Just bought a house and the garage has a 3 wire feeder and iam looking for the safest temporary fix until i can get a new feeder trenched in. Would it be safer to pound a ground rod and isolate my grounds and neutrals for a few weeks or should i just leave it with the grounds and neutrals together for the time being
2007-10-19 12:34:22 · 5 answers · asked by mike a 1 in Home & Garden ➔ Maintenance & Repairs
Drive the ground rod and establish a ground to your garage. Then run 3 new wires in conduit in your new trench. You still will have to isolate your neutral in the garage, but you wont have to bring a ground in from the house panel. Do not bond your grounds and neutrals in the garage panel!
2007-10-19 14:32:25 · answer #1 · answered by gr8alarmguy 4 · 0⤊ 2⤋
No, don't do that. There is no problem with a three wire service to the garage, unless it violates a local code. It should have a ground rod connected the the ground buss and a bonding jumper between neutral and ground, just like your house does. Do not rely on just a ground rod for grounding. That will be a high impedance ground path that may not carry enough fault current to trip a circuit breaker. You can later convert it to a 4 wire system if you wish. But there is no reason to do so. I am assuming this is a detached garage? An attached garage panel does need a 4 wire feeder.
The guys above me are wrong. Very wrong. What they are telling you is very dangerous and a violation of the electric code.
2007-10-21 21:21:59 · answer #2 · answered by John himself 6 · 0⤊ 1⤋
Once sub-feeds go to an auxiliary panel, such as an indoor load center, the neutral and ground buss must be separated. This is because the neutral becomes a current carrying conductor even though it is at ground potential. Anyone can check this out by separating the neutral at a wire nut while some load is operating. You will get a spark disconnecting and reconnecting. This goes for all auxiliary panels in residential applications, even outbuildings such as a garage.
2007-10-21 22:08:50 · answer #3 · answered by Tom 1 · 0⤊ 1⤋
I looked inside my own household electrical box. All the grounds and neutrals are tied together at the grounding buss
bar. Also, check with an AC voltmeter to see whether the
3-wire feeder to your garage is a 240-volt line, or a 120 line.
2007-10-19 19:49:36 · answer #4 · answered by Doug Pluto 3 · 0⤊ 1⤋
KISS principle!
Drive the grnd. install a isolated grnd. buss.
2007-10-19 20:41:06 · answer #5 · answered by Snoonyb 4 · 0⤊ 2⤋