"I have read if I run a length of insulated wire (any gauge) between the tracks and connect the wire to a ground plug, the problem may go away. Do I understand this correct?"
I say again:
Where did you read that?
"The problem" seems to be low voltage. I have been in the electrical business since 1959. I have no idea what you're trying to do with a piece of 24 gauge wire.
Are you using conventional track power, or some sort of command control? I know that certain radio signals used to control toy trains can be augmented by using ground planes. That does not seem to be what you have built with a piece of 24-gauge wire.
Additionally, you have introduced another factor into the porridge by using a surge protector. They are either useless or trouble-causing, in the real world of electrical contracting. I haven't the faintest idea why you would try using one of them in this instance. Did you read that somewhere?
