general wiring information help please

[Boxerider]

what would be the deal with this aluminum monster on my back porch?

as you can see it is wired to the ground, and a hot only. there is a third wire that is capped and tucked in behind. I especially like the electrical tape "protecting" the ground wire.

for the time being i pulled the outlet, capped the two wires and stuffed it behind a cover so my kid doesnt fry himself.

my house was built in '89.

the house has a finished laundry room so there wouldnt have been a dryer outlet on the porch. its nowhere near the kitchen. it isnt close to the driveway or anyplace else youd plug in an RV.

ive replaced a bunch of the lights and a couple switches and outlets, its all standard looking copper wiring. this outlet is on the back porch. there is a GFI circuit for all the outdoor stuff, and that circuit has an outlet not 10 feet from this thing.

 

[pattenp]

Looks like SEU wire that originally served a 240V outlet and someone put on a 125V outlet using the bare ground as neutral to get 120V. That circuit should be checked back at the panel to verify and be rewired if using as 120V.

 

[Boxerider]

i opened the panel, the only aluminum circuit is attached to a 30 amp breaker, with an empty 30 next to it thusly:

the third wire is AWOL. am i correct in theory that maybe someone used leftover wire for a 220 outlet to run a 110 outlet?

 

[Boxerider]

Looks like SEU wire that originally served a 240V outlet and someone put on a 125V outlet using the bare ground as neutral to get 120V. That circuit should be checked back at the panel to verify and be rewired if using as 120V.

ok, thats the only theory i could begin to come up with.

im gonna delete the outlet and use the spot for the 2 30's for a welder.

***edit*** found the third wire.

stupidity.

 

[pattenp]

That 30A DP breaker is missing the handle tie. If you plan on using it for 240V get a handle tie for it or replace the breaker. It's not 2 separate breakers, there's a rivet connecting the two.

 

[Charles (in GA)]

Neutrals and ground under the same screw are a no-no. you can put two grounds (usually) under a screw, but only one neutral per screw. The door placard will tell you how many grounds per screw are allowed, in the size and torque section.

Charles

 

[pattenp]

I noticed that too, but didn't want to go there.

Neutrals and ground under the same screw are a no-no. you can put two grounds (usually) under a screw, but only one neutral per screw. The door placard will tell you how many grounds per screw are allowed, in the size and torque section.

Charles

 

[Boxerider]

Neutrals and ground under the same screw are a no-no. you can put two grounds (usually) under a screw, but only one neutral per screw. The door placard will tell you how many grounds per screw are allowed, in the size and torque section.

Charles

are you talking about the white wires screwed in with the unclad copper grounds??? how bad??

if that's the case, I think I might need to call my electrician.

what you cant see is that the screw bar on the other side is completely empty. it looked half assed to me...

 

[Charles (in GA)]

The image below tells the story on my panel. The box labeled Neutral/Ground lists various size wires and the torque for them. When you get down to the Ground Conductors Only (yellow arrows) you see a (2) or (3) before the 14-10 gauge. The meaning is that if you are using two each, or three each of these sizes, then here is the torque for multiple wires (same torque) but note that it says Ground Conductors ONLY, it does not list torque for multiple neutrals, as that is not allowed.

Charles