Time To Wire Panel For Rouch Inspection...

[Matt M, PA]

..and I have a few questions.

I have installed conduit for where the cable comes out of the ground outside...and brought the cable inside with the box made for this. The guys that buried the cable left less wire in the garage than I wanted, but the panel had the ability to have the insides inverted to work with a bottom feed.

This is a 100amp panel to be fed from a 100 breaker on our house's 200amp panel...to a new detached garage.


1. Once inside, do I need to have the 2-2-2-4 in a conduit for it's short run up the wall to the bottom of the panel? Or, can it simply be clamped at the bottom of the box where it enters?

2. My panel has, as I see it...two neutral bars, and the main breakers. I understand that the main "hot" wires go to the main breakers, and I assume the neutral goes to a neutral bar...but what do I do with the ground lead coming from the house's main panel?

3. What do I do with the grounding rod we were instructed to install?

Thanks in advance guys...these days money is short so I need to do as much as I can by myself.

[LoneGunman]

You need to install a ground bar to land your ground on as it cannot be attached to the neutral.

"1. Once inside, do I need to have the 2-2-2-4 in a conduit for it's short run up the wall to the bottom of the panel? Or, can it simply be clamped at the bottom of the box where it enters?"

Yes, you need to run conduit into the panel, use an LB on the conduit that enters the garage and run a piece of conduit out of the top of the LB into the panel. Don't forget your bushing.

[Charles (in GA)]

Neutral is Neutral, and Ground is Ground, and the two should not meet. Put the #4 green striped wire on the ground bar, which should be directly mounted to, or bonded to the box with a screw thru it, and if there is a bonding bar between the neutral and the gound bars, remove it. Also insure that the screw provided that you run thru the neutral bar to bond it to the box is NOT installed. Bring your solid copper #6 or #8 wire from the ground rod to the ground bar in the box. Insure you have good connections at the ground rod using the properly rated clamp. Also double check the house ground to insure it is still intact from years of neglect.

Check with your inspector before you get too far, some don't like "upside down" boxes, even though it doesn't matter, and is designed to be installed either way.

Charles

[Matt M, PA]

Thanks! The inspector was good with it being "inverted".

Inside the box is the main breaker...then two neutral bars...one shorter than the other. They appear to be joined. I will go out and look at how this may be separated.

[Torque1st]

The city inspector has been there but when do the Rouches come for their inspection? ;)

[Matt M, PA]

Torque1st....typing too quickly has it's issues!

Well, after looking at the box, the neutral and ground bars are tied, and I see no way of seperating these.

After some more research, it looks like I need to run the hot wires to the main breaker, the neutral to the neutral bar, the ground to the groud bar...then the bare copper wire from the ground bar to the bar we had set in the footers.

Now...once I hook the hot feeds to the panel in the house to the new breaker...where to the other two go?

[Torque1st]

Check the new panel again. There should be a way to easily disconnect the ground and neutral bars. They must not be connected. Also check continuity to the sub panel enclosure from the bars with a meter. The ground bar should be connected to the sub panel enclosure and the neutral bar must NOT connect to the sub panel enclosure. Check these connections before any connections are made in the main panel.

The bare ground wire connects the ground bar in the sub panel and the ground rod in the footer.

The new ground and neutral wires from the sub panel go to the main panel and both connect to the combined ground/neutral bar in the main panel.

[Matt M, PA]

Ah yes...and thanks for the help...much appreciated.

I have found the neutral and ground bars are connected (if desired) to a little Z bar that one simply leaves out to keep them separate.

[Torque1st]

Modern electrical panels are fairly "flexible"... ;)

[Matt M, PA]

Thanks for all the help guys....I have just about all the rough in done...and plan to finish it up tonight.

If I understand correctly, I will still need to put the house end of the 2-2-2-4 inside conduit where it enters..and goes to the mail panel (in the house). I will also measure that out and see what I need to get for that.

[Torque1st]

...If I understand correctly, I will still need to put the house end of the 2-2-2-4 inside conduit where it enters..and goes to the mail panel (in the house). I will also measure that out and see what I need to get for that.
No, no, no, it is a Federal offense to electrocute the Mailman no matter how bad the bills he brings are... ;)

Yes, entrance must be in conduit also to protect the wire just like at the shop end.

[Matt M, PA]

Torque1st...thanks again! I guess I should slooooow down just a bit to avoid this typos.

[Torque1st]

Sorry, ROFLMAO

I do the same thing. Trouble is even a spelling checker won't help if the typo is actually a word. Some of the spelling checkers even have all of the ancient and strange words in them which does not help a lot for common errors.

Good luck! :)

[Matt M, PA]

Woo-Hoo! Passed the rough inspection!!!!

I do have to make a modification to the panel though, as the part that binds the neutral and ground bars is indeed (not as the maker told me) electrically connected. No big deal.

No I have the "fun" job of putting in outlets, switches, lights....cool.

[Torque1st]

What do you mean by; "the part that binds the neutral and ground bars is indeed (not as the maker told me) electrically connected."

Once you get past the "Heavy" wiring the rest is easier.

[kvom]

No I have the "fun" job of putting in outlets, switches, lights....coolJust been through that (got my electric service hooked up today). Not fun, but satisfying when it's complete.

[Matt M, PA]

Torque1st...there is a bar that goes from the ground bar to the neutral bar behind the part where the breakers snap in. According to the maker...it is not connected electrically. The inspector put a meter on it...and it is connected. He said it needs to be removed.

[Torque1st]

Thanks, I was hoping that was the case.

[Matt M, PA]

Okay...so more aggravationn.

I thought I would get the in house portion set-up tonight, since the garage panel is done. (the bar between the neutral and ground bars was pre-scored and snapped off.)

At the electric supply shop...I got two neutral bar "lug" kits to screw into the neutral bar for the neutral and ground wires that feed the sub panel.

To make a loooong story short...the set-screw size is not the same as what came off the neutral bar...and the original is some wacky size that I cannot duplicate.

And...if I were to tap the neutral bar for these set-screws...once installed the lugs would not permit breakers to be removed.

I know the hot 2 leads go to the breaker...but where oh where am I to put the #2 and 4 neutral and grounds in the house's GE panel? At the very top there is a spot that would take a lug of sorts...but only one spot.

[GSSFC]

You can buy lugs that screw into the ground and neutral bars so that you can attach a large gauge wire.

Tim