Why Do We BOND Neutral & Ground in ELECTRICAL SERVICE PANELS?
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- Опубліковано 31 тра 2024
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Well, it really comes down to "Because the National Electrical Code Says So" but there is a reason behind all of it. We didn't have equipment grounding conductors back in the day, it was simply neutral and hot. As people began getting shocked when touching pieces of metal we devised a way to link all metal things around electrical equipment, together, and make them one continuous piece of metal.
Circuit breakers are designed to shut off power when electrical current goes through it at a high enough level. Allowing current to flow on these metal parts is extremely dangerous, so we need a way to make the current shut off when this happens. By bonding the equipment grounding conductors to the system neutral, there is now a path back to the transformer from where the power came. This allows for a full circuit to be formed, which will allow current to flow through the breaker in a complete circle from source, back to source, rather than just from source, to earth (where the breaker will not trip).
Bonding and Grounding are very complex subjects, which is why Article 250 of the National Electrical Code is one of the biggest sections of the codebook. There's so much to know, and it all deals with saving lives, preventing injuries, and protecting equipment from damage.
#grounding #bonding #groundingvsbonding
Dude, that was 2 days of class in 17 min. 👌
🤘⚡️😎
@Waylon Finlay When you have a circuit connected through GFCI, the active/hot wire and neutral of the circuit are fed by the GFCI device. The GFCI device is measuring the current going out through the active/hot wire and therefore knows the current coming back on the neutral must be the same ie.. 1 amp goes out 1 comes back. This neutral feed out of the GFCI is essentially isolated from the main neutral back at the panel so if a fixture or appliance connected to the GFCI device was to have a fault where say the active/hot wire inside the appliance broke off and touched the grounded frame of the appliance, the current would take this new path back through the ground wire to the panel thus creating an imbalance in the current the GFCI is measuring and as the current is no longer returning to the neutral terminal of the GFCI if would cause it to trip.
@@TheAVJedi 👏👏👏👏
@Waylon Finlay The current still flows through Neutral, but there is curren leak to ground if there is ground fault. The GFCI detects current is not equal on LINE and Neutral , and it will trip. That's the way how it works.
Really good vid 👌
I've been an electrician for 25 years. You guys break this and all your lessons down perfectly. I've turned all my apprentices on to your Channel just for the way that you break it down and make it so easy to understand for the guys coming in at the first and second year level.
I know right!
I have been in electronics for 50 yrs and this has been the BEST explanation of bonding/grounding I have ever seen!
Kudos!
Electronics and residential electrical wiring are about as similar as biology and physics. They use the same language and that is the end of the similarities.
@@joshproskills760 I guess you never really understood either then for you to make such an asinine comment like that
@@rty1955 Read my other comment where I explain bonding in 2 sentences. "50 years in electronics" and this is the best explanation of bonding you have ever seen? It is 15 minutes of talking partial correctness. I stand by my other comment. High voltage AC residential wiring and low voltage DC electronics have electricity, fuses, and switches in common. That is about it. One major difference is when people poorly understand "electronics" they don't burn peoples families alive. Please for our safety stick to your "electronics". Residential wiring isn't for you.
@@joshproskills760 Electronics can use AC even at low voltage. What are you talking about?
@@georgebonanza9487 Your statement literally says nothing and means nothing. If you can't read and comprehend basic English then propose some kind of intelligent argument based on the topic. I am sorry I can't help you.
I know of many Electricians that just “do” but don’t understand the “why”.
This is the best demonstration of the “why”.. This presentation was really well done!
Cheers
As a physicist working in HV electrics that really bugs me. That my highly educated electrical colleagues aren't able to explain me how it all works.
Most people still think "electrons" are actually "moving", flowing from point A to point B. Most highly educated people in the industry are nothing more than polly parrots, don't understand what's going on fundamentally at its most basic core. It's not entirely their fault, the systems taught them wrong, focusing more on theory and humane sciences than the works of the founders that brought us into the technological world we live in today.
Not at all dragging this guy down, but mike Holts latest video on this subject is great. I watched the whole 1.5 hrs
@@jaredkilgore7194 e
@@jaredkilgore7194 I am confused, why would you put quotations around electrons? When you put quotations it implies that you disagree with the term "electrons". Also I don't think many people believe it is actually flowing from A to B unless they are getting their information from their high school teacher
Honestly man, you have a gift for teaching. Great video.
Very gifted.
@@raymond3722 was a w
Yes,
He has an ability all too rare
... teach in simple 'stupid terms' without making it obvious
.
I'm old - and know what he is explaining - but - am blown away by his skills in educating
William Reese, That's because I taught him all I know.
He is very well spoken
Grounding and bonding has nothing to do with the gfci and afci breakers. There are two ground points and one bonding point on a residential service connection. The first is the electrode that grounds the center tap of the transformer. This provides 2 things, a reference voltage of earth (0v) in the systems neutral and a path from the earth to the transformer as a return path for ground faults. The second ground is the electrode at your service entrance. This ground provides a return patch to the transformer for the safety ground on all of the circuits in your home to prevent electrocution. One bond exists, usually a green screw that bonds the neutral to the grounded load center enclosure. This provides 2 things. It prevents the voltage potential on the neutral system and ground from drifting that could cause electrocution between 2 relatively safe conductors when the load center has high load on the neutral that could cause voltage drop on the bus and create different voltage potential. The other is to provide a strong return path to ensure enough ground current will flow to trip a thermal magnetic circuit breaker in conditions where the resistance of the safety earth electrode may be too high to allow enough current to flow to trip the breaker. Finally contrary to popular belief, no ground is required for a GFCI device to function properly. They require a neutral connection to both the load center neutral bus and the load circuit along side the live connections. The device then uses current transformers to create a voltage potential and compare them. In a proper circuit the currents, and thus the CT voltages in both conductors will be identical. If a ground fault occurs, some current is carried by the safety ground, or someones body to ground, and the neutral current drops as does the voltage on the CT. The device notices the voltages drift apart signaling a ground fault, and it opens the circuit. You can install these devices on old wiring with no ground conductor, and they will still work just fine since they only look and the current flow in the live and neutral conductors.
How would one go about putting in GFCI outlets with aluminum wiring?
@@JenniferFuchek It depends on local code requirements, here we pigtail the aluminum with a short piece of copper, anti oxidant paste is applied such as Pentax and then joined with connectors approved for AL and CU conductors. The copper wire can then be safely connected to the terminals on a device requiring CU only connections. Check your local codes, they may vary.
@@RC-nq7mg ahh interesting. My house has aluminum wiring and I've been changing the light switches and plug outlets room by room (slowly) and adding Noalox to the screws and ensuring to not over-tighten. Nice to know it can be done, though.
Do you prefer AlumiConn connectors or a different type/version?
Aluminum wire is dangerous. I would replace it as soon as possible. Fire hazard.
@@dallas5374 Easier said than done when it is in enclosed walls. Nothing wrong with aluminum wire if it is not abused, same goes with knob and tube. It only becomes a problem when it is worked on improperly or abused.
Bro whoever does the animations of these videos to keep up with the great teachings that you give this person deserves a raise 😅this is THE BEST electrical content on UA-cam and probably in all the world 🌎
"Bonding it's the thing me and my dad never did"
RCD ?
12 years in the trade. AMD this was the most straight forward explanation I heard to bonding. Keep it coming browski
That's why the future is in trouble for this trade. Step on your own toes.
I have to make a big correction. An old school breaker works by "sensing" the current flowing through it. When the current flow increases over the breaker specification, it will trip. It doesn't care where the current flows and it doesn't care if there is a return to the panel. A ground fault breaker is different. This type monitors output and return current. As long as i/o are within specifications to each other (probably micro amps), the breaker can be set. As soon as the input is not the same as the output, the breaker will trip off.
Glad someone said it
Yeah, this was killing me, so to speak. 😉
Thanks. I rewound several times to try and understand his logic. Now I understand
Could you please tell me if the NEC really requires neutral grounding?
@@nicholaskukushin6626 as neutral is a center tap of a transformer. Also known as a virtual ground, it will need to be connected to earth ground to bring ground and virtual ground to the same voltage potential. While home wiring bonds them, physics doesnt require it. In other systems you don't want to bond them, as to create isolation. A home would be perfectly happy without earth ground bonded. The potential difference in the transformer is none the wiser. But if that voltage was to stray to a metal chassis, or charge a swimming pool, it can make for bad days.
This is very useful. I’m renting an apartment in Mexico. I’ve got separate service from the other two apartments. The building was built by the landlord and his son-not a professional contractor. They hired a brick layer to construct the structure, and a plumber to handle the plumbing, but they did the electrical themselves. As is common in Mexico, I’m only getting half of a single phase service.
The landlord has given me the OK to modify the electrical (to add circuits or make repairs). The reason I don’t demand he handle it is the rent is so low (less than $200 for 2 bedrooms, 1 bath, rooftop terrace). I’m in the process of adding ground to all the outlets. I sank a 4’ copper rod through the foundation and into the soil beneath the house. That’s connected to the service, and from the service I’m slowly updating each outlet, one at a time. I’ve also grounded the copper water pipe system. BUT I failed to properly bond ground to neutral, and thanks to this video, now I know it. It’s now #1 on my projects for this weekend.
How did it go
Probably did so well the landlord hired him to do the rest of his properties 😂
@@jett762 I am a bit worried about him now... haven't heard back from him...
FINALLY, FINALLY....... SOMEONE WHO EXPLAINED IT PROPERLY. SOME LICENSED ELECTRICIANS NEED TO WATCH THIS!
Freaking love the toon representation of what happens during a fault! Def helped me understand exactly what’s happening. First year IBEW apprentice here and your vids are helping me tremendously.
Thanks for watching! Keep grinding my dude!
What local?
2nd year IBEW 313, will be 3rd year in the fall. Like the way he explains.
@@funsizedi88 prepare to be laid off after year 4. the only way uyou wont be, is due to this covid thing and people quitting jobs.
@@funsizedi88 sister local Im from 654 and yes save some money like the other fellow said
Royal Canadian Navy (RCN) Electrical Technician. I am self studying to challenge my Industrial Red Seal Exam. You are by far the best person I have come across that can explain clearly the theory and present it in a very easy to grasp way. Loved the animation, it helps so much. Thank you for putting these videos up. Hope you have a good one (what ever it may be). Eh
Also you might have a stronger Army / Navy / and Airforce, but we have stronger beer! :P
Slight correction - objectionable current is current flowing on the EGC and metal surfaces (which are normally not current carrying) during *normal* conditions. The reason we don’t bond neutral to ground at subpanels is because that would connect the neutral and ground in parallel. Current “returning” from the load could take either path, depending upon the resistance in the circuit. Objectionable current is not about when all hell breaks loose and the pixies escape. It’s when the pixies are taking random paths home every day, all day.
Great video!
a ground loop can cause noise or interference. also depending on the lines, it's possible the ground wire itself can become hot.
Awesome way to put it !
Ahh ! And here I thought those damned Pixies were still under Covid lock-down... Damn you angry Pixies....!!!
@@kasualskeptik2584 photonic induction is angering them again
There's also a mistake @ 2:45 - 3:08. In the animation, charge/current is flowing through the ground wire of the light fixture then through the ground rod of the house and then to the ground (as in the Earth), _without any return path._ So, the animation implies Earth is gaining the charge due to the fault current. But that can't happen unless it is "static" electricity (which is not the case).
The problem specifically is that the animation, while it shows the ground rod and ground wire _of the transformer_ (as well as of the house), for some reason the animation doesn't show the fault current of the light fixture traveling to the Earth ground and _then returning to the transformer via the transformer's ground connection._
never separate grounds and neutrals on sub panels on an ungrounded system, which you will probably only find on very old houses! This guy could probably explain that better than me but he probably just overlooked it with all the overwhelming information on the subject!
Great video!
I like how the circuit breaker’s looks really annoyed when everything is running how it should
You re an awesome teacher I can visualize what you are talking about and the pics help as well
@@joseblackwood4785 ShedHead didn't teach us jack shit, he just made a funny...why are you thanking him?
You knew to YT bruh?
@@that1electrician I think he intended to write an original comment instead of replying to this one
I loved that. Every time I see. Breaker now Im Gonna picture it pissed off at the world. Haha
👀😝😝😝😝😝😝
In my opinion this has to be one of the best explanation of grounding and bonding. Great job👍🏼
I had one guy try to tell me that the earth/ground wire was unimportant, as it "Doesn't carry any power". That is true when there is no fault, but the earth/ground wire is EXTREMELY important in a fault condition, and it is also very important that the earth/ground connection is as low a resistance as possible, to prevent I-squared-R heating and electrical fires etc in a fault condition. Over here, the earth/ground wires - wherever they have to be spliced - use two or even three screw terminals, to get the lowest earth/ground circuit resistance as possible. That way, a potentially large fault current will flow, and the MCB or RCD will trip super fast, before the fault-current can heat up the connection and start a fire etc. The earth/ground connection is perhaps even more important to get right over the phase or neutral, although you don't want them loose either! ;)
This is a good explanation of how a ground fault interruption system works, but not why we bond the neutral and ground, and only it one location in the system. We bond to eliminate potential between ground and neutral.
Decades ago I was working on a job with a temporary power pole that was grounded and bonded properly; however it was not bonded to the building. During framing the screwguns would pull sparks off the metal studs. This was because of a difference in potential between the bonded neutral and ground at the pole, and the separate ground that had been installed on the building.
I'm a plumber by trade and I work with sparkys all the time and they are cool people anytime I needed help or need screws there always there to help much respect to all you sparkys commercial or shack
I truly believe the electrical trade needs to be revamped. The wording, how it's taught.
the worship of that book.. safety rules are important, but people who work with electricity should understand the why and how for rules, not only and always quoting the book word for word.
Try legalize...
You sound like a plumber
@@bryonleche3627 hehehehe
No. I am an electrical engineer with 40 years experience and one doesnt use incorrect language simply because it makes it easier to understand. That would mislead people. If you dont understand it then you need to study harder and not ask to change the science and language behind it so that one can understand. Electricity kills and I have investigated accidents where the code wording was completely on the mark but the tradesman either didnt understand it or ignored it.
The reason you connect ground and neutral together is to create a path for ground fault current back to neutral, and trip the breaker immediately.
How come this current flow to neutral after bonding?..sir please explain it
@@prasanthrajumanikonda Because the Neutral is connected to ground at entry of service panel.
@@simontravels9379 sir does it mean....current from ground flow to neutral but not to earth right?
@@prasanthrajumanikonda correct
@@prasanthrajumanikonda but at the moment it flows from this ground to neutral the braker cuts of the flow by sensing the current coming from ground. Edit: there is actually another way of doing this without bounding ground and neutral. Witch is used in other parts of the world. It works by detecting the diffrence of power flowing through thr live wire and coming back through neutral. It detects how much power is flowing through the ground wire to ground.
I am not an electrician, but been a service tech, maintenance guy most of my life and I thought I knew some stuff. This video kind of shatters my confidence. Since I regularly compare myself to 'clueless' people, I think I am a genius, but then watched this and realize I am a bit clueless myself. i thought breakers would recognize and trip at a fault condition even if just going thru a ground not a neutral. I understand the GFCI concept which joe homeowner generally has no concept of, but i thought a hot touching a metal cover would just make that cover hot and pose a risk to anyone touching it to complete the circuit to ground and get shocked. It sounds like this video says even a hot going all the way to the grounding rod will not necessarily trip the breaker ?
Eye opening. Even if I'm still not quite understanding it right, at least i get the main point now. Bond neutral and ground at first ( and only at first ) panel coming into house.
The first animation made it all clear about bonding and how it's done. Thanks. Need to check my garage sub panel to be sure of bonding. Installing an EMP Shield and brushing up on panel protocol.
Thanks for the explanation man, my boss and I were talking about this topic the other day and it's so nice to see such a great break down on the theory.
It made it much more understandable.
Love your videos keep em coming
Scott from Ontario Canada
Love the animation and the sign with the deal with It! Love it love it!
I'm currently working at a new commercial building will be a bank. Since it's a new experience for me, it blows my mind to see how it all comes together, we are running the HVAC system, the electricians are doing their thing, and the raceways are coming together. Everything is metal, so it definitely has to be bonded, I learned a little about electricity when I was in trade school for HVAC, and I know that in our trade a ground fault is just another term for "short to ground".🤔😌
I am a total noob and that was such a good explanation. I’ve struggled with understanding this my whole life. That was clarifying.
A little over 4 min in and it’s like a switch just flipped and all of sudden it made complete sense. You sir are freakin awesome 🤯
Thanks for watching my dude! Glad it helped 🤘
Ok nobody asked... what the heck did you use to create that animation, and who did the artwork? Too cool.
I kept wondering this too
It says Dave Russo Art in the credits at the end of the video
From someone just starting to learn Electricity and having a hard time kf it lol , your videos are Head and shoulders above anything else I found.
Greetings Dustin - Keep in mind not all generators are considered Separately Derived Systems. Another reason we do "grounding" of a system, per 250.4(A)(2) is a little more deeper than discussed. It also serves to limit the voltage to ground on the electrical equipment but grounding of a system itself serves also to provide a connection to earth for lightning, line surges, and unintentional contact of higher voltage lines to lower voltage, typically secondary conductors of the utility and also stabilize the voltage readings to earth reference under normal operations as noted in 250.4(A)(1). Also remember that not all "grounded" conductors are "neutrals" but all "neutrals" are "grounded conductors. for example a corner grounded delta or a 2-wire transformer installation have grounded conductors but are not neutrals. If no "neutral point" exists then it is not a neutral but it could be still a "grounded" conductor. Now, at 11:44 you speak of how a short circuit could create the objectionable current. However, it would not have to be short circuit current creating such a condition since the grounded "neutral" and the equipment grounding conductors would be tied together improperly down stream in violation of 250.24(A)(5) you would have circulating current on all metal parts regardless of being a short circuit condition. Remember, the neutral always carries current...not just potential fault current.
I have to say that I have never been able to comprehend why you bond at the service panel and not a sub panel, watched some videos and still didn't quite grasp it, but this video made it all just click! Great job man, will be tuning in to your channel for sure in the future!
Same here
Play Enigmatica 2 Expert with guude, no time for electrical work
Worse yet todays new home apliances bleed current to the frames through the so called"smart electronics" dish washers refrigerators even gas ranges through their programmers....now they want combo arc faults on pretty much all apliances.$$$$😨
Even in the early scenario, (No Neutral/Earth Bonding) There is a path from the main panel ground to the pole ground, The issue is that the resistance in that path may be high enough that it will keep the current below the breaker trip value, but if you've got GFCI, I think that would still trip. I really like the video, good information.
in florida we bonding the neutral and ground at the service disconet also we bonding at the ground rod and waterpipe.CAS ELEC cont
I don't know if people complain that you explain things in complicated ways, but I've never been able to grasp the theory behind neutral wire systems or why the neutral bus is connected to the ground bus until I found your videos. So you're your method of explaining this stuff is working for at least one guy!
That said, there's still one question I have about all this which I'm not entirely sure about, but I think I have inferred what's going on.
When a properly wired single phase system with neutral, ground, and two hots (and a cot) has a ground fault condition, you say that the bonded neutral and grounded busses ensure that the unloaded current is given a preferred path to complete the circuit through the breaker, thus ensuring the breaker is able to detect the elevated current causing it to trip, open the circuit, and eliminate the fault.
My question is, with the neutral being bonded to the ground bus, it gives that over current access to the entire bonded system, including every metal component in the structure in that bonded system. Forgive the personification of energy here, but when the an over current occurs on the neutral wires, why in the main breaker box where the neutral and ground busses are bonded, does the over current "choose" to flow up the neutral wire back to the source and not through the bonding device to the grounded bus, thus introducing a dangerously unbalance potential condition at best or energizing some or all the bonded equipment at worst? I've always understood that current, which obviously doesn't "choose" to do anything will always flow in the path of least resistance, and grounded circuits are designed to present the least resistance possible.
What I've inferred about this is that if an over current condition occurs, the current will "choose" to go back to the source before going to ground, not for anything to do with resistance, rather as a function of the unmitigated potential of the unloaded closed circuit which now includes the massive potential of the source.
Am I thinking about this the right way? When this occurs, is the electromagnetic energy of this massive current so high that it ensures that no stray current will take the grounded and bonded path through the system?
Hopefully that makes sense!
That animation was unexpected and amazing.
That was the best animation possible. Lol.
@Flat Sign current does flow through the earth in the depicted example. What's missing in the animation is the neutral bond to ground at the pole.
I ain't looking to see if anybody mentioned this in the +12,000 comments before me, I only looked at the amount that fits on my screen. Absolutely what all sparkys need to be discussing and getting their heads around.
Great Job! But if you don't mind an ol' timer wireman butting in... but...your cartoon is correct at ~2:16 mark, the vast amount of electricity is flowing from the neutral bus in the panel to the pole mounted tranny (ignoring the insignificant amount of current flowing through the high impedance parallel path that is from the GEC, through the soil, and up the pole's ground wire to the neutral tap. To keep it simple, I would ignore that current in the cartoon too.) But at the ~3:43 mark, when the main bonding jumper between the ground and the neutral bar is added, it looks like the current is flashing down the GEC and electrode, and no current is shown going back on the neutral to the trannny?! There isn't any path indicated at all flashing back to the source. It would be way more accurate to show the fault current coming into the panel on the EGC and flowing through the Main Bonding Jumper to the neutral bus, back to the tranny.
I'm still giving you a big THUMBS UP!
Going over grounding and bonding in IEC in Austin tx. This really helps thanks!
"guy needs a raise" awesome video
They will replace him with an illegal. They don't care how smart you are. Happened in West Virginia. Replaced $25/hour with half the price. Same with welders.
@@DT-abcd yup. Happening all over colorado as well. They want to pay you minimum wage or replace you with mexicans. Ive met several guys now who have been doing electrical for 5 plus years and still make barely a few dollars over minimum wage. Its ridiculous
Great video. Now we need one about why your ears are inside a hat
Lmfao
The hat is bonding his ears to his hair
Big ears don't look good
Ears look fine big or small, they are what they are. But, when you put them inside a ball cap it kind of makes you look like a window licker.
It may not be warranted but when you wear a hat backwards people won't take you seriously
I'm not a sparky but need to do work on my house where I live ( I live on a remote island) so your videos have been a wonderful resource to cement what I already know, and have certainly helped me fault find and remedy some previous dodgy work. Thank you so much- really clear, to the point and very well done.
Great explanation! I know how important a good ground is from my days in communication when we still used radios and their associated antennas. I have always wondered why 3 conductors were needed when 2 of them get "tied together" at the breaker box, now I know! THANKS!
Great video my man! Grounding and bonding is so important and can be hard to get the full grasp of it in the NEC. Content like this is helpful, keep it coming!
Since it could prevent a house fire and can save lives then it is critically important to get this right first time and every time in every install.
Never skimp on safety.
It's hilarious when people bitch about the cost of Arc fault and ground fault breakers/outlets. You do realize these are designed to prevent your house from burning down and from you getting electrocuted to death right?
And some states, like Michigan, ignore the NEC and no longer require afci breakers.
"Grounding Green" is what we were told to remember the difference between grounding and grounded. Works for me.
A grounded conductor is a load carrying wire that is connected to ground. A grounding conductor is not intended to carry loads and simply provides a connection to ground.
@Electrician U There is one scenario in which this method (bonding the Ground to Neutral) can result in deadly accidents. Here I will present to you an example:
- the Ground is bonded to the Neutral at the circuit-breakers panel;
- during a storm, the neutral wire (only the neutral wire!!!) between your house and the post/pole (the source/transformer) snaps/breaks;
- in this time the lights in your house are turned on.
This means that the current that comes through the Hot/Black cable down to your light bulbs, now returns through the other wire/cable (the neutral wire), it goes to the circuit-breakers panel and, as the Ground is bonded to the Neutral, the current returns back to the all the metallic cases of all the devices in your house (including the fridge) through the Ground cable.
In this case, if you will use a current-measuring device to check the wall outlets, you will notice that the maximum amount of current runs trough EACH of the 3 terminals (even through the Ground terminal!!!) of the sockets.
In this case, touching your fridge, your microwave oven or the metallic cases of any electric device found in your house would be the same like directly touching the hot wire - the worst can happen/a deadly accident can happen.
Am I right?
I'm brushing up on this b4 I test in a few weeks and gotta say, you are absolutely awesome at what you do. You simplify things so well. Definitely subbing
Ahhhhh, another quality video from our favorite crazy dude. Would like to see some Hazard Location videos. There's quite a bit of confusion I find talking to fellow dudes in the field about Chapter 5
I am not an electrician, and I most commonly throughout my life have worked with DC systems only.
So my question is: doesn’t the fact that they are bonded mean that anything which happens on the ground conductor also happens on every neutral in the house? In other words any fault that occurs which puts current onto the ground line, doesn’t that necessarily energize the neutral in the same fashion?
For that matter, why isn’t the ground line constantly energized by whatever is coming back on the neutral in the first place?
I am clearly missing something fundamental about how AC works in this situation. In the low-voltage stuff I am used to, I would normally employ diodes to make sure that the current is only going in one direction for a specific conductor. Obviously that’s not how it works here.
I have this same question. why doesn't current backflow into the ground if it is connected to the neutral?
I thought I was the odd one out and I'm an electrican apprentice😵
I will do a video on this, thanks for the question!
I will do a video on this, thanks for the question!
Because it is trying to return to its source through the path of least resistance. If the grounding goes straight to the main panel, from there it can go back to its source and not travel through other circuits in the house. That's how I understand it any way.
I agree with r Ward.
You get to the point very quickly and make it understandable for a working electrician. You Rock Brother, Keep Preaching.
The younger generation really needs this information. As a 57 yrs old working electrician, I love watching. ⚡
Dustin I’ve been watching your videos for years all the way from an apprentice to a master electrician. I wanted to thank you for the knowledge you have shared and imparted. You are like a younger mike holt or ray holder.
You've taught me so much more than my apprenticeship school program. On the job and self research is how you can really become a master. You'd be a cool as foreman to work for. Thanks for the awesome content man keep it up you're helping a lot of upcoming apprentices
jatc or citc?
@@Half_Korean_Being you must be in the pnw! Lol
Honestly, appreciate it Dustin, been watching your vids for awhile now, love that they coincide with life and work… you bring it down to a level many of “us” tradesmen can understand and appreciate.
You are THE BEST instructor I have ever heard on electrical code, safe wiring practices, and your graphics are outstanding to
demonstrate paths of current flow and devices in relationship to current flow. Thanks a million.
Thanks for watching, my friend!
To sum up. 1. We need a return path or closed circuit for OCPD ( circuit breaker or fuse) to shut off power. 2. All current (normal and fault) returns to origin but earth is not an effective conductor. 3. Instead we install our own path, as a green wire throughout electrical system. 4. That green wire jumps back to the neutral only once: at the service (disconnect). We don't want fault current going everywhere giving us noise, being a hazard, and parrelling paths which weaken it to not turn off OCPD.
Residential breakers only have the hot line going through them; so, only see current through the hot line. A short to ground would still trip the breaker when the current through the breaker is high enough. I'm sure there are other reasons to bond the ground, but I thought that the main reason was to provide ground protection since there hasn't always been a ground prong. Also, it costs half as much to have a single throw breaker than double throw (just hot rather than both lines).
This is true, but missing half of the story. Let's pretend that you have an ungrounded washing machine with an aluminum body. (Single phase, hot and neutral. No ground)
Now, let's pretend you have a copper pipe that happens to be grounded, because the pipe has a physical connection to earth.
If you bond the neutral to the washing machine, then when the washing machine runs, you'll get a voltage on the washing machine. This is because the washing machine has some impedance, but the return path has some impedance. This will create a voltage divider effect, so your washing machine might get 6-15V on it. If you touch your pipe, and your neutral washing machine case while it's running, you'll get a shock of 6V-15V. This could be dangerous if your hands are wet, and the conductivity of the water is reduced due to detergent in the water.
So, we can't bond the case to neutral.
So instead, what if we leave the case floating. Eventually though, your washing machine ages and leaks some water full of detergent, bridging between the case and hot. Someone touching your now hot case and your grounded pipe. This is likely to kill someone.
I'm going to assume it's pretty obvious why we don't bond the case to hot, and ignore that option.
The solution is to ground the case of the washing machine, so that when hot shorts to the case, there's a loop that will draw enough current to trip the breaker, before someone touches it.
It's important to note that if you grab hot with one hand, and neutral with the other, you're not likely to survive long enough for the breaker to trip.
It is to enable the high current. You cannot get a high enough current with a ground rod. You would need to add additional protection like GFCIs. This is possible and is done in some countries but is not legal in the US.
The problem with bonding is that if the neutral breaks upstream the voltage and the current will come back through the ground wire to the equipment cases.
Bro I appreciate you teaching this fashoooo… I got an associates degree in electrical engineering and I’ve been trying to get into the local Union for years. They say I need to take 2 more college classes, meanwhile they let people who have no knowledge or experience in before me. I’m still trying to make my career happen.
Nepotism and graft in a union? Good lord, say it aint so!
Don't lose hope , it's coming .
@@cliftondozier7822 just gotta stay down and stay solid 💯 💪🏾
Are you trying to buy your book in, or enter as an apprentice? The people who have no knowledge or experience are probably apprentices. Maybe you can find a job where they're accepting people on permit and use that as a way to get your foot in the door.
@@roachymart2318 I'm about enroll in these 2 classes asap looking for the ones in my area at the moment. I owe the community college. They fd me over last year but I'm not giving up BAM pow pow 💢
Slight comment, normal breakers are looking at current flowing through the hot, they don't particularly care where it flows, so long as less than the trip threshold is flowing for a given period. A GFCI on the other hand is specifically looking for an imbalance of current between it's live and neutral, indicating a fault to *somewhere*
The original animation shows, albeit not prominently, that the transformer at the pole is also grounded. in the event of a fault to ground, current flowing to ground then flows back through the ground to the transformer.
Granted, and I think this is what you were kinda getting at at one point in the video, if ground and neutral weren't bonded, and the resistance between your ground and pole ground is high enough, you could wind up with a potential on something metallic, or even a fault current that is limited to several amps, well below the trip point for a run of the mill 15A breaker.
I’ve been doing this shit for 25 years. Had an apprentice ask me this once. I know I probably learned it all those years ago, but it must not have been explained to me as well you just did so I couldn’t remember. Just knew it was essential and that a floating neutral can cause crazy voltages off a transformer. Now I can tell him why.
The number one reason we ground and bond the neutral at the service entrance is to keep the neutral a neutral. The second reason is to clear a fault / overload condition.
Wait. If u didn’t bond a neutral to ground at the panel you would still have a neutral. Why wouldn’t we have a neutral if we didn’t bond to earth at the main panel
Awesome great video!
Literally had a problem with ground fault at a customer plant this week and this helped me more understand the issue. Thank you
The absolute best explanation of this I’ve heard thus far . I’ve been a electrician over 20 years
Great explanation. I'll add that proper bonding (and grounding) in low-voltage applications is important as well. In data centers, everything metal must be bonded to reduce extraneous voltage that can cause havoc with computer and communications gear. We must deploy and certify all bonded devices. The costs to deploy such devices can be significant in the price to build a data center. If I recall, we paid something like $20,000 for just the main bond cable (000) install run of 300' back to the power transformer base thru its own conduit run.
what is (000) means here?
That sounds like a code violation. Bonding conductors are supposed to be installed in the same raceway as the phase conductors. Bonding conductors are not supposed to be installed in separate conduits or raceways.
@@tarekyared4404 Low voltage data center applications, as stated, not high voltage. They meet industry code and certification standards for DC operations/builds... we build to full Panduit standards and are inspected and certified as such.
This the one I was waiting for
Same
Same
This is great stuff. I wired a small house for my dad and was trying to explain this to him, but was having a difficult time explaining it. This is perfect.
I've watched a lot of videos to try to understand this, you are the first one that made it really make sense to me. Great job.
Why? As AvE might say: 'cuz we need to safely stop Angry Pixies from chooching things to death when they get out of hand.
13:33 You'd also have current flowing through both the neutral and ground even if you don't have a fault condition. If a subpanel has neutral and ground bonded together, any unbalanced current would flow back to the main panel on both the neutral and ground, right?
Yes.
In a three-phase system, a perfectly balanced circuit would have no neutral current. You would only see neutral current when you have an imbalance between any of the three legs on the Wye side of a solidly grounded transformer for example. On a single phase panelboard (say a 240V/120V panel in a residence), you'll measure neutral current as that is the return path to the source for 120V loads connected from line to neutral. This is why single phase panels have odd and even numbered circuit breakers. You want a balance between 120V loads from line to neutral on even and odd circuits. Putting all of the 120V line to neutral loads on even numbered breakers (for example) is unwise and would cause an imbalance seen by the transformer upstream of the panel. Ideally, the 240V loads connected line to line shouldn't cause an imbalance. Your ground IS NEVER a current carrying conductor. Ideally, it would see no current it's entire existence. The sole reason for ground conductors is that, during a fault (or short circuit), there is a low impedance path for electricity to return to its source that will quickly open protective devices (breakers) in the circuit where the fault is located. This is why the ground and neutral are bonded in one place and one place only. So electricity has a low impedance path directly back to the source (avoiding ground loops or parallel paths).
I believe everyone can understand the concept of neutral and grounding more clearly in this video. Great job.
As someone who has been master electrician in the electrical trade many yrs this was very well explained.
it amazes me sometimes how many people who have worked in the trade many yrs don't even really understand how electrical systems work.
My grandmas fridge shocks you when you grab the handle.. I think she's cool with it like that, It keeps us away 😒
Lol...that should get checked out.
Terrible if true
That indicates a problem with the appliance or the house wiring. It should be checked out. A slight tingle could turn into a dangerous shock in a different place, like a damp basement or something.
If the fridge only has a two prong plug, unplug and plug back in turning the plug around.
A defibrillator so to speak!
The idea is to bond ground and neutral only at the main panel so that the ground never carries current except when there's a fault.
Not entirely true. On larger power panels in industrial applications the ground line can sink a fair amount of current. The number one reason for a single ground to neutral point is to prevent ground loops. A star pattern of grounds to sub panels is preferred. Daisy chaining ground lines across multiple panels in series can also cause sub-panel ground loops. The other reason is to prevent a floating neutral which can elevate to many volts without a proper ground reference.
The thumbnail animation left out the bonding in the main panel, the bonding in the Meter with the (missing also) ground rod AND the bonding from the secondary center tap to the Primary Neutral And to the pole ground. They left out the most mind blowing part of the actual circuitry.
Thanks for making this video!! The graphics are so helpful, and I use these to answer questions about code that I struggle to visualize from words alone. It makes sense on the jobsite, but you can't rewind and listen over again to the answers your journeyman/ME gives you in real life. Thank you, again!!
Glad you found it helpful. Thanks for watching!
WE BOND BECAUSE WE WANT TO BE FRIENDS.
Correct answer
Wouldn’t a dead short, hot to ground, cause a huge spike in amp draw, which is what causes the breaker to kick, causing the neutral to not be needed, in that instance?
Yea?!
You need to watch the video again
@Jusitn Smith - A huge spike in amps? NO! That is not guaranteed to happen. A short between Hot to Ground, without a BOND between the Neutral Bus and the Ground, will not always cause the breaker to trip. And that is exactly WHY we BOND the Neutral Bus and Ground at the Main Panel - to guarantee that type of fault, is cleared ...
@@MrSummitville never seen a dead short, that did not kick a breaker.
@@JustinSmith-ph1le If you do NOT have a BOND between the Neutral Bus Bar the Ground Bus Bar then there is no guarantee that the Breaker will trip when the Hot Wire touches the Ground Wire because the dirt around the ground rod may have 15 Ohms resistance or HIGHER! 15 Ohms at 120 Volts is only ~8 Amps with a dead short and that will NEVER Trip a 20 Amp breaker. And that is why the NEC REQUIRES a BOND between the Neutral Bus Bar and the Ground Bus Bar. It is the BOND from the Ground Bus Bar, back to the Neutral, that causes the breaker to trip when the Hot Wire touches the Ground Wire ..
I'm a utility locator and a trainer, so finding videos like this golden for me. It gives me great tips for the new hires, and more irrefutable evidence for the veteran locators that know everything and have developed bad habits over the year. Habits like cutting the cable ground because it's .005 seconds faster than unscrewing it. Or when they leave the copper pedestals unbonded because they're too lazy to spend 3 seconds buttoning it up correctly.
This was an awesome breakdown. Appreciate the walk through! Working on updating a house built in the 20s.
If every circuit is connected to the ground by the ground wire does that mean every Circuit is connected to each other because everything is connected to the ground.
No
@@yopatricio1391 Actually ...YES ! Inside of a home, every Ground Wire is electrically connected to every other ground wire ...
WE BOND BECAUSE WE WANT TO STAY TOGETHER.
I thought it was to be let out of jail.
Excellent video, thank-you. Fascinating explanation of how things are done in the USA.
I used to work in the UK for an American owned multi-national company. My role was designing electrical control gear for industrial equipment. (All new designs to meet both EU and NFPA codes.) Boy we do some things differently.
If you are a DIY electrician living in the UK, please check the UK methods after watching this and before you do any work on a ground/earth circuit. UK arrangements can be found in BS7671 (wiring regulations) chapter 54 (Earthing arrangements and protective conductors).
Legit AF! As an electrician fairly close to testing for my masters I came across your content and it has been extremely helpful! Thanks for sharing your knowledge! I can honestly say your an inspiration to this sparky and I'm sure thousands more!
_you're_ not "your" an inspiration
You are supper welcome and Thank You for sharing this info so well! Greatly appreciate you and the people who help make this channel possible!
Our AHJ adopted NEC 2020. I recently rebuilt an old service. I had to install a new meter box with an integral 200A disconnecting means and a new Panelboard. The meter enclosure was designed to bond neutral, ground, and the meter enclosure right out of the box. The inspector required I treat the main Panelboard as a sub panel for grounding purposes - isolating all neutrals from ground, and landing all grounds on a separate equipement grounding bar screwed to the panel board enclosure. I then had to run a jumper from the bar to the ground lug in the meter box. The bonding of neutral and ground occured in the meter enclosure. I shared this as an example showing that your bonding of neutral and ground doesn't always occur in your main Panelboard. Hope someone finds this useful.
This is the best information on the subject I’ve ever heard, makes it easily understandable. Thank you Dustin for spreading the knowledge in such a great way...
Excellent video, love the humor and animated pics! Thanks for the wisdom!
I have been searching for the reason and trying to understand why to not bond at subpanels. No one else I found specifically describes the reason and consequences. Thank you!
Literally doing homework on bonding and this solved nearly all my questions. Love the vid
Excellent Job explaining grounding and bonding. Art. 250 is the most overlooked ArtIcal in the NEC.. This is coming from an old electrician. Be safe
I'm an apprentice and I'm about to start school.. and the journey man I work with recommended your channel as a prep for school.. Thank you for the content 👍🏼
Best animation for the meaning of ground and neutral!!.Congratulations. Thank you!.
As a kid I used to catch worms and sell them at a bait shop. I did this with a homemade worm prod which is effectively an extension cord with the neutral and ground blade and lug cut off leaving just the hot blade and a large metal spike with a piece of wood as an insulator for a handle. It was simple enough although there was some back yard science to selecting the size of spike to use (one too thin would heat up or arc and pop the breaker and one too big wouldn't as effectively excite the worms to the surface and/or just pop the breaker).The cord plugged into an outlet and at the other end the hot wire connected to the metal spike. Simply stick the spike in moist ground and plug it in an outlet and wait a bit and worms would come to the surface as they didn't like being shocked.
It was possible to get a jolt by kneeling or grabbing a worm that was to close to the prod but other than having bad soles or wet shoes it was easy enough to avoid getting shocked and effective. The real danger was in moving a prod and the possibility of becoming the link between the prod and ground. This was often solved by having daisy chained spikes so there was always one in the ground when moving a prod. Funny thing was it was just the hot to the ground in the simplest way but the breaker could easily trip, this is where the size of the spike came into play as one that was just right had adequate capacitance as to not get hot and basically acted like a resistive load.
Or so I thought??? What is puzzling me now is how was that signal making it back to my neutral buss to complete the circuit to allow the breaker to still work??? Was the signal really traveling 75 to 100 feet back through the ground to the ground rod outside the house and finding it's way back up to the neutral/ground bond??? Or even to a neighbors ground rod and likewise up into the bond which was supplied and connected to the same transformers as my house or am I not understanding something??? Is earth truly connected in that manner, would capacitance and resistance eventually become an isolating factor??? After all, it's not like there's a ground wire coming into my service panel from the pole out front, just 2 legs and a common. Anyway this video has me rethinking what I thought I knew and understood, LOL. Go figure.
BTW, I made bank on those worms back then and those big crazy lawn darts they had back in the day worked great as prods if you wire 3 of them together. Go figure that our power bill probably outrageous as that meter spun like a possessed persons eyes when prodding. Probably cost my parents more than I made, LOL. :)
I've been an Electrical Technician for over ten years and have been designing electrical systems for about 6 months now. This is the first crystal-clear distinction between grounding and bonding I've seen. Excellent!
Without explaining the function of the transformer? Everything explained in quick talk, without a single schematic? There wasn't one example quantified with math. If you want to learn it, learn it like an engineer. Otherwise it's just a cook book to keep the monkeys from hurting themselves. What's next, learn ohms law with a pie chart that says ac waves have a resistive component instead of a impedence component? Without an understanding that current and voltage can get out of phase? It really is children playing with guns.
Good Video! Earth ground is a reference and a protection path. Electricity requires two paths for a load to operate. Neutral provide the return path. Ground provides a separate path for loads to shed faulting (as in an internal break or short) current safely to ground instead of shocking the person/animal. When bonded together it brings the reference path back to 0 (Neutral) for all the local circuits attached to that panel. A traditional thermal circuit breaker or fuse does not care if neutral or ground as bonding gives either path the same potential. Thus ground wire is a safety feature as the neutral wire give the load the return path to operate.
Quite right. But this is clearly far from the usual expectations, so no one has yet understood you here even after 5 months.
Bonded or not any fault to a hood ground will exceed current of the breaker. The information on generator bonding is so important, I have argued with friends setting up a hunt camp on how to connect the generator to the panel and ground rod. One found out the hard way when taking a shower was an electrifying experience.
Thank you, I don’t work with energy, but find it interesting. My best friend was and he talked about stuff I didn’t understand. This fills in my knowledge gap. Very good format. Thanks again.
I have never really understood the purpose of bonding the neutral and ground at the main service panel other than its a safety thing. Until now. Great explanation and great animations! LOVED IT.
Thanks for the great explanation and animation! Thanks for all the time you spend on helping everyone!