electrical question

[captaincrab55]

the cable is 10/2 and the suggestion to install a sub-panel in the greenhouse seems to be the easiest solution. do you guys think the frost free hydrant i have in the greenhouse would be a suitable ground?
i did all the wiring in my house so i have electrical work experience. how would i use a disconnect box to do this that is different than using a sub-panel? is it wired the same way but the equipment is cheaper?

Randy, Even if that Frost Free Hydrant was plumbed with a Metallic pipe/tubing, it's wrong... I really don't even want to think about the electric work in your house.. I don't understand your complete dis-regard for Code... To make it simple, Code is the Minimum/Cheapest way it can be done to protect Lives(loved ones & pets too), Structures and Personal Property..

Take the Good Advice and run a new circuit from the Panel or up the wire & breaker size and set a sub panel in the greenhouse... Keep in mind that you also got some very Bad Advice.. Just because your heater may only draw 23 amps, doesn't mean that you have 7 amps to use...

btw, Use GFI receptacle/s or GFI breaker/s for receptacles in your Greenhouse...

Over 30 years of experience as a Master Electrician...

 

[Mike058]

the cable is 10/2 and the suggestion to install a sub-panel in the greenhouse seems to be the easiest solution. do you guys think the frost free hydrant i have in the greenhouse would be a suitable ground?

The hydrant is not a suitable ground. Grounding is done for two reasons. First is to protect the wiring from lightning strikes or if a high tension wire falls across your service lines. But the second reason is that a circuit breaker only opens if like 5 to 10 times it's rated current flows through it. 150 to 3000 amps in a 30 amp breaker. That much current can't flow through water pipes and the earth back to the service equipment. Only a copper wire with excellent connections going back to the service equipment will work. Without that copper connection, the breaker will see any current going into the plumbing as just another load and happily supply it. If that plumbing runs back to the house, you've supplied 120 volts to every metal fixture in the house. If one pipe has a bit more electrical resistance than another because it's longer maybe, you now have a voltage differential that will flow if a conductor (like a person) touches the two fixtures.

 

[randy41]

thanks everyone for the advice. based on what i've read i will just run another line out there. i was just looking for an alternative to waiting for the ground to defrost enough to dig and bury the line. the mistake was not doing this when i installed the water line and the heater circuit. i'm not looking to do anything that's unsafe or not to code.

 

[dcyrilc]

thanks everyone for the advice. based on what i've read i will just run another line out there. i was just looking for an alternative to waiting for the ground to defrost enough to dig and bury the line. the mistake was not doing this when i installed the water line and the heater circuit. i'm not looking to do anything that's unsafe or not to code.

If you're going to dig and run a new line, use it to put in a subpanel. That way you won't have to do it again in a few years when you decide you need another circuit. Make sure your neutral and ground are isolated at the subpanel and both return to the main panel at the house. Technically, any metal piping within the structure should be bonded to the electrical grounding system. Keep in mind that this is a bond tying the metal of the piping to electrical ground and not grounding the electrical system. The ground for the electrical system MUST return to the ground bus on the main electrical panel.