no ground on garbage disposal


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Old 11-19-06, 01:16 PM
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no ground on garbage disposal

I did the sink hook up on a kitchen remodel the other day and the outlet for the disposal is not grounded. The owners had a disposal prior to the remodel. The romex coming into the outlet box under the sink has a ground wire, but it only reads about 40 volts between hot and ground. Should I put a GFCI outlet on the disposal? Or tell the customer not to use it at all? It's probably been like this forever.

Thanks, Brian
 
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Old 11-19-06, 03:34 PM
J
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A ground going back to the service panel is not important, it is essential. We are talking about water and electricity here, you MUST have a positive ground. Connecting it to an ungrounded GFI is not, IMHO, adequate. It may or may not be ok according to your local code, but is not good enough for my work.
 
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Old 11-19-06, 03:39 PM
R
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Fix the ground. Better yet, get an electrician to do it. You doing work on someone else's house (unless you are an electrician) is foolish and good way to get yourself in trouble.
 
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Old 11-20-06, 07:18 AM
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Thanks,
I'll tell the owners not to use the disposal. (tag it out).
This is the first time i've seen an ungrounded disposal in all the remodels i've done. Even the older houses usually have a good ground. It just scares me tho, I know for a fact they have been using this disposal this way for at least 20 years and probably longer.
 
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Old 11-20-06, 12:19 PM
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If the disposal is marked as "double insulated" then a grounded plug is NOT required:

422.16(B)(1) Electrically Operated Kitchen Waste Disposers.

(1) The flexible cord shall be terminated with a grounding-type attachment plug.

Exception: A listed kitchen waste disposer distinctly marked to identify it as protected by a system of double insulation, or its equivalent, shall not be required to be terminated with a grounding-type attachment plug.
 
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Old 11-20-06, 04:14 PM
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Thanks ibpooks,
I'm sure it is double insulated but I'm not taking any chances, I told the customer not to use it until a new circuit is ran.

For you other guys (racraft) I appreciate your advice, I ask questions here now and then, mostly on things I think are important safety issues. But I'm not foolish, and I don't think it is foolish to work on someone's house, I've been doing it for years. I remodel kitchens. I move gas lines, electric lines, add dedicated circuits, everything. I have $1m liability insurance and I do all my work for a major national department store that is also liable. It's just that I have never ran across an ungrounded line for a disposal. Normally, I would not put a gfci on a disposal if it is grounded. But under the circumstances I thought I would ask.
 
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Old 11-21-06, 05:10 PM
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Smile

You sound like an intelligent person (logical too) Thats good, spread the word!

You doing work on someone else's house (unless you are an electrician) is foolish and good way to get yourself in trouble.

For Racrafts comment, i would only add.. INSURED.
I would hate to lose my home for a "PIG", or some other $120. item.
 
 

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