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I recently had a plumber replace a short piece of my main water line because it had a break in it. The problem is that he installed PVC in the section where the main from the street comes up from the ground (earth) to my main turn-off valve.
Now I had a house inspector that says my electrical ground is no longer to code (although my GFI and three prong outlets still test fine.)
How do I install a ground rod? Are there specifications for how deep in the earth the ground has to be? How do you connect the rod to the plumbing system? Will braided grounding strapping work? Any and all advice is appreciated.
BTW, yes, I’m the same person who asked advice on using thinset over a tile counter top to make a psuedo concrete counter. I chickened out and never did the job. I sold the house instead. However, I did rip the old tile backsplash from the wall and replace that with thin sheets of cork. It looks really nice and, so far, doesn’t seem to be a fire hazard behind the stove.
Thanks,
Catherine
Replies
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I recently had a plumber replace a short piece of my main water line because it had a break in it. The problem is that he installed PVC in the section where the main from the street comes up from the ground (earth) to my main turn-off valve.
Now I had a house inspector that says my electrical ground is no longer to code (although my GFI and three prong outlets still test fine.)
How do I install a ground rod? Are there specifications for how deep in the earth the
ground has to be? How do you connect the rod to the plumbing system? Will braided grounding strapping work? Any and all advice is appreciated. I live in the SF bay area is that helps, since I know that codes vary across the nation.
BTW, yes, I'm the same person who asked advice on using thinset over a tile counter top to make a psuedo concrete counter. I chickened out and never did the job. I sold the house instead. However, I did rip the old tile backsplash from the wall and replace that with thin sheets of cork. It looks really nice and, so far, doesn't seem to be a fire hazard behind the stove.
Thanks,
Catherine
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Catherine:
Please, please hire an electrician. Here in SoCal, our codes are much different (stringent) than Podunk Center, Iowa. So what I say may or may be correct for your town. Got it?
All grounds must be grounded in two ways, (1) Through a physical connection to your cold water main within 5 feet of the inside of the house with 6 guage copper wire; and (2) Through a grounding rod pounded into the ground within 5 feet of your main box.
The cold water connection must run from inside the home to the grounding stake, and then to the box. This connection must be uninterrupted (e.g., no splices, one continuous piece of 6 guage wire, going from the cold water to the rod to the box).
Your home would not be code, and could not be brought up to code with only a ground rod. A physical connection must be made near the inside of the home, within 5 feet of the point where the main enters the home. The section of pipe from the shutoff to a point inside of the home must be replaced, if only to allow for the ground.
The electrical inspector in my town would probably notice the PVC (which is not code here, either), and write you up for that. He would insist upon copper supply lines.
Hope this helps.
*Hi Catherine,This happens all the time with plumbers. Evidently they do not understand that they have taken away the protective ground or they just don't care. You need to install an 8' ground rod. This ground rod must be 5/8" for steel or 3/4" if you use a galvanized pipe. Home Depot and other home centers carry the 5/8" rod and its easier to drive than a piece of pipe. Drive this ground rod close to where your electric service comes to the house and connect a piece of #6 copper wire from the grounding bar in the breaker box to the ground rod by means of a ground rod clamp. Now if the wire going to the water pipe is close by and will reach your ground rod then disconnect it from the water pipe and connect it to the ground rod. You no longer need to have this connected to the water pipe but only to the ground rod. Be sure you turn OFF the main breaker or if you do not have a main then turn off all the breakers before you disconnect/connect any wires or open the cover on the box. I know that a lot of people say "well its just a ground wire, its not going to hurt me". Don't believe it! People have been killed from a ground wire. Also you will need to attach the wire to the house to keep it from just dangling in the wind. Good luck and don't forget to turn the power OFF.
*Catherine, I agree with Scooter that you should find an electrician unless you are an accomplished DIY. Is it possible that some of the metal pipe coming in from the road is exposed below where the plumber patched in the PVC? If so, you can simply run a ground wire from there to your service entry. All locations where I work require two grounds, one to an underground water line if available and one to a supplemental rod. If you don't have an underground metal water line available, you have to use two ground rods. These connections go uninterrupted to your service panel and provide a system ground. In addition , we are required to bond these grounds to interior metal water lines and in some cases ductwork, so you see that there are many variables and an electrician should have a look at your situation and make sure in complies with local codes. By the way, grounding has nothing whatsoever to do with the operation of a GFCI. They work as well on ungrounded circuits as they do on grounded circuits.
*You should no longer rely on a pipe as a ground. Plastic is becoming standard for water and gas lines installed below grade away from houses.A seperate ground rod or ground rods is recommended.
*Catherine - I have a Mass. Master Electrician's license, and I agree with G. Lalonde's response. Some of the other responses are not quite on the mark. Lee
*After rereading Catherines original post I tend to agree with G. LaLonde somewhat. I was under the impression that the entire water line was replaced but now I see that it was just a short piece. By all means if there is metal water line exposed and going into the ground then reconnect the ground wire to it. But also as Gary stated that you shouldn't rely solely on the water line but should install a ground rod also. But code does not "require" that you have two means of grounding. If two means are "available"(keyword) then yes, but if not then a ground rod(meaning 1 ground rod if the resistance is 25 ohms or less)will be sufficient. Furthermore if the underground water line does not extend beyond 10' buried then you must use a ground rod. There may be local codes that require two ground rods always but here they do not. Also as far as grounding water lines that are not grounded by means of a buried line I have never seen nor heard of this in a resedential installation.
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I recently had a plumber replace a short piece of my main water line because it had a break in it. The problem is that he installed PVC in the section where the main from the street comes up from the ground (earth) to my main turn-off valve.
Now I had a house inspector that says my electrical ground is no longer to code (although my GFI and three prong outlets still test fine.)
How do I install a ground rod? Are there specifications for how deep in the earth the ground has to be? How do you connect the rod to the plumbing system? Will braided grounding strapping work? Any and all advice is appreciated.
BTW, yes, I'm the same person who asked advice on using thinset over a tile counter top to make a psuedo concrete counter. I chickened out and never did the job. I sold the house instead. However, I did rip the old tile backsplash from the wall and replace that with thin sheets of cork. It looks really nice and, so far, doesn't seem to be a fire hazard behind the stove.
Thanks,
Catherine