RED as an isolated ground

[jimwalker]

Can we tape the red wire green /with yellow and use it as the isolated ground ?

 

[peter d]

Re: RED as an isolated ground

No.

250.119

 

[steve66]

Re: RED as an isolated ground

Unless its #6 or larger.

But then you would have fun trying to get that on the poke through hole in the back of the receptacle

 

[paul]

Re: RED as an isolated ground

What is your application? Is this the IG wire that terminates in a panel and is larger than #6? If yes, then definately so.

 

[peter d]

Re: RED as an isolated ground

My answer of "no" is based on an educated guess that Jim is using, or intends to use, a 3 conductor cable assembly that contains a red wire.

[ December 23, 2004, 06:14 PM: Message edited by: peter d ]

 

[iwire]

Re: RED as an isolated ground

Jim about the cheapest code compliant route is to use Hospital Grade Type AC Cable.

Use the armor as the dirty ground and the insulated green conductor as the isolated ground.

Or buy IG MC which will have two insulated greens, one with a yellow stripe.

 

[kpepin]

Re: RED as an isolated ground

I've seen a 3 wire used for IG receptacles a lot. I hate seeing it! A lot of time, they don't even bother to even try to re-identify the red. What's even worse, most of the times I've seen it, all the grounds are terminated on the same ground bar in the panel. Why even bother running the 3 wire at all then!

 

[rhn]

Re: RED as an isolated ground

I found on a service call where they used a 12/3 mc with the red as the IG accept on the j box end the red got made up as a hot fortunately it was only the maintance mans vacume that was the victim

 

[peter d]

Re: RED as an isolated ground

Originally posted by rhn: I found on a service call where they used a 12/3 mc with the red as the IG accept on the j box end the red got made up as a hot fortunately it was only the maintance mans vacume that was the victim

 

[jimwalker]

Re: RED as an isolated ground

We are using mc with 2 grounds on the building im working on now.My question was because we heard that one of our guys had done this with the red on another job.Since we can use a white if we reidentify it as a hot i thought maybe there was a loophole to do this.Does seem very risky and illegal.

 

[paul]

Re: RED as an isolated ground

I'm just reminded of a job I did several years ago where a woman was told she needed a dedicated IG receptacle for her new computer. She didn't have a receptacle on the wall where she was going to put the puter (older house) so I told her I would run one there. I ran a dedicated, romex homerun to this receptacle and put in a standard CR15. The woman told me that she NEEDED an IG receptacle as the computer salesman told her that's what is required by computers. I tried to explain to her that this ground didn't stop at any j-box and wasn't grounding at any other place between the receptacle and the panel, thus changing the receptacle out would not make a bit of difference. She was so adamant, that I finally caved in and made the trip to the supply house to get her an IG receptacle and orange is all they had that day. I still shake my head on that and I would like to personally talk to the salesman on it. Yeah, he's drumming up business for us lektrishuns, but at the unnecessary cost to the homeowner.

 

[jimwalker]

Re: RED as an isolated ground

Why do they spend so much on isolated grounds ? A simple UPS can be had for about $100 and will do far more good.

 

[dereckbc]

Re: RED as an isolated ground

Originally posted by jimwalker:
Why do they spend so much on isolated grounds ? A simple UPS can be had for about $100 and will do far more good.

Jim the simple $100 UPS do not have any isolation and do not provide any filtering, they are a simple standby units. You would have to upgrade to a dual conversion unit ($500 and up) to get any benefit.