Questions abt grounding neutral in an old house

[hauntedvertigo]

My pal discovered that their older home doesn't have proper ground and an electrician installed ground wires connecting to the neutral terminal at the panel instead of adding ground rods. Is this set up safe or could it lead to issues down the line? They've added GFCI outlets but I wonder if that fully protects against risks. Thanks for helping us figure this out.

 

[Johnny Hotpot]

Tying ground to neutral can be okay, but only at the main panel and done correctly. If there's no proper ground rod or grounding system, it could be unsafe, GFCIs help, but they don't fix all grounding issues, so yeah best to have a licensed electrician check it out for peace of mind.

 

[hauntedvertigo]

Tying ground to neutral can be okay, but only at the main panel and done correctly. If there's no proper ground rod or grounding system, it could be unsafe, GFCIs help, but they don't fix all grounding issues, so yeah best to have a licensed electrician check it out for peace of mind.

Thanks for clarifying! I'll pass along your advice. Would adding ground rods alongside the existing setup provide added protection?

 

[PGB1]

Hello HauntedVertigo,

Assuming the property is in the United States and Under NFPA-70:
Two grounding electrodes, spaced a minimum of 6 feet apart and served by an unbroken conductor are usually required. They can be plate, rod, pipe or other approved electrodes. All service grounds are to bond at a common point.

The neutral bus will be fine for your existing installation.
Note, however, that this use of the neutral ONLY applies if it is in the same enclosure as the first disconnecting means. If there is a main circuit breaker, fuses or a switch "upstream", using the neutral as described in #1 is not allowed.

We don't get to use the water piping as the supplemental electrode because often hidden are lengths of PVC or PEX or other non-conductive piping which interrupt the electrons' low impedance path to earth. Thus, two rods became required.

I hope this helps and doesn't confuse!
Paul

 

[Deleted member 119]

Assuming your "friends" electrician knows his/her/it's job, why are you questioning the work?

 

[hauntedvertigo]

Hello HauntedVertigo,

Assuming the property is in the United States and Under NFPA-70:
Two grounding electrodes, spaced a minimum of 6 feet apart and served by an unbroken conductor are usually required. They can be plate, rod, pipe or other approved electrodes. All service grounds are to bond at a common point.

The neutral bus will be fine for your existing installation.
Note, however, that this use of the neutral ONLY applies if it is in the same enclosure as the first disconnecting means. If there is a main circuit breaker, fuses or a switch "upstream", using the neutral as described in #1 is not allowed.

We don't get to use the water piping as the supplemental electrode because often hidden are lengths of PVC or PEX or other non-conductive piping which interrupt the electrons' low impedance path to earth. Thus, two rods became required.

I hope this helps and doesn't confuse!
Paul

Thanks for the breakdown and the help, Paul. A (different) electrician found that the home's grounding system was ineffective due to past repairs using non-metallic pipes. They installed 2 properly spaced ground rods, connected them to the main service panel's grounding bus with the right conductor, and ensured the neutral-to-ground bond was correct. The house is now up to code and safely grounded.

 

[hauntedvertigo]

Assuming your "friends" electrician knows his/her/it's job, why are you questioning the work?

Wild assumption there, but I'll humor you. Asking questions isn't a crime, last I checked, and when safety is involved, it's better to know than to trust blindly.