JWelectric
Electrical Contractor/Instructor
Randy
What Don, Mike Holt, and the IEEE paper to which you have posted links are talking about current imposed on earth by the utility company. If we use the requirement found in 250.56 of the NEC of 25 ohms, which is far more than the NESE will allow the power companies to have, and their primary voltage at most residential transformers of 7200 volts we can easily see that the power company can send 288 amps through earth all day long. This is the “stray voltage” they are talking about.
Where you are misguided at is in your thinking that electricity somehow runs to ground or earth. This is the thinking of someone who works on auto electrical systems a lot, “if the ground ain’t hooked up it won’t work” Well my friend a car is not connected to earth but your thinking should I connect the negative post to earth and my radio to earth the radio should play with only one (positive) wire connected to the battery.
If this were true I could connect one side of a battery to the bare copper wire at my meter and the battery would go dead. The battery will not go dead at all nor will 120 volts run into earth either. Should I drive a ground rod in the center of my yard and connect one side of a keyless to the rod and the other to a breaker in the panel the light would not come on but using your theory the light should come on.
The fault current path provided by the equipment grounding conductor that you are cutting is what opens the overcurrent device be it fuse or breaker. Once you cut this equipment grounding conductor and drive a ground rod you are now putting more current through earth that it normally would have or you are putting the person in the water at more risk of death.
If you doubt me then send an email to any of those to which you have posted a link and invite them to this thread or just tell them what you are doing and ask them for their opinion. Or to hit a little closer to home contact these people and ask them
ALABAMA ELECTRICAL CONTRACTORS LICENSING BOARD
610 South McDonough Street
Montgomery, AL 36104
334-269-9990 By the way I have contacted someone in this department with information obtained from this thread in hopes of getting some attention brought to the issue.
Go over to the Mike Holt web site and join, be sure to tell them you are an electrician or they will ban you, where Don is a member and tell them what you are doing. Go to The Electrical Guru web site and post your methods. Go to any site dedicated to the electrical professional and post your method. Then come back and let us know what they had to say.
I do believe in my heart that you believe that what you are doing is a good thing but please listen as not only me but others here are trying to tell you that what you are doing is wrong. Your concept of the earth ground is wrong and very dangerous; please stop till which time that you have a better understanding of what you are doing. Seek advice from professionals in your area and have them back their statements with code references.
What Don, Mike Holt, and the IEEE paper to which you have posted links are talking about current imposed on earth by the utility company. If we use the requirement found in 250.56 of the NEC of 25 ohms, which is far more than the NESE will allow the power companies to have, and their primary voltage at most residential transformers of 7200 volts we can easily see that the power company can send 288 amps through earth all day long. This is the “stray voltage” they are talking about.
Where you are misguided at is in your thinking that electricity somehow runs to ground or earth. This is the thinking of someone who works on auto electrical systems a lot, “if the ground ain’t hooked up it won’t work” Well my friend a car is not connected to earth but your thinking should I connect the negative post to earth and my radio to earth the radio should play with only one (positive) wire connected to the battery.
If this were true I could connect one side of a battery to the bare copper wire at my meter and the battery would go dead. The battery will not go dead at all nor will 120 volts run into earth either. Should I drive a ground rod in the center of my yard and connect one side of a keyless to the rod and the other to a breaker in the panel the light would not come on but using your theory the light should come on.
The fault current path provided by the equipment grounding conductor that you are cutting is what opens the overcurrent device be it fuse or breaker. Once you cut this equipment grounding conductor and drive a ground rod you are now putting more current through earth that it normally would have or you are putting the person in the water at more risk of death.
If you doubt me then send an email to any of those to which you have posted a link and invite them to this thread or just tell them what you are doing and ask them for their opinion. Or to hit a little closer to home contact these people and ask them
ALABAMA ELECTRICAL CONTRACTORS LICENSING BOARD
610 South McDonough Street
Montgomery, AL 36104
334-269-9990 By the way I have contacted someone in this department with information obtained from this thread in hopes of getting some attention brought to the issue.
Go over to the Mike Holt web site and join, be sure to tell them you are an electrician or they will ban you, where Don is a member and tell them what you are doing. Go to The Electrical Guru web site and post your methods. Go to any site dedicated to the electrical professional and post your method. Then come back and let us know what they had to say.
I do believe in my heart that you believe that what you are doing is a good thing but please listen as not only me but others here are trying to tell you that what you are doing is wrong. Your concept of the earth ground is wrong and very dangerous; please stop till which time that you have a better understanding of what you are doing. Seek advice from professionals in your area and have them back their statements with code references.