Cod
join:2000-07-05
Greensboro, NC | odd...
Another question is why was he sinking a ground rod? He should attach his ground to the power co ground as to not cause a difference in potential. |
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hopeflicker
Capitalism breeds greed
Premium
join:2003-04-03
Long Beach, CA | yeah, when I was an installer they said no more grounding rods. That was great because pounding them into the ground could be a bitch at times.
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A long time ago, I used to wonder 'why'... Now I just reinstall... |
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HyPeRbAnD
join:2006-01-07
Stow, MA
| reply to Cod
said by Cod  :Another question is why was he sinking a ground rod? Good point, unless he had no alternative. |
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PoloDude
Premium,VIP
join:2006-03-29
East Northport, NY
 ·Verizon FIOS
| he may have been bringingt the service to the other side of the house where there was no ground. Also it it AWLAYS better to sink a new ground rod if possible, or if there is an exiating ground rod that you can hoox directly to. the 2nd option is the cold water ground. As for driving the rod through the pipe he may have thought he hit a root. |
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HyPeRbAnD
join:2006-01-07
Stow, MA
| said by PoloDude :Also it it AWLAYS better to sink a new ground rod if possible, or if there is an exiating ground rod that you can hoox directly to. the 2nd option is the cold water ground. My opinion is ground to electric if possible, 2nd cold water pipe and last use a rod. |
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John Galt
Forward, March
Premium
join:2004-09-30
Happy Camp
 ·CenturyLink
| said by HyPeRbAnD :My opinion is ground to electric if possible, 2nd cold water pipe and last use a rod. The National Electric Code (NEC) specifies what you must ground to...
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A is A |
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bogey780
join:2004-03-19
Here | reply to Cod
You can technically drive a rod but it has to be bonded to the power ground with #6 |
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macrospect
All The Little Stuff
Premium
join:2005-08-25
Doylestown, PA | reply to John Galt
I guess the installers (Suburban Cable)missed the classes on NEC standards when they wired my house. There is absolutely no grounding from the tap outside, forward. Granted my tap is only 20' from my house, who even knows if that thing is grounded! |
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hopeflicker
Capitalism breeds greed
Premium
join:2003-04-03
Long Beach, CA
| said by macrospect :I guess the installers (Suburban Cable)missed the classes on NEC standards when they wired my house. There is absolutely no grounding from the tap outside, forward. Granted my tap is only 20' from my house, who even knows if that thing is grounded! You better call them before your house burns down.  I bet they'd be out to your palce in no time.
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A long time ago, I used to wonder 'why'... Now I just reinstall... |
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PolarBear
The bear formerly known as aaron8301
Premium
join:2005-01-03
 ·CableOne
| reply to Cod
DirecTV Grounding
When I installed for DirecTV, we had very elaborate rules regarding grounding; we called them the NATIONAL ELECTRIC CODE.
The following are some grounding rules referring to the NEC as told to me by DirecTV, so I assume them to be correct:
Rule #1: A proper ground consists of two ground rods, each 8 feet long, placed (about 4-8 feet apart?), connected by a single continuous ground wire attached to the ground block in the service panel.
Rule #2: Only the homeowner, or a certified electrician may install a ground rod. If anyone else does it, it is not a usable ground as far as the NEC is concerned, and an electrical inspector will not pass the install.
Rule #3: Everything in the house is to be grounded to the same main grounding point, for the following reason:
said by Cod :He should attach his ground to the power co ground as to not cause a difference in potential.
All this information begs the questions: Why was he installing a ground rod in the first place? Obviously he was close to the utilities in the house if he indeed struck a gas line, so why couldn't he simply attach his ground to the main ground wire, a nearby ACTUAL ground rod, or the electrical panel?
DirecTV installers are allowed to ground to the following points: The electrical panel, the main ground wire, one of the main ground rods, a cold water pipe, or the steel frame of a mobile home/trailer. Reason being? They are all connected to the main ground of the electrical system of the house.
At no time EVER is a DirecTV installer allowed to install a ground rod. If a proper ground cannot be made, the customer must sign a waiver or we cancel the install.
Maybe if Comcast had slightly higher installation standards, a couple people would still be alive (assuming it is found that the Comcast installer indeed sparked the blaze).
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"I invented it, Bill made it famous." --David Bradley, the inventor of Ctrl+Alt+Del. |
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MadMANN
Premium
join:2005-08-19
·Comcast
| said by PolarBear :When I installed for DirecTV, we had very elaborate rules regarding grounding; we called them the NATIONAL ELECTRIC CODE. That's what everyone calls it.  You should give lessons to the DirecTv installers in my area. They run lines direct from the dish in to the rooms without ground blocks A LOT.
Rule #2: Only the homeowner, or a certified electrician may install a ground rod. If anyone else does it, it is not a usable ground as far as the NEC is concerned, and an electrical inspector will not pass the install. Not true. As long as the rod is 8' in length AND is connected by #6 to the electrical ground, it doesn't matter who does it as long as it's done correctly.
All this information begs the questions: Why was he installing a ground rod in the first place? Obviously he was close to the utilities in the house if he indeed struck a gas line, so why couldn't he simply attach his ground to the main ground wire, a nearby ACTUAL ground rod, or the electrical panel? The gas utility does not always follow the same path as power. In a newer development, maybe. There are a lot of areas where city gas has only been provided within the last 10 or so years. That's long after power lines, phone, & cable have already been in place. And in those situations, the city gas is the only buried utility. So, because of system design, it is not always feasible for the gas lines to come in near power.
Maybe if Comcast had slightly higher installation standards, a couple people would still be alive (assuming it is found that the Comcast installer indeed sparked the blaze). Don't even go there. I've seen enough DirecTv installs in enough areas to know that if, indeed, they do have those high standards you speak of, very few enforce them. I could go around the next couple of blocks around my house and take pictures of recent installs to prove it. If you even knew what Comcast's standards were, you would have never made such an ignorant statement. You obviously don't.
The Comcast grounding codes EXCEEDS the NEC. The biggest rule is this: If a proper ground can not be made to the central grounding point, THE INSTALL MUST BE ABORTED. There is no waiver. There is no customer responsibility. No ground, no service. Period.
Nobody here knows why he was doing what he did. He made a tragic mistake while trying to do his job. If he would have left with no ground or an improper ground and at some point, there was a big enough power surge that the house catches fire, he would have been an idiot (and probably fired) for NOT doing his job.
I can tell you that this installer will never be the same after this. I can't even imagine something like that happening to me. Even if it wasn't his fault, that's a heavy burden to bear. My thoughts definitely go out to the families involved. Terrible.  |
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PolarBear
The bear formerly known as aaron8301
Premium
join:2005-01-03
·CableOne
| I agree that not all DirecTV installers do their job as they should; 99% of the time, those that do poor installs like you mentioned are private contractors. Actual DirecTV employees (like me) get QC'd (quality checked) on a random 50% of their jobs, so if they don't ground their systems properly, they don't keep their jobs.
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"I invented it, Bill made it famous." --David Bradley, the inventor of Ctrl+Alt+Del. |
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theelviscerator
join:2000-11-16
Elkhart, IN | reply to Cod
Re: odd...
Exactly.
comcast never sinks ground rods.
Too much work. |
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