EMT vs ground wire

Status
Not open for further replies.
F

Fallriverbryan

Member
Location
Fall River, Wi USA
I am installing a equipment control panel. 70 amp service 480 3ph. Power is supplied from an older sub panel. Panels are connected with EMT. Am I waiting money pulling an 8 ga ground wire with the service wires?
 
Last edited by a moderator:
If you are paid to install per absolute minimum then yes. Adding a ground wire is to an approved metallic conduit system approved for grounding is a upgrade.

Just remember concentric ko's require bonding jumpers if no equipment ground wire.
 
Fallriverbryan said:
I am installing a equipment control panel. 70 amp service 480 3ph. Power is supplied from an older sub panel. Panels are connected with EMT. Am I waiting money pulling an 8 ga ground wire with the service wires?
Click to expand...
First, "service wires" would be those between the utility and the service disconnecting means.

Second, assuming you meant "waste of money", that depends. NEC certainly allows the EMT to be used for equipment grounding purposes, which will save the cost of installing a separate EGC within, or possibly even needing a larger raceway to accommodate a wire type EGC.
 
MAC702 said:
This is one of those times when a typo is critical. ENT is a thing, and is most certainly not what you meant, as the exact opposite would be the correct answer.

https://www.homedepot.com/p/Carlon-...gclsrc=aw.ds&dclid=CIrt0_L-sdcCFZdnfgodWJMEWA
Click to expand...
Ear, nose, and throat or otorhinolaryngology hospital department?..........:D

Anyway, I thought the first post made the context clear.
We rarely use EMT here but, if we did, I'm pretty sure we would have to have an earth or ground conductor rather than relying on the conductivity of the metallic tube..
 
electrofelon said:
Interesting, I am just the opposite:I would rather rely on the metal conduit than a wire that could come loose, not be terminated correctly, or forgotten....
Click to expand...

On the other hand, I've seen lots of old conduit runs that were incorrectly supported or abused too heavily afterward and have broken couplings in the middle of the run. Boggles my mind.
 
electrofelon said:
Interesting, I am just the opposite:I would rather rely on the metal conduit than a wire that could come loose, not be terminated correctly, or forgotten....
Click to expand...
It isn't one or the other, it's both. And EMT can corrode, the couplings not well made, and get abused as MAC says.

We generally use steel wire armoured cable for power. The armour gets connected to earth (ground) at both ends. And we still run a ground conductor.
 
Fallriverbryan said:
Well, I'm not buying the wire so it's getting a ground wire. I generally run a dedicated ground no matter what the conduit. I feel better.

Sent from my SM-G950U using Tapatalk
Click to expand...

Can you buy a new Lamborghini to drive to work with as long as someone else is footing the bill?
 
MAC702 said:
On the other hand, I've seen lots of old conduit runs that were incorrectly supported or abused too heavily afterward and have broken couplings in the middle of the run. Boggles my mind.
Click to expand...

And disconnects with busted hinges, and panels with missing dead fronts and recepts with busted faces, all kinds of bad stuff out there.

That does not change the fact that emt is an excellent equipment ground. I do work in at least eight old buildings that are all emt and don't even have egc buss bars in the panels and everything is in good shape.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Top