineering practices, good wiring practices and good workmanship practices.

I have been privileged to be helped by a host of wonderful and extremely intelligent people including Mr. Chuck Newcombe (formerly with the Fluke Corporation and who now writes as the “Fluke Expert”), Mike Holt (who so graciously has helped me understand an important lesson in life, that being if you make a mistake admit it, learn from it and help others learn), Gregory N.C. Ferguson of Power Quality International (who helped me comprehend some of the electric principles of induction and coupling associated with electrical transformers and wiring) and Mike Miller an extremely intelligent electrician/electronics/computer/stray voltage expert/ troubleshooter and I am humbled by their unselfish help and mentoring.

As to some of your other comments, I would be extremely grateful if you would consider allowing me to speak directly to you.

I would also like to invite you to speak to and/or meet with the “Stray Voltage Task Force” that is chaired by Hugh Chester-Jones, Ph.D., PAS with the University of Minnesota, Southern Research and Outreach Center, Waseca, Minnesota. Hugh is an Associate Professor and Animal Scientist with the Dairy and Beef Production Systems. Given the fact that you are on the IEEE working group on Stray Voltage we would love to have you put on a pair of boots and see the real world of Stray Voltage from a dairy person’s perspective and more importantly from the dairy animal’s perspective. I have long felt that the best way to truly understand an issue is to first hand learn from others who have actually experienced the problem not from someone that shocks cows in a laboratory until they “beller” and then call that a vocalization from an unpleasant stimuli that has no harmful effect upon the animal. We actually have an excellent term for that kind of science and the initials are “BS”. (My apologies to the Boys Scouts, this is not a reference to you.)

Sincerely,

Chuck