[mushroomdude]

I've got a stone cabin that I'm installing replacement service on. The local power company allows for one to do their own work, as long as it is to code. I have installed a 200amp meter socket on the outside of the building that I intend to ground using two grounding rods spaced at least 6 feet across. There are no pipes to ground to.

Due to the extreme difficulty in punching a hole into the wall, I've run 4-0 SE aluminum wiring (three-wire) to a 150 amp panel located just on the inside of the wall (less than 2 feet) that will serve as my main disconnect. The reason for 150 amp service is that there is an adjacent cabin that I will run a branch to off this panel, when I get it finished.

My question is: Can I tie the neutral to the ground in the inside panel, without having to run a separate ground from the inside panel or will the meter ground suffice? Also, should I bond the service panel cabinet with the bonding screw? This is the way it was wired back in the 1950s when it originally had 60 amp service.

For those suggesting I hire an electrician, the best quote I got was at least $3000 for an install, not counting possibly that much more for setting a new pole and re-running about 300 feet of line that I'll already need to pay out. I can basically do the work myself, it's just this issue is a bit unclear in the code. Because of the remoteness of the property, that's the reason for the high quote.

[jerro]

Some local power companies make you run your ground wire from the ground rods to the panel and others let you run your wire to the meter socket. Just preverence. If your power company lets you run your ground wire from the ground rod to the meter socket then you do not need to run another ground wire to your panel. Yes! You have to make sure you use the bonding screw inside the panel to bond the neutral bar to the panel ground. Make sure when you add your subpanel later on that you do not bond that panel, you will need to run separate neutral and ground.