Understanding Electrical Grounding in Household Wiring

Grounding is a principle of electricity that sometimes puzzles homeowners. In essence, the grounding
system in a residential wiring system serves a "backup" pathway that provides an alternate route for
electrical current to follow back to "ground" in the case of a problem in the wiring system. To understand
its importance to a home wiring system, it is important to know something about the nature of electrical
energy flow.

Some Electricity Basics

The electrical current in your home's wiring system consists of a flow of electrons within metal circuit
wires. The current comes in two forms, a negative and a positive charge, and this charged electrical field
is created by huge generators operated by the utility company, sometimes many hundreds of miles away.
It is this polarized charge than effectively constitutes the flow of electrical current, and it arrives at your
home through a vast network of high-tension service wires, substations, and transformers that blanket
the landscape.

The negative half of the charge is the "hot" current. In your home's wiring system, the hot current is
normally carried by black wires, while the neutral wires, which are white, carry the positive charge. Both
sets of wires enter your home through the utility's main service wires, run through your electrical service
panel, and run side-by-side through every circuit in your home.

The physics of electrical flow are more complicated than most simple explanations can convey, but
essentially, electricity seeks to return its electrons to "ground"—that is, to discharge its negative energy
and return to equilibrium. Normally, the current returns to ground through the neutral wires in the
electrical system. But should some breakdown of the pathway occur, the hot current may instead flow
through other materials, such as wood framing, metal pipes, or flammable materials in your home. This is
what may happen in a short circuit situation, where most electrical fires and shocks originate. A short
circuit is when electricity strays outside the wires it is supposed to flow through—in other words, when it
takes a shorter path to ground.

The Home Grounding System

To prevent this danger, your home's electrical system includes a backup plan—a system of grounding
wires that runs parallel to the hot and neutral wires. It provides an alternate pathway for electrical current
to follow should there be a breakdown in the system of hot and neutral wires that normally carry the
current. If a wire connection becomes loose, for example, or a rodent gnaws through a wire, the grounding
system channels the stray current back to ground by this alternate pathway before it can cause a fire or
shock.

The grounding pathway is generally formed by a system of bare copper wires that connect to every device
and every metal electrical box in your home. In standard sheathed NM cable, this bare copper wire is
included along with the insulated conducting wires inside the cable. The bare copper grounding wires
terminate in a grounding bar in your main service panel, and that grounding bar is in turn connected to a
grounding rod driven deep into the earth outside your home. This grounding system provides a path of
least resistance for electricity to follow back to ground should a break in the wiring system allow electricity
to "leak" out of the preferred system of black and white circuit wires.

In most home wiring systems, evidence of the grounding system can be seen at each outlet receptacle,
where the third round slot in the face of the receptacle represents the grounding connection. When a
grounded appliance plugs into such a receptacle, its round grounding prong is now directly connected to
the system of bare copper grounding wires inside the house circuits.

Not all homes have this elaborate and complete grounding system formed by a network of bare copper
wires. While such a grounding system is standard in homes with circuit breakers that are wired with
sheathed NM cable, older wiring systems installed before 1965 may be grounded through metal conduit
or metal cable, not bare copper grounding wires. And even older systems installed before 1940 may not
have any form of grounding at all. Such is the case in knob-and-tube wiring, where there is no grounding
path of any kind. Many older systems have already been updated, and it is a good idea to have it done if
your wiring is of this older generation. One clue that your wiring is old is when the outlet receptacles have
two slots rather than three. This indicates the outlets may not be grounded.

Built-In Protection
Your home wiring system also includes other safety devices to help prevent disaster. Circuit breakers or
fuses protect and control each individual circuit. The breakers or fuses serve two functions: They protect
the wires against overheating in the event that they are overloaded by too much electrical current being
drawn through them; they also sense short circuits and trip or "blow" to instantly stop the flow of current
when problems occur. In a short circuit or ground fault situation, a sudden reduction in resistance causes
an uncontrollable amount of current to flow, and the circuit breaker responds to this by tripping.

Finally, it is fairly common practice for the metal plumbing pipes in your home to also be connected to the
grounding pathway. This offers additional protection should electricity come in contact with these metal
pipes. Often, this grounding is established by a grounding wire clamped to a metal water pipe near your
water heater.

Appliance Grounding
Not only does your home wiring system have a grounding system for safety, but many plug-in appliances
and devices do, too. Power tools, vacuums, and many other appliances are much safer when they have a
third prong on the cord plug, which is shaped to fit the round grounding slot on an outlet receptacle. The
presence of this third prong indicates that the appliance has a grounding system, and it is essential that
these be plugged into grounded outlets. Some people have been known to cut off the grounding prong
on an appliance plug in order to make it fit an outlet or extension cord that has no grounding slot. This is
an extremely dangerous practice that could lead to a shock if the internal wiring in the appliance short
circuits.

Plug Adapters
Most people are familiar with the plug adapters than allow three-prong plugs to be inserted into two-slot
outlet receptacles. It is important to note that these offer grounding protection ONLY if the pigtail wire or
metal loop on the adapter is properly attached to the mounting screw on the outlet cover plate AND if
that cover plate screw is connected to a metal box AND if that metal box is properly grounded. This is no
sure thing, by any means, so three-prong to two-slot adapters should be used with great caution, if at all.
The better solution is to plug three-prong plugs only in into three-slot receptacles that are grounded.

Where a grounded outlet is not possible, as in older wiring, some protection is offered by installing a GFCI
(ground-fault circuit interrupter) receptacle at that location. The GFCI will sense ground faults and shut
off the power before straying current can cause problems. It's important to note, though, that using a
GFCI does not actually create a grounding pathway; it merely makes an ungrounded outlet somewhat
safer.

Of course, not all appliances and plug-in devices have a three-prong grounded plug, and these are still
safe to use since normally they have a double-insulated construction that minimizes the risk of short
circuits.
 Electrical Wiring Color Coding System

Opening up an outlet or light switch box, you might be confronted with a bewildering array of wires of
different colors. Black, white, bare copper, and other colors closely intermingle, yet each one has a specific
purpose. Knowing the purpose of each wire will keep you safe and your house's electrical system in top
working order.

Electrical Cable and Wire Color Markings

Non-metallic (or NM) 120-volt and 240-volt electrical cable come in two main parts: the outer plastic
sheathing (or jacket) and the inner, color-coded wires. The sheathing binds the inner wires together, and
its outer markings indicate the number of wires and size of wire (gauge) within the sheathing. The color
of the sheathing indicates recommended usages. For example, white sheathing means that the inner wires
are 14-gauge and yellow sheathing indicates that they are 12-gauge.
But looking deeper, the color of the wires inside of the sheathing reveals that different colored wires serve
different purposes. The National Electrical Code (NEC) says that white or gray must be used for neutral
conductors and that bare copper or green wires must be used as ground wires. Beyond that are general,
industry-accepted rules about wire color that indicate their purpose.

Black Wires: Hot

Black insulation is always used for hot wires and is common in most standard household circuits.

The term "hot" is used for source wires that carry power from the electric service panel to a destination,
such as a light or an outlet. Even though you are permitted to use a white wire as a hot wire by marking it
with electrical tape, the opposite is not recommended or allowed. In other words, do not use a black wire
as a neutral or ground wire, or for any purpose other than for carrying live electrical loads.

Red Wires: Hot

Red wires are used to designate hot wires.

Red wires are sometimes used as the second hot wire in 240-volt installations. Another useful application
for red wires is to interconnect hardwired smoke detectors so that if one alarm is triggered all of the
others go off simultaneously.
White Wires With Black or Red Tape: Hot
When a white wire is augmented with a red or black color marking, this often indicates that it is being
used as a hot wire rather than a neutral wire. Typically, this is indicated with a band of black or red
electrical tape (but other colors may be used) wrapped around the wire's insulation.

For instance, a white wire in a two-wire cable may be used for the second hot wire on a 240-volt appliance
or outlet circuit. This white wire should be looped several times around with black electrical tape to show
that it is being used for something other than a neutral.

Bare Copper Wires: Ground

Bare copper wires are the most common type of wire used for grounding.

All electrical devices must be grounded. In the event of a fault, grounding provides a safe pathway for
electricity to travel. The current passes back to the ground or earth. Bare copper wires connect to
electrical devices, such as switches, outlets, and fixtures, as well as metal appliance frames or housings.
Metal electrical boxes also need ground connection because they are made of a conductive material.
Plastic boxes are nonconductive and do not need to be grounded.

Green Wires: Ground

Green insulated wires are sometimes used for grounding.

Ground screws on electrical devices are often painted green, too. Never use a green wire for any purpose
other than for grounding.
White or Gray Wires: Neutral
White or gray indicates a neutral wire.

When examining a white or gray wire, make certain that it has not been wrapped in electrical tape. This
would indicate a hot wire. Older wires sometimes may lose their electrical tape wrapping. So, if the box
has a loose loop of tape inside of it, there is the possibility that it may have come off of the neutral wire.

The term neutral can be dangerously deceiving as it appears to imply a non-electrified wire. It is important
to note that neutral wires may also be carrying power and can shock you. While wires designated as hot
(black or red insulated wires) carry power from the service panel (breaker box) to the device, neutral wires
carry power back to the service panel. Thus, both hot and neutral wires have the potential to shock and
injure you.

Blue and Yellow Wires

Blue and yellow wires are sometimes used as hot wires inside an electrical conduit.

Questions:

1. What do you understand by equipment grounding and system grounding, explain in details.
2. How the electrical equipment and the system are protected through built-in protection, i.e.,
through circuit breakers and fuse. Explain both of them individually.
3. From electrical wiring color coding system, explain the different types of color wiring.