Fixing an open ground circuit

Status
Not open for further replies.
F

fusion

Member
We decided to sell our house so I went about checking all the electrical connections to make sure everything was up to code.

I discovered that half the outlets upstairs had an open ground (the other half are on a different circuit). All the ground wires on the "open ground" outlets have continuity to each other (are connected in series).

I would like some suggestions as to the best way to find a common ground to fix the open ground problem. There is one outlet from the "other" circuit which is fairly close to one of the outlets that has an open ground. Problem is, I can't find a way to connect a ground wire without knocking out some of the wall. None of the outlet mounting boxes are grounded.

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks,
Jim
 
tonyi

tonyi

Senior Member
Re: Fixing an open ground circuit

I suggest getting a pro to look at this. There are several possible scenarios I can imagine that could cause what you've observed.

Just hooking up a gnd to that string of recepticals might create a worse situation in some of these scenarios. ex. in the distant past, someone may have had a problem blowing fuses or tripping a breaker because of a damaged cable causing a short (a screw/nail through the cable can do this) and they "fixed" the problem by disconnecting the ground somewhere on that circuit. A pro would have the proper wire tracing equipement to find this sort of dirty dealing. These sort of testers aren't cheap - mine was in the $400 range.
 
F

fusion

Member
Re: Fixing an open ground circuit

What type of meter do I need? It might cost me $400 to get an electrician to do it for me. I am an electrical engineer so I do feel qualified to do the work myself. I've just never tried to trace a missing ground before.

Thanks,
Jim
 
tonyi

tonyi

Senior Member
Re: Fixing an open ground circuit

If you're willing to spend the bucks and spend some time playing with it, a Greenlee Circuit Seeker should be able to track down this problem.
 
C

charlie tuna

Senior Member
Location
Florida
Re: Fixing an open ground circuit

a circuit tracer can be used but actually a simple voltage tester can do the job. "experiance" is the problem. an electrician can look at the results,of what outlets have readings to ground and which ones don't and find the problem. probibly, a bad splice or where someone installed an appliance and mis-wired the ground. probibly a ceiling outlet??????? fan or light fixture?
 
B

bill addiss

Senior Member
Re: Fixing an open ground circuit

Jim,

It might surprise you how easy it is to fix this. Let an experienced Electrician have a look before you start thinking worst case scenario.

Bill
 
H

hurk27

Senior Member
Location
Portage, Indiana NEC: 2008
Re: Fixing an open ground circuit

If this house is in conduit or has AC or BX cable the most common find that I run across is where someone climbing around in the attic stepped on a connection pulling it apart. By the way BX should not be depended on for a ground. It will show you that you have a ground but when it comes time for it to try to carry the fault current it can lite up like a heating element. Very dangerous. If you do have BX and you want to sleep at nite I would install GFCI's or even AFCI's to protect these circuits.
 
charlie

charlie

Senior Member
Location
Indianapolis
Re: Fixing an open ground circuit

Sorry, I am closing this topic. Fusion, I think you are over your head even with your background. You have had some great advice, please take heed. :)
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Top