Sub Panel Grounding

Status
Not open for further replies.
C

ClarkConstructionService

Member
Final day on a residential re-do & the inspecter came to inspect a new sub panel that passed just fine, neutrals and grounds on seperate bars, and saw a 2nd sub panel close to our new panel.( Its about 20 years old) He looked inside of the old sub and saw the neutral and grounds together and asked , I mean told us, to install a ground bar and seperate the grounds fron the neutral. We added a ground bar in the sub panel that is #3 box in a basement.
the main panel has a 220 breaker feeding the 3rd panel and a ground wire only, no neutral. ( we found that the bare ground was being used as the neutral) So we ran a neutral to the 2nd panel or the middle panel and supplied a cased neutral for the neutral bar and used the bare ground for ground bar. :confused:
Do you guys think thats the right or correct target for the third box neutral or should we go back and run a new neutral all the way back to the main panel where the 2 conductors and the ground wire go. Or would it be better to pull the complete 220 circuit from the middle box???
Ray & Ht
 
W

wireman3736

Senior Member
Location
Vermont/Mass.
your wording sounds a little confusing, if the 3rd panel is being fed from the main panel then your neutral should also come from the main panel, thats how I took your explanation, but it sounded like you were taking the neutral from the 2nd panel, I would call this a no no.:confused:
 
J

Jljohnson

Senior Member
Location
Colorado
Do not have acode ref. because my book is at the office and I am not but the N. wire needs to go to the same panel as the hots AND must be contained in the same cable or raceway. Correct me if I'm wrong guys.
 
R

rjlight

Member
right answer

right answer

The last 2 posts sounds correct. The word sub-panel does not seem to be in code book. Does anyone know a code section to verify what last 2 posts said and is there an electrical explanation and potential problem that could result from a neutral that stops at the sub-panel and does not go back to the main panel with hot feeds. Taking one sub-panel to feed another would save time and money in this case.
 
George Stolz

George Stolz

Moderator
Staff member
Location
Windsor, CO NEC: 2017
Occupation
Service Manager
Jljohnson said:
Do not have a code ref. because my book is at the office and I am not but the N. wire needs to go to the same panel as the hots AND must be contained in the same cable or raceway.
Click to expand...
Correct, the original poster needs to see 300.3(B).
 
C

ClarkConstructionService

Member
Who Knew

Who Knew

Sounds like a few people did know and a few did not!
Thanks for the point in the code book. It seems to agree with my electrician.
We were just faced with a grim situation at the end of the day and had to find a temp. solution to a bad problem ( a sub-panel with out a neutral and a bare ground in its place as he was repairing the panel and needed both ).
Thanks
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Top