Hello, all. This is my first post, so bear with me and please direct/redirect me as needed.

So here is my situation. My wife and I purchased an old victorian rowhouse in Lancaster County, PA (USA) and part of the condition of sale was that all electric would be brought up to code, knob&tube removed, etc. So, we move in to our new (old) home and see all new 3prong outlets everywhere, but we are finding things are not what we were told they would be. The layout of this wiring is a mess, circuit breakers controlling things in areas that just don't make sense at all and a mixture of new Romex properly grounded (but additionally jumped from neutral to ground "bootleg" style) and tons of old two wire cloth wire wired to shiny new 3 prong outlets and made to fool the inspector by way of a "bootleg ground" on all of them that I've had time to investigate.

Couple things:
1. Everything I've read/you-tubed on line (often with NEC references) says that "bootleg grounds" are a major NO-NO, and that I would need to replace all, or at least the first in a daisy-chain, with GFCI outlets with no equipment ground, and labeled so. Does this sound correct to you all? Further more, why - on the lines that are new and grounded - would someone connect the bare ground wire to the ground lug on the outlet, and then jump the neutral to the ground lug too??? Also, with the three wire outlets that read a correct ground to the outlet, should the box be grounded too? ...or would that happen by way of screwing the outlet into the metal box?

2. Should I leave 'well enough' alone here, or start replacing outlets and let the stereos, TV's and computeres take a potential hit with the ungrounded GFCI's installed?

3. I discovered all of this "bootleg" stuff from doing some experimenting to see what light fixtures were connected in-line with each other (if at all) in the unfinished bathroom I would like to wire to include a proper GFCI outlet (where currently no outlet exists). What I did discover is that while the two sconces and over head light in the bathroom are on the same 20 amp circuit on a secondary panel on the second floor, these bath lighting fixtures also share that circuit with two "bootleg grounded" outlets, 5 ceiling light/fans and 2 hallway lights, all of which are in other rooms. All of this wiring (as far as I've discovered) on this circuit uses the old cloth covered two-wire stuff.

Now, I understand that it's standard practice to put a bathroom on a dedicated circuit, but given the age and oddity of this 1880's house, I don't see a complete rewiring to be a feasible option at this time or in the foreseeable future. Should I just add on a GFCI outlet to the busy circuit and put it into the bathroom anyway? Without a ground, would the new GFCI in the bathroom do any good in protecting someone with wet hands or feet anyway?

What advice would you have me to heed?

Many, many, thanks for your patience in reading all of this and any help you may provide.

Best,
John

 

All bootleg grounds must be removed immediately. They are a safety hazard.

Should be no problem or harm to radios rt TVs using an ungrounded circuit. (Most don't even come with a grounded plug anyway.) Only surge protectors wouldn't work.

A GFCI does not need a ground to work correctly. It does provide personal safety when used to allow grounded receptacles to be installed and works just the same on an ungrounded bath circuit as on a grounded one.

 

My question would be, how did it pass inspection?

 

I would think you would want this hack work addressed and made right. It sounds like there are a myriad of issues.

 

If it was a "condition of sale" then get some estimates from your own electrician and hire a lawyer.

 

I couldn't agree more! From what you describe, this isn't going to be a simple fix. I also believe I'd let the selling realtor's broker also know there are major problems with the deal, their license could be in jeopardy.

 

Wow, you all bring up solid points regarding legal and liability issues. This is our first house purchase, and we were going by our realtor and what info he was getting about the necessary changes needed to approve the sale and what had subsequently been accomplished by the seller/seller's-realtor. I'l chew on this, contact our realtor and discuss some things. I'll get back with you all here. Thank you!

Also, I stopped by my local Home Depot and Lowe's and spoke with their heads in the electrical department and they both said that it sounds like the seller asked the electrician to fudge things with the "bootleg grounds" to try and pass inspection without really doing things right in order to save a buck. Apparently, this can be a common approach that works, so long as the inspector doesn't actually take apart any of the receptacles which would uncover the illegal "fix."

As stated, I'll be contacting some people about this. What a mess...

Thanks for your input!!!
Best,
John

 

Just a FYI.....the laws are different in all states, but in most states unless your realtor had signed an exclusive buyer's agent agreement with you, the realtor was working for the seller and not you. This isn't to say your realtor had any knowledge of the deception, but just something to remember. You'll also need someone to act as a consultant who knows your local codes, not just a guy at the local big box store. Bringing any older home up to current code can be quite an expensive and involved project. I believe you'd best talk to an attorney before going too far, an attorney specializing in real estate would be best. Take with you a copy of the sales contract and a list of issues you believe you have.

 

To add, if it was truly listed as a condition of sale then you should have a very strong case - meaning it's in writing somewhere, right?

Check with your municipality and see if permits were pulled too.

 

I was just assuming that a condition of the sale would be in the sales contract, but that is a good question for the OP.

Was bringing the house up to current electric codes actually written in the sales contract?

 

But a good lawyer might say the bootleg grounds were proof of a informed attempt to defraud the buyers by deceiving the inspector.