How is this looking (sub panel)

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J

jamjam

Well-known member
Jun 25, 2020
684
NY
Pool Size
25000
Surface
Vinyl
Chlorine
Salt Water Generator
I wanted to get some of the electrical work out of the way while waiting for pool instal.

How is this looking?

-100amp sub panel
-1” schedule 40 conduit (filled to 39.7% capacity). 20’ run.
-#3 thhn for hot1, hot2, and neutral, #6 ground
-Neutral and ground bus separated at sub
-Box bonded to 8’ copper clad grounding rod on #6 bare copper.
-50 amp 240v (heat pump), 20 amp 240 volt (pump and salt water chlorine generator), and 15 amp 120v (light and aux outlet) gfci breakers.
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Looks good so far.

How will the pump, SWG, and lights be controlled?
 
Pump is a VSP with its own timer, I have a timer for the box to connect to the SWCG to sync with the pump. Lights and heater will be manual. I might automate it all in a few years but for now I’m trying to keeps costs down a bit as the budget is creeping up.
 
They are all gfci breakers. I was gonna have the pump and the SWCG on the same 20 amp breaker. Is that a bad idea?

the main is probably not double rodded.
 
I have the panel on 100amp breaker - my main is 150amp service - you think I’ll have any issues with the inspector? I have load calcs that look good.
 

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I was gonna hire an electrician for time of installation for bonding and hardwiring. I figure the panel work saved my a couple of grand, though.
 
@jamjam wrote: "... Box bonded to 8’ copper clad grounding rod on #6 bare copper ..."

I don't think the subpanel box is supposed to be attached to a grounding rod via the bonding lug. The bonding lug is supposed to be attached to the pool bonding grid via a bare copper #8 or thicker wire. All pool equipment and any metal within 5 feet of the water surface is supposed to be bonded. At least that's my recollection - I'm sure Allen @ajw22 or someone else will correct me if I'm wrong.
 
proavia said:
@jamjam wrote: "... Box bonded to 8’ copper clad grounding rod on #6 bare copper ..."

I don't think the subpanel box is supposed to be attached to a grounding rod via the bonding lug. The bonding lug is supposed to be attached to the pool bonding grid via a bare copper #8 or thicker wire. All pool equipment and any metal within 5 feet of the water surface is supposed to be bonded. At least that's my recollection - I'm sure Allen @ajw22 or someone else will correct me if I'm wrong.
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That is correct. Bonding is not connected to a grounding rod.

Subpanels do not get their own ground. They should be connected to the house main panel ground. There should be only one ground point in a house electrical system.
 
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ajw22 said:
That is correct. Bonding is not connected to a grounding rod.

Subpanels do not get their own ground. They should be connected to the house main panel ground. There should be only one ground point in a house electrical system.
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I’ve seen so many different answers to this. It’s easy enough to just remove the wire, but I’ve seen everything from, sub doesn’t need its own ground, sub needs 2 grounding rods, sub needs one rod but rod needs to be bonded to main rod, etc.

Not sure why I’m seeing all these different opinions. But either way I figure I’d go with one rod and see what the electrician says.
 
i think since the panel is outside I was treating it as if it was a separate structure, thus my confusion on the grounding rod, if not, this panel is only bout 13 feet from the main service entrance, where i highly doubt there are two grounding rods, i guess i could just leave the rod where it is, disconnect it from the box and bond it to the existing rod at the service entrance.
 
I think you are confusing grounding with bonding.

The only ground rod is at the main panel entrance. A ground WIRE gets run from the main panel to each and every sub-panel - that's the green wire in your sub-panel. This ties all subpanels to the main panel grounding via the ground wire.

The bare copper bonding wire connects all your pool equipment, any metal within 5 feet of the pool water surface, the pool shell and deck, and the water together - thereby bonding them all together.
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in my research, I am seeing many different interpretations of the NEC. The equipment ground back to the main is on an insulated #6 (since its in a wet environment it is insulated). My confusion is on the requirement of the ground rod, what I am seeing is some people saying all subs mounted outside need their own grounding rod, some say they don't but some inspectors will require it, and others saying its not required but not bad to have, and yet others saying it should not be there at all. So that is my confusion. It is simple enough to resolve - but I am still not sure why there is so much conflicting info out there.
 
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jamjam said:
i think since the panel is outside I was treating it as if it was a separate structure,
Click to expand...

In general that is not correct. An outdoor pool electrical panel does not constitute a separate structure. of you had a pool house removed from the main building and the electrical panel supplied a pool house in addition to the pool then an inspector may deem it a separate structure. That often depends on the inspectors interpretation of the site.

jamjam said:
no, in my research, I am seeing many different interpretations of the NEC. The equipment ground back to the main is on an insulated #6 (since its in a wet environment it is insulated).
Click to expand...

That is correct and is different then the #8 bare copper bonding wire required by bonding.

jamjam said:
My confusion is on the requirement of the ground rod, what I am seeing is some people saying all subs mounted outside need their own grounding rod, some say they don't but some inspectors will require it, and others saying its not required but not bad to have, and yet others saying it should not be there at all. So that is my confusion. It is simple enough to resolve - but I am still not sure why there is so much conflicting info out there.
Click to expand...

There is no explaining the various interpretations that come from inspectors. At the end what you inspector wants rules.
 
i just confirmed the main panel only has one rod, so i think ill just disconnect that ground from the sub and then bond the two rods since they are 12 ft apart
 

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