building grouding / ufer system

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rayertz

Member
Location
USA
Painters are painting the Ufer cable above finished floor that is cad welded to the building columns. Any issues with the paint.
 

gnuuser

Member
Location
Nw.Pa.
painting a ground cable would not matter or affect its function
as it is not a current carrying conductor under normal circumstances.
current carrying conductors would need to be derated if painted over too much
same as with conduit being coated with too much paint or insulation
the current carrying conductors would need derated here also
 

petersonra

Senior Member
Location
Northern illinois
Occupation
engineer
painting a ground cable would not matter or affect its function
as it is not a current carrying conductor under normal circumstances.
current carrying conductors would need to be derated if painted over too much
same as with conduit being coated with too much paint or insulation
the current carrying conductors would need derated here also

Just out of curiosity, what criteria would you use for derating conductors that had been painted? or for that matter, those that are covered in insulation?
 

kwired

Electron manager
Location
NE Nebraska
Just out of curiosity, what criteria would you use for derating conductors that had been painted? or for that matter, those that are covered in insulation?
Well that is a good question. When it comes to NM cables embedded in insulation we are told we must adjust ampacity - so maybe the question is how much paint coverage is needed to get to a similar situation?:happyyes:

I used to feed my wife a lot of crap about painting walls - she did it quite frequently a few years back as she could not seem to be happy with a particular color for very long. I kept telling her that there was so much paint on the walls that the room was smaller then it once was and we were losing living space because of it.:cool:
 

petersonra

Senior Member
Location
Northern illinois
Occupation
engineer
Something tells me he used wrong terminology to describe the "grounding electrode conductor" or "bonding jumper" that connects to a "concrete encased electrode".

it occurred to me that the cable that went to a CEE would never have to be > #4.

if there was a GEC going to building steel, it would possibly have to be larger.

what are the code ramifications of connecting a GEC to a GE where you have not met the minimum size requirements even if you have also connected a GEC to the same GE of the correct size? I think the code says something about the "sole" connection so it is probably OK.
 

GoldDigger

Moderator
Staff member
Location
Placerville, CA, USA
Occupation
Retired PV System Designer
what are the code ramifications of connecting a GEC to a GE where you have not met the minimum size requirements even if you have also connected a GEC to the same GE of the correct size? I think the code says something about the "sole" connection so it is probably OK.

Actually, the way I read the letter of the code language, it is just the opposite.
If the GEC is the sole connection to the electrode, you can make it smaller for some electrode types. If you have multiple connections they all have to be full sized based on the circuit size.
I realize that is probably not what the CMP intended, but that is what they said. :)
 

kwired

Electron manager
Location
NE Nebraska
You could also have a GEC run to the building steel or to a water pipe electrode (need to be full sized per 250.66 for either or both) but from there could run a bonding jumper to a CEE that only needs to be 4AWG. Could even tap the GEC with 4AWG to go to the CEE.
 
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