Grounding the bath in the apartment is necessary to ensure the safety of life. The bathroom is a place of increased danger, since it is most likely to get an electric shock here. This happens when electrical appliances such as water heaters or washing machines interact with water. To prevent this from happening, it is necessary to ground the bath.
Essence of grounding
Each of us must have experienced electric shocks at least once in our lives. Someone experienced a strong charge, someone not so much. But in any case, the feeling is not pleasant. In addition, they are simply life-threatening.
For example, you might feel a slight tingle in the part of your body that comes into contact with water. This is also considered a shock, only a weak charge. It occurs due to the fact that somewhere the integrity of the wiring or its insulation is broken. Since water is a good electrolyte, it conducts current to us. This is what we feel as a tingle.
However, at any moment, this tingling can turn into a powerful blow with a strong charge that can even take a person's life. Therefore, at the slightest sign that the electrical wiring in the bathroom is broken, grounding in the bathroom should be done as soon as possible. This is necessary to divert dangerous electricity to the "ground" and not to your body.
So why ground the bath in the apartment? Undoubtedly, most modern equipment manufacturers provide for the issue of grounding in advance. For this, electrical appliances are equipped with special grooves made of metal.
The essence of grounding a bath in an apartment is the intake of electric current that appeared on the body and its output to the ground. In this case, this current will not be traumatic for a person.
What is the importance of grounding?
Why do I need to ground the bath in the apartment? The answer to the question is quite simple and lies on the surface. It has been known since school that water is an excellent electrolyte. Water, in all its states of aggregation, is available in the bathroom, so this place in the entire apartment is the most dangerous.
It would seem, how can something that is not connected directly to electricity harm? However, it can. Everything that is in the bathroom and is not related to electricity is capable of conducting current or generating it on its body. These are sewer and water pipes, radiators, bathtubs, sinks, etc.
In order to avoid unpleasant and dangerous consequences, the bath is grounded inapartment. This helps to prevent the formation of a charge on the bodies of the units located in the bathroom in case of any breakdown.
It is also worth paying attention to the fact that if there are plastic pipes in the neighboring apartment, grounding the bath will be ineffective, since you will simply increase the area of electric shock in your apartment. The ground circuit will be broken if not all pipes in the riser are metal.
However, for the bathroom, the use of metal pipes as grounding conductors is not recommended due to the fact that they are connected by couplings in the riser. In such places of fastenings, electric current leakage is possible. That is, the ground circuit is not sealed. It also creates various stray charges that can go, for example, into a neighboring apartment, for which the neighbors will not thank you. This stray current can also return to your apartment, besides it is not known in what place.
Some apartment owners don't ground their baths because they don't think it's necessary. They refer to the fact that the container is covered with a protective enamel layer, and modern acrylic structures generally consist of a material that does not pass current. However, this information is not so reliable in order to adhere to it. Any defect in the coating of the bath can violate its electrical insulation. You may not even notice this chip. Therefore, grounding is necessary in any case.
Ground cable features
Standard wires are used to ground the bath in the apartmentwires. Their cross section must be at least 6 mm2. This section is enough for the bathroom. The cross section of all PE wires should be 2.5 mm2 if there is mechanical protection, and 4 mm2 if there is none.
According to the norms of electrical work, the insulation of this cable must be made of polyvinyl chloride, have a yellow-green color.
Inside the cable are ground electrodes, which are made of steel or copper. It is worth noting that for such work it is better to use a copper section.
For example, to ground a cast-iron bath, you will need about 2 meters of such a cable. Although the footage depends on the layout of the bathroom and the apartment as a whole. The shorter the cable, the less likely it is to be damaged.
It is better to lay the cable where there will be no public access to it. For example, behind a bathtub, under a sink, under floor tiles or as wiring, inside walls.
Metal bath work
Why is a bathtub grounded in a Soviet-era apartment? After all, everything should have been grounded for a long time. But it's not. Firstly, they used to be grounded to a sewer or water riser. This is now prohibited.
Secondly, since Soviet times, the installation of electrical wiring has probably been carried out many times, and it is not a fact that at that moment the necessary safety measures were observed. That is, it is quite possible that in your bathroom there is no grounding for a long time.
So, to ground the old Soviet bath, you need to drill a hole in its leg. For thisuse a drill bit. Then we fix the grounding jumper with a bolt, nut and washer. Then we take a stranded wire. We attach it on one side to the leg of the bathroom, and on the other - to a special distributor. We bring all the other wires in the bathroom there. This dispenser can be attached to any place convenient for you. It is only necessary to take into account that water does not get on it. Then we bring everything to the electrical panel in the entrance, or rather, to the ground bus in the panel.
Why do you need to ground the bathtub in the apartment if, for example, you have a shower? It still needs to be grounded. Especially if this shower has a water heating element. In such a situation, the jumper is made in the form of a connection between the metal elements of the device case and grounded pipes.
If you already have a modern or cast-iron bath, then the ground jumper has already been invented before you. On such baths there is a special "petal". Grounding these baths becomes much easier, you just need to strip the cable and clamp it between the petal washers.
If the bath is acrylic?
In modern society, acrylic baths are in demand. They are much lighter than cast iron, and are somewhat cheaper. Many may wonder: "Is it necessary to ground an acrylic bath?". And this is not surprising, because the material from which it is made is not an electrolyte in itself, that is, it should not pass an electric current. But grounding is still necessary.
First,bath casting technology involves installing it on a steel frame, which just passes electricity.
Secondly, bathtubs can accumulate static electricity. In this case, grounding is necessary to remove it, especially if the tub is large and can accumulate a lot of voltage.
Acrylic bathtubs imply a special bandage. It is to him that the wires for grounding are connected.
Cast iron item
Grounding a cast-iron bath in an apartment is carried out as follows. A bolt for a grounding cable is inserted into a special eyelet. By the way, it is better to pre-clean the junction of the wire and the bolt to ensure better contact.
We run the cable to the distributor, bring it to the shield and the ground bus. By the way, this tire is called PE. If there is none in the shield, then it must be additionally installed before making grounding in the bathroom.
In a new building
Grounding technology will vary depending on the type and age of the building. Before making grounding in a bathroom in a new building, it is necessary to clarify which system is installed in the house. Since 2003, a system of 5 wires has been provided in the houses. One of them actually has grounding functions.
Most likely, this is the wiring system in your new building. You only need to wire the ground cable in your apartment.
For bathrooms, due to increased security, it is recommended to install DSUP(additional potential equalization system), which we will talk about a little later.
Houses built in the post-Soviet era have a modern TN-C-S system. It is equipped with two conductors: working zero and protective zero.
Three phases L, a separated working neutral conductor N and a protective conductor PE are discharged from the main shield of the house along the access risers. Connecting the wiring from the apartment to the shield becomes much easier, since all the necessary tires are already there. The ground bus is connected to the body of the electrical panel with a metal wire.
Let's consider step by step how to make a bath grounding using such a shield.
To begin with, we connect a new phase wire to the place where the old one was. This will ensure the presence of electricity in the apartment. Then we carry out the same procedure with the neutral and ground wires. We connect the wire with the letter N to the bus with neutral wires, that is, those that do not have voltage. And we attach the wire with the letters PE to the body of the shield. To do this, you may need a metal bolt fixed in the electrical panel.
You should also note that you can only attach one ground cable to one bolt. If there is a need to connect another cable, then additional clamps are required for this, that is, there are more bolts in the shield.
For convenience, a special PE bus is used, which is installed in the shield, and all the necessary grounding cables are already connected to it.
You should also consider the following points:
- whenwhen using a three-phase input, it is necessary that all conductors have the same cross section;
- one terminal of the machine can clamp only 2 conductors with the same cross section;
- recommended to use a three-phase connection to the hob to evenly distribute the load.
Further, everything that needs to be grounded in the bathroom (for example, a bathtub, pipes, underfloor heating, sockets, etc.) is connected to the DSUP located in the bathroom.
Since the bathroom uses 2 electrical circuits: for lighting and for electrical appliances, it is recommended to connect them separately. However, there may be a mixed diet. But the lines that feed the power plants (for example, a washing machine) should be grounded separately in general, since they create a strong electrical voltage.
There is also a TN-S wiring system. It is used in houses that have been built since 1997. In this system, the working and protective neutral conductors are separated, and the ground, phase and neutral wires are laid separately from the substation to the house. Such a system is more reliable when grounded. By the way, it is carried out similarly to the method that we described above.
Additional potential equalization system (DSUP)
This system is needed to create a safe environment in places where it matters most. In such places, there is usually high humidity and a high concentration of electrical voltage. For example, these could be bathrooms or shower rooms.
DSUPrepresents a box of the equation of potentials (CUE) and the conductors of the equation of potentials which are in it. There are holes along the perimeter of the box through which ground wires from the metal elements of the bathroom pass. In fact, this device collects all the cables in the bathroom, and one three-core wire is already coming out of it, which is already connected to the electrical panel in the entrance.
Let's figure out how to install an additional potential equalization system in the bathroom.
First you need to choose a place for the UE box, which is better to install where water will not fall on it or condensate will collect. Next, we connect the PE bus of the shield in the entrance with a similar bus in the PMC. To do this, you need a grounding cable with a copper section of 6 mm2.
Now we have to bring and connect all the metal elements in the bathroom into the PMC. These include heating pipes, cold and hot water pipes, as well as a bath or shower.
Protective conductors must be connected to all these structures for equalization of potentials. From one end they are attached to the structure. To do this, you can use metal clamps. However, you need to fix them well, otherwise there will be an electric current leakage in this place and, in fact, this element will not be grounded in the bathroom.
From the other end, the conductors are connected to the PE bus, which is located in the potential equalization box.
Additionally, all sockets and large electrical appliances in the bathroom are grounded. To do this, you can installone PMC or conduct their grounding in isolation, that is, directly to the electrical panel in the entrance.
Requirements during work
Once again, we will indicate why grounding in the bathroom is necessary:
- increased safety when using electrical appliances in the bathroom by de-energizing the housing;
- protection against electric shock from the bathroom case in case of electrical wiring insulation failure;
- removal of currents straying through the network due to insulation breakdown;
- Protection against force majeure situations like an accidentally dropped electric hair dryer.
Let's also consider the rules of work when conducting grounding:
- Earth cable must be firmly connected to the bath to avoid inefficiency of the earth conductor;
- the ground loop must be securely welded together and well connected to the ground wire;
- grounding cable must be properly selected and comply with wiring standards (if this condition is not met, then there will be excess resistance, and it should not exceed 4 ohms).
If you have met all these requirements before making the grounding of the bathroom in the apartment, then you can be sure of the effectiveness of the completed event.
Safety Practices
To the question: "Why is the bath grounded?" we answered. To make it a success, here are a few safety tips.
- Take care of the quality of your electricalwiring. She must be correct. If you neglect this rule, then the effectiveness of grounding will be reduced to zero. Laying stranded wire requires increased responsibility, especially in the bathroom. After all, this is the most unsafe place in the house. There is a constant contact of electricity and water. Therefore, if the wiring is damaged, the probability of electric shock rises to 100%.
- Electrical appliances you use must also be in good working order. If you notice bare wires or sparks when plugged into a socket or at any other point in the operation of the device, you must immediately stop using the unit and repair the damage. Don't rely on luck. Even if you do not get electrocuted, you can provoke a fire, and then not only you, but also your neighbors will suffer. It is better to once again make sure that the electrical appliance is working than to have unpleasant consequences later.
- Protect your children from faulty electrical appliances. It's better not to let them use them without your control at all. Especially do not trust the kids. Even if your device worked normally and was in good condition, it can break down at any moment. The child, due to his inexperience and ignorance, will not always notice smoke or sparks from the device in time. This can lead to irreversible consequences. If you still think that the child is already old enough to use electrical appliances on his own, then you must first familiarize him with the possible scenarios. It would also be helpful to tell the child aboutwhat to do first if an electric shock occurs or a fire starts due to a malfunction of an electrical appliance.
- Observe basic safety rules in high-risk areas. As we have already understood, the bathroom just belongs to such areas. Care must be taken at all times to ensure that water does not enter sockets, switches, or other places where electricity may be present. For such purposes, special sockets with waterproof covers and other various protective elements for bathrooms are provided. This increases the chance of protection against electric shock or fire.
- Perform all repairs in a timely manner. This applies to grounding too. If you find that there is no grounding in your bathroom, then you need to do it urgently. You can’t put this question on the back burner, especially if your bathroom has a washing machine, water heater or other large electrical appliances that can create a large electrical charge on their body. It is also necessary to change the ground cable in time if you find it to be faulty. In that case, it's like not having a ground connection in the bathroom at all.
