what other earth electrode is there other than a earth rod in electrical installations?

Answer 1

Water pipes are getting unreliable as a lot of the main pipes are being replaced with non-metallic pipes. An earth rod is really the only reasonably certain earth. If you earth onto structural metal there is a chance that the metal may not earth and become live if a fault occurs

Answer 2

UK answer
If the electricity company does not provide an earth connection you must use an earth electrode with a residual current circuit device.
The connections to the water pipe, building structure and the gas pipe are there to ensure that, under fault conditions all the metalwork in the building is at the same potential so you don't get an electric shock.
You Can't rely on water or gas pipes for the main earth electrode.
They might replace them with plastic and then you've lost your earth.
PS even with plastic pipes equipotential bonding is essential because electricity can still travel through the water.

Answer 3

An old lead water main will give a good earth potential and also the lead sheath on the main service cable is also used. I understand that an earth conductor is supplied with plastic sheathed service cables. This is the only one that can be relied on due to the wide use of plastic pipes. An earth bond is attached to gas services but that is to keep gas pipes at earth potential,

Answer 4

ANDY S has got it right.
Proper earth can only be provided by rod driven into ground or by earth grid buried in ground.Water and gas pipes are not reliable earths ,gas could ignite!Earth continuity impedance should be measured after installation for less than 1 ohm.

Answer 5

All I can is that there is one.
A short goes down to earth in the usual way but it ends up being dissipated in the circuit by?
I can only guess it to be plate condenser or something acting as one. My HS8 Yamaha Organ has this system as does some low level electrical garden tools.

Answer 6

in the past our company has installed earth mats which are copper strips laid out length ways and width ways and bonded to each other by bolts the mat is then bonded to earth electrodes driven down approximately 2metres. The whole mat is then buried.

Answer 7

There are earth sheets that are flat and need to be burried, but they don't need to go down as far as a earth rod