How To Look At A House

McGarry and Madsen's home inspection blog for buyers of  

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What is a ground wire?

Tuesday, September 25, 2018

The electric cable that runs to the 120-volt outlets and other fixtures in your home has three wires inside the plastic sheathing: a hot wire (the “live” wire that brings the electricity in), a neutral wire (the one that routes the electricity back to the electric panel and completes the circuit), and a ground wire. The ground provides a safe, alternate route for electricity if it goes astray—perhaps because a hot wire has come loose at a connection or become frayed, and then comes in contact with the metal casing of a power tool or cabinet of a refrigerator, for example. Those parts are connected to the ground wire of the cord of the appliance and will complete a circuit whenever they become electrified. 

   Because the ground wire offers minimal resistance to the current flow, a surge of electricity will flow through it and trip a circuit breaker (or blow a fuse) in your electric panel and alert you to a problem. Without the ground wire connection, an electrically charged surface would do nothing, until you touch it while in contact with the ground or a grounded object, completing a circuit that would shock and possibly electrocute you.

   A ground wire is bare (no insulation) or green. Electric outlets/receptacles have been required to have that third, round ground slot that connects to a ground wire since the early 1960s. 

    Also, see our blog post Why is it unsafe to bond neutral and ground wiring at subpanels?

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Here’s links to a collection of our other blog posts about ELECTRICAL WIRING:

Which house appliances need a dedicated electrical circuit?

Can a short circuit cause a high electric bill?

What is the maximum spacing requirement for securing NM-cable (nonmetallic-sheathed cable)?

Is it alright to just put wire nuts on the end of unused or abandoned NM-cable or wiring?

What causes copper wires to turn green or black in an electric panel?  

What are typical aluminum service entrance wire/cable sizes for the electrical service to a house?

Why is it unsafe to bond neutral and ground wiring at subpanels?

Should I get a lightning rod system to protect my house?

Why is a strain relief clamp necessary for the cord connection to some electric appliances?  

What is an open electrical splice?

What are the most common electrical defects found in a home inspection? 

What is the life expectancy of electrical wiring in a house? 

What is an "open junction box"? 

How dangerous is old electrical wiring? 

What is a ground wire? 

I heard that aluminum wiring is bad. How do you check for aluminum wiring? 

What is "knob and tube" wiring?

    Visit our ELECTRICAL page for other related blog posts on this subject, or go to the INDEX for a complete listing of all our articles.

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