ECN Forum Forums General Topics of the Trade General Discussion Area Portable Generator Grounding

Additional hazard created by ground rod

BigB,
How often would a situation like you've pictured occur?
I'm of the understanding that most tools and appliances these days are Class II (double insulated) and have no reference to ground, whereby they have a plastic body and no ground conductor.
Yes I can understand that there might be some Class I appliances still out there, but if people are going to use them, would they not use an in-line GFCI/RCD?

Libellis,
Sorry, don't think for a moment that I was having a go at you.
I should have been clearer as well.
Down here, we like to throw a GFCI/RCD on everything that might become a safety hazard either now or in the future,
it's not ideal, but when you have idiots working with electricity, there may be problems.
And with generators, there usually are........

I imagine it is rare to non-existent, but by the same token how often would the ground rod do anything beneficial? Yes GFCI protection is required but you can't control what Joe Public does. We still have kitchen re-modelers here who don't bother to install them.

Trumpy,

No, I didn't take any umbrage at all, and I know from your various posts the value you place on safety and common sense.

I suppose the point being made is by grounding a portable generator you are creating a fault path for no particularly good reason. Let's look again at why we ground electrical systems (250.4(A)(1))



You are not going to see line surges or contact with higher voltage lines if you are using a generator and if your generator gets hit by lightning you are toast anyway.