My incoming water service is PVC, which connects to copper pipes which
service the house. Is it necessary to bond the copper piping to my
ground rod electrodes?

TIA.
Joe Michel

The electrical service is grounded to pipe because it is a built in
ground when all plumbing is metal, Pipes don't need to be grounded per
se.


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hwm54112
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In article , hwm54112 wrote:

The electrical service is grounded to pipe because it is a built in
ground when all plumbing is metal, Pipes don't need to be grounded per
se.

WRONG. Completely wrong in every respect. The plumbing system is grounded to
the electrical system's grounding electrode to eliminate the possibility of an
electrical fault causing the plumbing to become energized. Pipes DO need to be
grounded in order to prevent this. Bonding the plumbing to the electrical
ground has *nothing* to do with grounding the electrical system, and
*everything* to do with ensuring that the *plumbing* is grounded.

--
Regards,
Doug Miller (alphageek at milmac dot com)

It's time to throw all their damned tea in the harbor again.

The electrical service is grounded to pipe because it is a built in
ground when all plumbing is metal, Pipes don't need to be grounded per
se.

WRONG. Completely wrong in every respect. The plumbing system is
grounded to the electrical system's grounding electrode to eliminate
the possibility of an electrical fault causing the plumbing to become
energized. Pipes DO need to be grounded in order to prevent this.
Bonding the plumbing to the electrical ground has *nothing* to do with
grounding the electrical system, and *everything* to do with ensuring
that the *plumbing* is grounded.

It's not that simple. "Bonding" the pipes to earth ground when they are
not already connected to earth ground in fact opens the possibility that
the pipes can now complete a circuit and kill some guy in the bathtub
when the radio falls into the water.

According to Bert Byfield :
The electrical service is grounded to pipe because it is a built in
ground when all plumbing is metal, Pipes don't need to be grounded per
se.

WRONG. Completely wrong in every respect. The plumbing system is
grounded to the electrical system's grounding electrode to eliminate
the possibility of an electrical fault causing the plumbing to become
energized. Pipes DO need to be grounded in order to prevent this.
Bonding the plumbing to the electrical ground has *nothing* to do with
grounding the electrical system, and *everything* to do with ensuring
that the *plumbing* is grounded.

It's not that simple. "Bonding" the pipes to earth ground when they are
not already connected to earth ground in fact opens the possibility that
the pipes can now complete a circuit and kill some guy in the bathtub
when the radio falls into the water.

You'd probably get killed whether the plumbing was grounded or not.

Which would be pretty much your fault. What on earth were you
doing with AC power anywhere near the tub?

In contrast, if you have a wiring fault going to ungrounded copper, you
could get killed any time you touch _any_ part of the plumbing system.

I imagine you touch your kitchen faucet a lot more often than you
drop an AC powered radio in your bathtub.

Or, at least one hopes so.
--
Chris Lewis, Una confibula non set est
It's not just anyone who gets a Starship Cruiser class named after them.

In article , Bert Byfield wrote:
The electrical service is grounded to pipe because it is a built in
ground when all plumbing is metal, Pipes don't need to be grounded per
se.

WRONG. Completely wrong in every respect. The plumbing system is
grounded to the electrical system's grounding electrode to eliminate
the possibility of an electrical fault causing the plumbing to become
energized. Pipes DO need to be grounded in order to prevent this.
Bonding the plumbing to the electrical ground has *nothing* to do with
grounding the electrical system, and *everything* to do with ensuring
that the *plumbing* is grounded.

It's not that simple. "Bonding" the pipes to earth ground when they are
not already connected to earth ground in fact opens the possibility that
the pipes can now complete a circuit and kill some guy in the bathtub
when the radio falls into the water.

Let me get this straight: are you claiming that bonding the pipes to earth
ground creates the possibility of an electrocution hazard that would *not*
exist if the pipes were *not* bonded?

Please explain.

--
Regards,
Doug Miller (alphageek at milmac dot com)

It's time to throw all their damned tea in the harbor again.

Let me get this straight: are you claiming that bonding the pipes to earth
ground creates the possibility of an electrocution hazard that would *not*
exist if the pipes were *not* bonded?


Yes. In order to get electrocuted, you have to complete a
path between a voltage source and a voltage sink. If the
piping is grounded, it's a sink. If it's not, it isn't.
If you're touching a voltage source, touching grounded piping
(faucets, metal tubs and sinks) can kill you where it wouldn't
were they not grounded.