Now they're Teaming Up! Electrician/Plumber cooperation at its finest.

Scott, youre getting as good as I used to be at finding strangeness... I can understand a plumber being cool with us and putting a waterline out for us to bond, but I'd think a cap would be favorable to the hosebib on the end...

THERE HAS TO BE A VIOLATION HERE,PROBABLY A PLUMBING WIOLATION TO HAVE A WATER SPICKET ABOVE ELECTRICAL EQUIPTMENT

The hose bibb is there so some poor soul can wash down the switchboard.

at least there's a bib on it to stop the grounded electricity from leaking out...and the handle is green indicating a grounded faucet.

Where in the code DOES it indicate size of water pipe necessary to stick your ground...... Something seems funny here.

RSlater,
RSmike

A more serious thought, why couldnt the plumber have used a ball valve and pipe plug? That way some poor fool cant flood the place.

Doesn't it strike you as ironic that the "Type 1 Enclosure" label is directly under the hose bib.
NEMA 3 req. comes to mind!!

There's no minimum or maximum pipe size in NEC 250.52(A)(1) nor is there a material specified, only that it be "metallic".

The clamp thingamajig is pretty creative, too

Many inspectors in this area won't accept a capped pipe as part of the Grounding Electrode, because it may contain only trapped air. As lame as this thing looks, it might have been done in response to a correction notice.

Can a plumber put a hose bibb indoors with no drain?

I think the plumber did this grounding himself after demo of what that ground was connected to. Or, the electrician should have been a plumber.

And they do this, why??--It's the pipe that conducts electricity; water is actually a rather poor conductor. It conducts enough for the few milliamps it takes to kill someone in a bathroom accident, but not enough to seriously be considered as part of the grounding.

In fact, pure distilled water is actually a reasonably good insulator.

I believe that 110.26(F) Dedicated Equipment Space can be cited here.

Not unlike what's between their ears.

[This message has been edited by Electricmanscott (edited 08-24-2005).]

Trapped air??????????????????????????????

What the *&#@?

You got to be kidding us, please tell us your kidding.

Where does the NEC say anything about the presence or non presence of water?

I am dumbfounded.

Do they also require metal objects that are bonded, such as outlet boxes, metal conduit, gas piping to be filled with water?

And isn't the sharp "j-hook" bend in the grounding conductor a violation? One, exceeding the bend radius of the conductor and two, IIRC there is a specific reference to not having any sharp bends in the grounding conductor.

The hose bib was installed to put out the fire from the Challenger switchgear.

Guys, This "air pipe" business come up with various inspectors in various jurisdictions in the area.
These have not been just new-hire-wet-behind the-ears combination inspectors either, but have been seasoned veteran electrical inspectors.
My only guess, and it's just that and nothing more, is that the subject came up at an IAEI meeting and this was the concensus.

I still can't figure for the life of me though, why the inspector (or any of you guys) didn't notice the perverse use of the clamp(s)


If you'll look at that ground clamp you'll see that the actual conductor is clamped by nothing more than the saddle that is meant to hold the armor on a piece of armored ground wire. That clamp was never meant for this type of use, and has a maximum of a #6 conductor, as does the "hub" portion.
The correct hub, if used, would have a 2 screw clamp right in front of the hole that that conductor comes out, and the armored clamp could be saved to be used where it belongs.


[This message has been edited by electure (edited 08-25-2005).]

One more thing: the red cap looks like the socket-protector that comes in recessed lights.