Pool light

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Alex Verdecia

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Location
Plantation Florida
Occupation
Master Electrician
Can someone help!
In this case we have a 12V pool light that you get charge if you touch the light metal casing in the water. even after you turn everything off at the house, I even pull out the FPL meter off the panel you can still fill it. Any suggestions.

all electrical connections are done correctly on the pool equipment.
 
It sounds like the pool metal parts may not be bonded correctly.

There is a difference in voltage between the water and metal parts.

Your house neutral Is not at zero volts to earth, maybe a bad service neutral conductor.
 
Yes we found a 20V difference between phases from FPL side. So I reported the problem to them and they fix it at their underground splice box. So now I have 120V in each phase to neutral.

But the problem still.!!!

and yes I have 5V from ground to earth at the service even after they fix their side.
 
There is still a voltage difference between two different points that shouldn't be. There might be more than one point on the neutral with issues, especially if the service is fed with direct-buried aluminum conductors.

I would try reading for voltage between, say, your meter base and the ground wire on your pole, or the transformer if on the ground. You'll need a length of single-conductor wire to reach both places with a voltmeter.
 
Do you have the 5v even with the meter pulled and/or the main disconnect off? If so, the voltage is coming from the outside world, and not your house. It could even be a neighbor's stray neutral current through, for example, a common metallic water supply system.
 
There are almost always stray voltages induced from the utility company up to 5 volts. Even with everything turned off. I had a customer get shocked on a new pool that had the #8 grounding wire installed but never connected to the pool equipment supplying power to the pool. I could measure 3-5 volts between the pool water with one lead in the pool and one lead touching the concrete at the edge of the pool. Once we dug and found the ground ring wire we got it bonded to everything properly and the issue went away. The bonding of all metal parts of the pool, the water, and the pool equipment makes the potential voltage between the water and the edge of the pool the same and takes away the shock effect. The 5volts may always be present but never a danger and with everything bonded it makes the potential all the same.
 
LarryFine said:
It sounds like the pool metal parts may not be bonded correctly.

There is a difference in voltage between the water and metal parts.

Your house neutral Is not at zero volts to earth, maybe a bad service neutral conductor.
Click to expand...
 
djd said:
If he shut all the power wouldnt that mask that theory .
Click to expand...
Shutting off all power at the service would not remove all potential from the EGC if the source of current in the GES was another customer on the same transformer and the buildings shared a common ground pathway, such as water system.
Nor would it remove any EGC to remote earth potential resulting from problems with the POCO MGN.
Shutting off the power would rule out problems with the premises neutral or the POCO service neutral.

Pulling the meter would not interrupt the POCO neutral connection to your GES.
 
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