Electrical Construction & Maintenance (EC&M) Magazine
Home > Design > The 10 Worst Grounding Mistakes You'll Ever Make

The 10 Worst Grounding Mistakes You'll Ever Make

Why common errors in residential, commercial, and industrial wiring can lead to fire and electric shock hazards

Aug. 1, 2008 David Herres | Electrical Construction and Maintenance
Proper grounding and bonding prevent unwanted voltage on non-current-carrying metal objects, such as tool and appliance casings, raceways, and enclosures, as well as facilitate the correct operation of overcurrent devices.

Discuss this Article 2

Omar Abu-Yasein (not verified)
on Oct 15, 2012

is stair platforms used inside buildings required to be grounded
if yes, how
thanks

Anonymous (not verified)
on Apr 11, 2013

A neighbor of mine asked my dad and I to check his water faucet. He said he was getting a shock when he touched it. Sure enough, a volt meter showed increasing voltage the further away from the faucet we tested. 10, 20, and more volts! We tracked it down to the outlet for his new fridge. Instead of grounding the common wire to the pipe, the installer had grounded the hot wire to the pipe! When we disconnected it his electric meter stopped "spinning" rapidly and slowed to a very slow crawl!!!

Post new comment
Sign In or register to use your Electrical Construction & Maintenance (EC&M) Magazine ID
(optional)
Related Articles

White Papers
LED Industrial Lighting: Common Myths and Facts
LEDs have unique and compelling characteristics that make them ideal for industrial lighting applications. But there are a variety of misconceptions about LEDs, how well they work, how long they last, and more. Digital Lumens developed this whitepaper to dish up the facts around LEDs and address some common misunderstandings....More
Understand Arc Flash Safety for Motor Control Centers
An arc flash is associated with the explosive release of energy caused by an electrical arc, due to either a phase-to-ground or a phase-to-phase fault. This kind of fault can result from many factors – a dropped tool, accidental contact with electrical systems, buildup of conductive dust, corrosion or improper work conditions.....More
VIEW MORE WHITE PAPERS
EC&M Learning Center
2011 Electrician Exam Preparation Book & Journeyman Simulated Exam
Printed in full color, the 2011Exam Prep book covers Theory, Code, and Calculations in great detail. Clear colorful graphics...
2011 Understanding NEC Requirement for Solar Photovoltaic Systems
Solar power is new to most in the electrical industry and this expanding and exciting industry has created many NEC...
Photovoltaics for Commerical and Utilities Power Generation
This book provides an in-depth review of the solar industry development, and present-day state of the art, emphasizing...
BROWSE ALL TITLES
Webinars
ON DEMAND: All You Ever Wanted to Know About GFCIs & AFCIs

Abstract:  In this webinar, Mike will not only explain the current NEC requirements for GFCIs and AFCIs, but he'll explain how they operate, what causes their premature failure, and when they won't provide the safety protection you might have thought they would.

 


Sponsored by:

 

 
ON DEMAND: Workplace Electrical Safety: Prevention before Protection


Abstract: This webinar will teach attendees the difference between risk and hazard, and how the choice of system grounding has a direct impact on reliability and safety.

 

 

Sponsored by:

 

 

MORE WEBINARS
EC&M TV
Apr. 15, 2013
video

Protection From Arc Flashes

Learn how arc flashes happen, how they are measured and how wearing the right flame resistant clothing can keep workers safe....More

 

BROWSE ALL VIDEOS

Newsletter Signup

Connect With Us
Ecmweb.com
Related EC&M Sites
Copyright © 2013 Penton Media, Inc