INSPECTING

THE

SUBPANEL
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Inspecting a subpanel is very

similar
l to inspecting a service
panel with the exceptions of
panel,
a few interior red flags.

Subpanel
1.

Thehotwires,redand
black,areeach
connectedtoalugon
th b b
thebusbars.

2.

Theneutralwire(white
wire)areconnectedto
)
theneutralbusbar.

3.

Theground(bare)wire
is connected to the
isconnectedtothe
groundbus.

REMEMBERTHISRULE:
DO NOT GROUND THE NEUTRAL AFTER THE MAIN DISCONNECT
DONOTGROUNDTHENEUTRALAFTERTHEMAINDISCONNECT.
THENEUTRALMAYNOTBEUSEDTOACCOMPLISHGROUNDING.

COMMONSUBPANELFAULTS::
COMMONSUBPANELFAULTS
BONDINGJUMPERCONNECTEDTOTHENEUTRALBAR
GROUNDSANDNEUTRALSSHARETHESAMEBUS
GROUNDS AND NEUTRALS SHARE THE SAME BUS BAR
GROUNDSANDNEUTRALSSHARETHESAMEBUSBAR
Neutralwiresnotisolatedfromthesubpanel

Subpanel

Remember: In a panel
or a subpanel,
subpanel each
screw on the neutral
bus bar can only hold
one wire.

NEUTRALBUSBAR

When this panel is used as a subpanel,

sub panel
the neutral (white) wires are
connected here.
Note the Sshaped piece of metal
secured by a green screw. This is called
a "bonding strap" and is used to
connect (or "bond") the neutral bus to
ground (the metal case) only when the
panel is being used as a main panel.

Ifthebondingstrapisused,the
strap is inserted into one of the
strapisinsertedintooneofthe
neutralterminalpoints.
BUTWECAN'TDOTHIS...Ifthe
panelisusedasasubpanel.

TheneutralandgroundwiresMUSTbe
Th
t l d
d i MUST b
connectedtogether,butONLY atthemainpanel.
9

10

SafetyHazard
f y

SUBPANELWITHBONDINGSTRAPNOTREMOVED
SUBPANELWITHBONDINGSTRAPNOTREMOVED

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Whynotconnecttheneutral
Why
not connect the neutral
andgroundwiresinasubpanel?
path for electric current could be
Because if a neutral wire became disconnected,, the return p
along a ground wire. While that itself may not be a hazard, if that ground wire also became
disconnected somewhere, parts of the ground system could be energized. That's not EVER
supposed to happen.
The neutral wire is essentially a "lowrisk" return path for the electric current in that branch
of the system. All of the neutral wires all have the same electrical potential... nothing. At
least, no potential compared to ground. There is, of course, 120 volts of potential difference
between a neutral wire and any hot wire in the residential system.
If you touched the metal part of a live neutral wire you should not receive a shock. (But don't
try it!) By tying the neutral to ground at one point,
point half of the conductors (in a typical 120
volt circuit) have no dangerous electrical potential. Of course, the hot wires are still
dangerous.

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OLDCERAMICFUSEBOXESAREOBSOLETEANDPOSEARISKOFSHOCKOR
ELECTROCUTIONBECAUSEOFTHEEXPOSEDELECTRICALCONTACTS.
C OC O
C S O
OS
C C CO
C S
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Old ceramic fuse blocks are a safety

Oldceramicfuseblocksareasafetyhazard
safetyhazard
hazard.
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Oldceramicfuseblocksareasafetyhazard.
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 EQUIPMENT GROUNDING CONDUCTORS IN SUBPANELS MUST

BE ON THEIR OWN GROUND BAR.
IT IS NOT ACCEPTABLE TO SIMPLY BUNDLE THEM TOGETHER
AND RUN ONE CONDUCTOR TO THE PANEL ENCLOSURE.
THE SUBPANEL NEUTRAL MUST BE ISOLATED AND MAY NOT
BE USED FOR GROUNDING.
THE GROUND BAR MUST BE BONDED.
ALL METAL ENCLOSURES CONTAINING LIVE ELECTRICAL
WIRING, INCLUDING SUBPANELS, MUST BE GROUNDED SO THEY
REMAIN AT ZERO VOLTAGE POTENTIAL TO GROUND,
GROUND AND SO
THEY HAVE AN EMERGENCY GROUNDING CONNECTION TO
CLEAR POSSIBLE FAULTS.
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REPORT

SUBPANEL

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SUBPANEL
In a subpanel, the white
neutrall and
d the
h equipment
i
grounds must not be
bonded together.
The neutral MUST be
isolated from contacting
the metal enclosure and
any equipment grounds.
Bonding these conductors
is hazardous as it creates
another path for current.

X
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Report

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Report

Whatkindofpanelisthisandhowmanythingsarewrong?
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Report

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Report

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Report

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Report

SUBPANEL

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Report

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Report

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Report

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Subpanels

REPORT
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