Don,

The total complex impedance in the three house circuit above seems to me to be "complex" [Linked Image] House 3, the neighbor, will have a net unbalanced current in the secondary from the transformer to the house that equals, in magnitude, the magnitude of the current in the water pipe (plus the incidental current in the earth itself). The unbalance in the secondary phase conductor will create an inductive reactance in the phase conductor it is on, and the closer the neutral is, will create a leading inductive reactance in the neutral that closely equals the magnitude of the water pipe lagging inductive reactance. Other than phase shift effects, the differences in the reactive impedance of the wire vs. pipe paths, are only going to come from that current which actually escapes to travel in the earth itself. I am assuming that the overall earth impedance is 10 times greater (at least) than the impedance in the conductors (pipe or wire).

My point, in English, is the reactance of pipe and wire are almost the same.

Al


Al Hildenbrand