On Monday, March 24, 2014 7:43:57 PM UTC-4, DerbyDad03 wrote:
On 3/24/2014 4:24 PM, wrote:

On Mon, 24 Mar 2014 15:56:16 +0000 (UTC), DerbyDad03

wrote:



I understand that a residential service panel requires 2 sources for

grounding. I was looking at a newly installed panel the other day and I'm

not sure that it was installed correctly.



This panel has a neutral bar on both sides of the panel and ground bar on

the right hand side only.



At the electric meter on the side of the house, there are 2 bare copper

wires running down the wall into the earth. These wires were existing prior

to the installation of the new panel. They look like this:



http://www.altfab.com/library/large/...TR-GRND-02.jpg



When the new panel was installed, a new ground wire was run from within 5'

of the water meter to the neutral bar of the panel. The neutral bar is

bonded to the panel with a large green screw next to the incoming service

neutral lug. I believe that this part is OK.



However, this is the part that I'm not too sure about:



Above the panel, there a ground wire clamped to a water pipe. This wire was

there before the new panel was installed. The wire was pulled into the new

panel attached to the ground bar.



Does that wire count as a second grounding point for the panel or is it

essentially the same point as the new ground that was run from the water

meter to the panel?



Shouldn't I be seeing something that directly connects the ground wires at

the electric meter to the panel?



You really only need 2 electrodes if one of them is the water pipe.



The problem is, as far as I can tell, both of them are the same water pipe.





As long as your grounding electrode conductor goes from the neutral

bar to the pipe, within 5 feet of where it comes through the wall and

there is nothing between that and the dirt (meter, filter or whatever"

that is your primary electrode. A water pipe has to be supplemented

with another electrode and it sounds like that is a rod or two

outside. (they usually get installed in pairs)



I think this is what I should see, but I'm not sure that I do:



http://www.justanswer.com/uploads/El...g_of_panel.JPG



What I don't see is a connection from the ground rod(s) to the panel.

Please see the images below.





I can't see it but it sounds right.







See he



The first image is of the meter and the ground wires going into the earth:



http://i440.photobucket.com/albums/q...psb64ede78.jpg



This second image is of the panel. It shows the old bare copper wire

that is attached to the water pipe right above the panel. That is the

wire that is attached to the grounding bus.



It also shows the new black, insulated ground wire that runs back all

the way across the basement to the water meter.



I don't understand how the ground wires at the meter/rods are connected

to the panel as shown in the web image above.



http://i440.photobucket.com/albums/q...ps7cef4247.jpg

In the pic of the panel you have three ground wires identified.
One goes to the water service pipe. One goes to the water pipe in
the house. Where does the third one go?