Never heard of a requirement for them UNLESS thay are part of a bonding grid for pool motors, lights, etc.
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Right, this I get. General bonding/grounding seems like an inspector out of his lane.
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What is “general bonding/grounding”? Is this some sort of local rule or Florida thing outside the scope of NEC?
It means do you have to either Bond or Ground the bird cage. General meaning the entire structure.
If you’ve ever poured a pad for a hot tub, there has to be a bonding wire embedded in the concrete that ties to the grounding conductor, i.e. generally bonded means no islands that aren’t bonded. I.e. Everything metal or potentially current carrying is equipotential. Concrete is a conductor, albeit not a great one, but it is one nonetheless.
The same for grounding. Does it need to have an 8 foot grounding rod(or multiples) driven into the soil and tied to the structure.
An inspector who is calling for the structure to have either bonding or grounding, i.e. generally(meaning with few or no exceptions), is exceeding his SOP.
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It sounds like a lot of inspectors, they make up shit as they go along. I reviewed an inspection for my granddaughter’s boyfriend that said a second trap on a double bowl kitchen sink would “improve performance”. LOL.
So you’ve answered your own question then; the structure doesn’t require bonding or grounding.
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The reason for the topic is that I wasn’t sure if there was something I am missing. If I don’t know, what I don’t know and I would prefer to be accurate. I know both from personal(having installed electric for pads, decks and hot tubs multiple times) and my industrial electrical experience that there are a million rules and as many exceptions, but I am not a licensed electrician. I have plenty of holes in my knowledge specially as it relates to things that are mostly in Florida. I am aware of this, thus I’m asking.
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Morning, Mark. Hope to find you well.
Do you think the realtor was referring to Faraday Cage? A shield, actually an enclosure, used to block some EMF electromagnetic fields.
If so the general answer to that question would be no. Grounding a Faraday cage is not essential for its fundamental operation, But, it is strongly recommended for safety, and optimal performance of the Faraday cage.
Just followed the strings.
Ridiculous in infer slang into exterior building components.
Birdcage: The structure, is no more that a screened metallic enclosure, sense grounding was referred to, for pools or patios.
From Google: a large, screened outdoor structure—often installed over a pool or patio—to provide protection from pests, UV rays, and debris while still allowing natural airflow and sunlight. Not from birds.
I use to do pool/spa inspections. Refer to InterNACHI swimming pool spa standards of practice.
- adjacent decks and walking surfaces;
- pool fencing, and the types of safety barriers and alarms
- adjoining structure containing pool OR/AND equipment.
Since there is no pool involved the NEC would not require this structure to be grounded or bonded because without any electrical connections it is not likely to become energized. Lightning protection would be something different and is also not required. Therefore installing something to mitigate either lightning or likely to become energized is optional.
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Thank you! That settles it. My thought was the same, but again, I don’t know, what I don’t know.
Your initial instincts were correct. Providing lightning protection or bonding may provide some additional degree of protection but neither are required.
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Now, living in Utah (and old), I have never heard of this “Bird Cage” thing you speak of but this knowledge will come in handy…cuz when I retire…
do I need to bring my own pink flamingos for this cage?
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Same here, I have never seen one bonded without a pool.
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For future reference though, according to NEC 680.26, all metal parts within 5 feet of the inside wall of a pool and 12 feet vertically above the pool water level must be bonded to the pool’s equipotential bonding grid. This includes metal screen enclosures, aluminum structural components, and any other conductive parts.
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With a bird house.
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Touché 
From Hell’s Heart, I stab at thee!
Easy Captain, just a bit of razzing. 
I’m more Kirk than Khan or Ahab. I typically predict on some level the response I’m going to get, you got me good with a Birdhouse on top though. Way out of the left field from when it came. Lol. I’m still chuckling.
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