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Can you splice a ground wire with the neutral wire for a non grounding outlet connector?
Wiki User
∙ 9y ago
If you still have a non-grounded outlet. One that does not have a ground wire you should replace the wire that feeds that outlet and not just add a ground wire from another source. The main reason is your feed wires are over 50 years old and could have other problems
Wiki User
∙ 14y ago
Wiki User
∙ 13y agoNo. Ground means ground, as in the earth. The third wire, the bare copper one in electrical circuits actually goes the earth and in a proper manner. That is the only way to ground a circuit properly.
We have an old house, and some of the outlets are not grounded. You will have to test to see if the actual electrical box that houses the outlet is connected to your house ground. Easiest way I know is to replace the outlet with a 3-prong outlet including wiring in the ground (green or stripped copper wire) which should connect to the back of the electrical box if there is no ground wire with the black and white ones. Once you have the new outlet hooked up, test it with a plug tester (about $7 at Home Depot. They are short yellow or red testers with three lights that will tell you if the outlet is hooked up correctly and if it connects to the ground).
It sounds like a lot of work but it's pretty simple. It's important to note that an ungrounded plug will not trip a power bar or surge protector, so if you have electronics plugged in to that outlet and have an outage or some sort of surge, they could overload and be pretty much ruined.
Wiki User
∙ 9y agoNO. Absolutely not. The grounding conductor actually called the equipment ground is for grounding purposes only. Although the Neutral wire and the ground end up in the same place in your panel/breaker box/fuse box the neutral is for carrying the sum of the unbalanced current back to your panel when you use an appliance, equipment, ect. The equipment ground is a fail-safe in the case that power makes it's way to a grounded surface. IF you introduce the neutral to the ground and there is what is called a ground fault (power to ground short) than any unbalanced current returning to your panel from the Neutral may travel down the ground wire and impede the ground fault itself and cause it to be slowed down on it's way back to the panel causing a precious time lapse of a breaker tripping or a fuse blowing. In all the equipment ground provides an express lane to faulted power so heating of the suppy conductors do not cause a fire or cause you to get nailed by power that hasn't been tripped off soon enough.
Wiki User
∙ 13y agoAnswer for USA, Canada and countries running a 60 Hz supply service.
If by 'outlet' you mean a receptacle, then yes, replaced or newly-installed recepts should have a ground wire and code requires it. Its purpose is to facilitate the proper operation of the over current device (fuse or breaker). Without proper grounding you can have an energized can or frame or exterior of an appliance and get hurt or killed.
Appliances without a grounding prong have an exterior of plastic or some other non-conductive material, or are double insulated so that any fault that occurs internally is not likely to produce an unsafe condition.
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As always, if you are in doubt about what to do, the best advice anyone should give you is to call a licensed electrician to advise what work is needed.
Before you do any work yourself,
on electrical circuits, equipment or appliances,
always use a test meter to ensure the circuit is, in fact, de-energized.
IF YOU ARE NOT ALREADY SURE YOU CAN DO THIS JOB
SAFELY AND COMPETENTLY
REFER THIS WORK TO QUALIFIED PROFESSIONALS.
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Why does your electrical outlet read 80 volts instead of 120 volts?
It could be a faulty transformer, a fault in insulation in the wiring, or improper grounding. If you read 80 volts between hot and 'ground', but 120 volts between hot and neutral, then it's most likely a grounding issue.
What is the difference between a 4 prong dryer outlet and a 4 prong stove outlet?
The four blade dryer plug brings a separate ground wire from the machine to the electrical grounding system. The three blade dryer plug depended on the neutral wire of the plug to make this connection.
How do you put on a four prong outlet on a roper electric dryer?
Black & Red are hot, and White is neutral. If it has no place to connect neutral connect neutral to ground.
How do you you change a two wire recepial without a ground to a two wire with a ground?
Shut the power off to the recepticle. Then take apart the old outlet. Wire up the new outlet. The only difference between the old and the new will be the grounding. If BX armour cable is used, then you will need to take a jumper wire from the grounding nut on the outlet and connect it to the box with a grounding screw. This wire must be green. If romex has been used, then there is a gounding wire that is in the bundle of the wires coming into the box. If it a metal box, then you must use a grounding screw and ground that wire to the boc and then connect that same wire to the outlet. If its a plastic box, then just wire the ground to the outlet. I also like to wrap the outlet in electrical tape, just incase the the wires were to come loose, they would note hit against the box shorting out. Finally, put the pieces back together. And your DONE!
What happens if you wire a ground and neutral wire together in an outlet box?
If there is a GFCI in the circuit it will stop working correctly. They compare ground current to neutral current to detect a fault. It makes ground current equal to neutral current which is a fault condition.
When wiring a range the outlet has a neutral ground and 2 hots you have three wires do you put the bare wire in the neutral or ground on the outlet?
the bare copper is always a ground
When should you use an ungrounded outlet?
If the wiring system into which you are installing an outlet has no ground available, use an ungrounded outlet. In an ungrounded system, an outlet with a ground contact would allow the outlet user to mistakenly, and perhaps dangerously, assume that a ground was present. A suitable ground may be available as a ground wire accompanying the hot and neutral wires in the cable, or a ground may be available via conductive conduit and a metal outlet box. In any case, use a tester to confirm the integrity of the assumed ground. A voltage test from the hot wire to the ground should show the same voltage as between hot and neutral (the black and white wires respectively). If you are replacing an ungrounded outlet, you need not assume there is no ground present. You may find, in the box, ground wires that were not connected to the outlet. You may come across grounded outlets that have no ground wire attached because they rely on grounding via the mounting screws through the outlet ears to the metal box. This is a less reliable grounding method. It is better to buy a ground-wire "pigtail," fasten the wire directly to a hole in the metal box with the supplied screw, and attach the other end of the ground wire to the outlet via the outlet's ground screw.
Is the neutral wire on a 220v outlet the same as the ground?
No it is not
How do you ground a computer?
Grounding an electrical or electronics device commonly refers connecting it's power inlet ground pin to the ground connection of the power outlet. The power outlet ground connects to the ground connection provided by the electricity utility company or the building's common ground connection. The grounding essentially provides a zero volt reference. Many systems which have a metal chassis provide specific grounding points with screws/nuts to connect grounding wire. To ground chassis of a computer one need to connect ground wire to the metal case.
Why does your electrical outlet read 80 volts instead of 120 volts?
It could be a faulty transformer, a fault in insulation in the wiring, or improper grounding. If you read 80 volts between hot and 'ground', but 120 volts between hot and neutral, then it's most likely a grounding issue.
Is the inside of an outlet a conductor?
Inside an outlet there are conductors: hot, neutral, and sometimes ground. The rest of the inside of an outlet is insulator, to keep these conductors from shorting.
What is the difference between a 4 prong dryer outlet and a 4 prong stove outlet?
The four blade dryer plug brings a separate ground wire from the machine to the electrical grounding system. The three blade dryer plug depended on the neutral wire of the plug to make this connection.
When working on a power supply where should the grounding wrist strap be attached?
Anything that is grounded. Something like you walk outlet. There are three holes in an outlet with various shapes depending on where you live. But one of the holes is for a grounding prong. You should make sure you know which one is the ground before sticking it into the outlet though.
How do you put on a four prong outlet on a roper electric dryer?
Black & Red are hot, and White is neutral. If it has no place to connect neutral connect neutral to ground.
How do you you change a two wire recepial without a ground to a two wire with a ground?
Shut the power off to the recepticle. Then take apart the old outlet. Wire up the new outlet. The only difference between the old and the new will be the grounding. If BX armour cable is used, then you will need to take a jumper wire from the grounding nut on the outlet and connect it to the box with a grounding screw. This wire must be green. If romex has been used, then there is a gounding wire that is in the bundle of the wires coming into the box. If it a metal box, then you must use a grounding screw and ground that wire to the boc and then connect that same wire to the outlet. If its a plastic box, then just wire the ground to the outlet. I also like to wrap the outlet in electrical tape, just incase the the wires were to come loose, they would note hit against the box shorting out. Finally, put the pieces back together. And your DONE!
What happens if you wire a ground and neutral wire together in an outlet box?
If there is a GFCI in the circuit it will stop working correctly. They compare ground current to neutral current to detect a fault. It makes ground current equal to neutral current which is a fault condition.
Why not hook ground to neutral since they are hooked on same spot in breaker box why not in outlet box.?
The "hot" wire and the neutral wire both carry current (the same amount, in fact) when a load is connected to complete the circuit. The ground wire never carries current except when a fault-to-ground situation occurs. Yes, neutral and ground wires should both be at ground potential, but NO they should not be connected at the outlet.
