Hi All - Builder said this is connected through the siding/wall to an UFER. I could not see a connection on this ground bridge to anything (other than the panel, of course). I should have removed the plastic cover on the bridge, but I didn’t.
Is there a clamp or terminal or something on the back of this thing that would be connected to a wire I don’t see? In the moment, I took his word for it, but now that I’m writing up the report and Googling images of ground bridges, I’m not entirely buying it.
But going to back to the idea that we are not code inspectors, I’m just skeptical that the grounding bridge is connected to anything other than the siding and that one copper wire leading back to the service disconnect equipment.
No there is no separate conductor terminal for going through the wall on a IBT. It could be that the conductor is bent over but the cover would need to be removed to see it. If the GEC is connected to the CEE within the concrete footing it is not required to be accessible.
Good question, without removing the cover it will unfortunately remain a mystery. Is the panel in the picture the Emergency Disconnect on the outside?
I’ve seen a couple attached at the basement floor but most (like 98%) I’ve seen are connected to the ufer at the top of the foundation wall on the inside of the structure.
Your suspicions could be correct and that bonding jumper ends at the IBT. Yes, Intersytem Bonding Termination is the proper term from the NEC.
Article 100:
Intersystem Bonding Termination.
A device that provides a means for connecting intersystem bonding conductors for communications systems to the grounding electrode system.
Yeah, I just don’t see the builder drilling a hole through the composite siding in order to stealthily back-wire the lead from the UFER connection to the IBT.
If the system tested grounded when you check around the house, I would not have much more to say about it. You are doing a visual inspection and all you need to report on is that the system is grounded or not grounded. My SWAG is that IBT is attached to the GC from the Ufer ground.
And visually checking for a connection to the electrode is all you can do. Even if you tested a receptacle to see if it were grounded that wouldn’t tell you anything about whether or not a GEC were connected to an electrode.
Grounding electrodes have nothing to do with equipment grounding or bonding or fault clearing. That is accomplished by the connection of the main bonding jumper often just a green screw through the neutral bus into the metal enclosure.
Funny around here most electricians just connect a piece of #4 copper in the footing near where the servcie is going and leave it coiled up on the ground to be connected later. I’m guessing that is because of a low risk of the wire being stolen by copper theives.
