redholm
join:2004-10-31
Sunnyvale, CA | reply to tschmidt
Re: Why is neutral conncted to ground in the fuse box/panel? Thanks for the links, now when I have the proper terms I can find more interesting links.
Again just for my curiosity not for doing anything, I leave that to the professional. |
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robbinPremium,MVM
join:2000-09-21
Leander, TX
kudos:1 | reply to redholm
said by redholm:I am a curious person and have lived in many places in the world. Some of them did not have a neutral to ground connection in the main panel. Maybe they had a connection upstream at the pole. The last place I saw no neutral ground connection had a whole house GFI. One lab I visited had two grounds, regular ground that was connected to neutral and reference ground that was not.
It would be a mistake to think that all power distribution systems around the world are the same as the system used in the United States. As you list your location as Sunnyvale, CA; I based my response to your question on the system used in the US. That by no means should imply that all electrical systems have the neutral and ground bonded as is required with our system. |
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Mr Matt
join:2008-01-29
Eustis, FL
kudos:1 | reply to robbin
Unless of course the electrician installed one or more combination GFCI, Circuit Breakers. Then from the point of view of a homeowner the GFCI is a circuit breaker. |
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 ropeguruPremium
join:2001-01-25
Mechanicsville, VA | reply to davidg
Re: Why is neutral conncted to ground in the fuse box/panel? said by davidg:sorry, but asking questions on a forum is not the PROPER way to learn about electrical. you will get such wide response(most of them completely wrong) that it will only serve to confuse and endanger someone. If he really wants to learn, and i hope he does, then the better method is to get someone that knows to teach him. there are also some basic electrical books available fairly cheap that will give someone the very basic understanding they need to do minor home electrical work.
i never said NOT to ask, just to not do anything in the panel until he learned more. a live panel is not the place for someone that has no basic knowledge, you can and will get hurt quickly.
Then maybe we should just close this forum with comments and beliefs like this. |
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 Jack_in_VAPremium
join:2007-11-26
Mathews, VA
kudos:1 | said by ropeguru:said by davidg:sorry, but asking questions on a forum is not the PROPER way to learn about electrical. you will get such wide response(most of them completely wrong) that it will only serve to confuse and endanger someone. If he really wants to learn, and i hope he does, then the better method is to get someone that knows to teach him. there are also some basic electrical books available fairly cheap that will give someone the very basic understanding they need to do minor home electrical work.
i never said NOT to ask, just to not do anything in the panel until he learned more. a live panel is not the place for someone that has no basic knowledge, you can and will get hurt quickly.
Then maybe we should just close this forum with comments and beliefs like this. He's talking about electrical that is lethal unless handled properly. You can see from the many varied and mostly wrong advice that this is a problem. Someone working with electrical should have a basic knowledge of it especially the NEC.
nunya and whizkid are two very good sources for accurate info. Keep that in mind. |
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 grobinetteSoutheast of disorderPremium,Mod
join:2001-01-27
Springfield, VA
kudos:1 | reply to redholm
Take it easy guys.... |
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ropeguruPremium
join:2001-01-25
Mechanicsville, VA | reply to Jack_in_VA
Jack, I agree with you about who should be listened to. But the OP only asked a question about if what he saw was correct or not. Nowhere did the OP say ANYTHING about making changes.
davidg  had to jump in with no help at all saying the OP should not even be removing the cover. Well, that is the time I EXPECT people to ask questions and that is what the forum is here for. I also agree that code books and other forms of education are probably better than here, except in the case of whiz and nunya answering specific questions.
It is davidg who is in the wrong here stating what he did. The posts that garys_2k and mattmag are right on in my opinion. If I open something up and am not sure what it is I am seeing, I am going to ask a question. I would hope folks here would at least be a little more hospitable and at the very least just point me in the right direction to learn. Not the smartass comment he made. |
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 AVDRespice, Adspice, ProspicePremium
join:2003-02-06
Onion, NJ
kudos:1 | reply to robbin
said by robbin:said by redholm:I am a curious person and have lived in many places in the world. Some of them did not have a neutral to ground connection in the main panel. Maybe they had a connection upstream at the pole. The last place I saw no neutral ground connection had a whole house GFI. One lab I visited had two grounds, regular ground that was connected to neutral and reference ground that was not.
It would be a mistake to think that all power distribution systems around the world are the same as the system used in the United States. As you list your location as Sunnyvale, CA; I based my response to your question on the system used in the US. That by no means should imply that all electrical systems have the neutral and ground bonded as is required with our system. Don't think it is correct everywhere in the US.
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* seek help if having trouble coping
--Standard disclaimers apply.-- |
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 John GaltForward, MarchPremium
join:2004-09-30
Happy Camp
kudos:5 | said by AVD:Don't think it is correct everywhere in the US.
Citation...?  |
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 davidgGood Bye My FriendPremium,MVM
join:2002-06-15
none | reply to ropeguru
i said if he does not know the answer to a very basic electrical question then he has no business in the panel UNTIL HE LEARNS. you don't learn by poking around in a live panel. whether you feel that way or not, it does not make my posting a warning to him wrong.
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Lack of Preparation on YOUR Part does NOT Constitute an Emergency on Mine! |
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ropeguruPremium
join:2001-01-25
Mechanicsville, VA | said by davidg:i said if he does not know the answer to a very basic electrical question then he has no business in the panel UNTIL HE LEARNS. you don't learn by poking around in a live panel. whether you feel that way or not, it does not make my posting a warning to him wrong.
This is my last reply on this.
Where did he say he was POKING around in the panel? His statement was that he removed the panel and found the ground connected to the neutral. I can see that clearly without poking around in my panel.
So riddle me this, do you go and find a book and read up on everything before you ever remove a cover? I doubt it..
Also, just a little more respect in the WAY you reply would have averted all this. |
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davidgGood Bye My FriendPremium,MVM
join:2002-06-15
none | in many panels an uneducated eye is not going to catch a N-G connection without really looking. in a panel where they are both on the same block it is obvious, but in a large number of panels they are on seperate blocks and you have to notice the bonding screw to see it.
as far as how i answered, i was more respectful than you have been. ever hear of someone posting from a tablet, i dunno about you but when i do my posts are brief.
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Lack of Preparation on YOUR Part does NOT Constitute an Emergency on Mine! |
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garys_2kPremium
join:2004-05-07
Farmington, MI Reviews:
 ·callwithus
·Callcentric
| He just asked a simple question, it wasn't like he said "Hey guys, I want to entirely rewire my house. I'm almost done and now I have some questions." He noticed something "in the place I currently live" that was puzzling and he asked about it. He wasn't unfamiliar with wiring and from his POV that bonding didn't seem "right." At no time did he say he was going to mess with it, change it or try to "fix" it.
He asked a simple question. Hollering about somehow not being qualified to open the panel was over the top -- as if someone asking why the occasional word is spelled with "i" after "e" shouldn't be allowed to write. |
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