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View Full Version : No ground bus... Do I hook ground to neutral?


mhoskings
Jan 25, 2011, 03:19 PM
If my older home does not have a ground bus, should I connect the ground of a new run to the neutral bus? If I connect the ground to the neutral bus, should I add a grounding rod and connect it to the neutral bus? There is no room in the panel to add a neutral bus, and no room to replace the whole panel.

donf
Jan 25, 2011, 07:23 PM
Can you please send us some pictures of your panel?

Some older panelboards used the Neutral bus as the ground bus. You would find both neutral (white or gray) conductors along with ground conductors together.

More than likely, you do not have grounded receptacles in your home.

The best way to fix this is to upgrade the panel and service into your home. Also, you should get a licensed electrician to verify that the insulation on the conductors in your home are still safe.

Missouri Bound
Jan 26, 2011, 09:14 PM
First of all... yes. Connect the ground to the neutral bus. But I have a question for you. Do you NOT have a grounding wire already to the panel? Or a grounding rod? Perhaps you are grounded to the water supply pipe. Your panel MUST be grounded in some way.