Bootleg ground

Is there any way to test if an outlet is wired this way without disassembling it? Apparently regular outlet testers will mark this wiring job as "Correct" when it could actually kill someone

Recently I discovered that an outlet in my home was wired in reverse and now i'm terrified that this also happened somewhere else

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  1. 11 months ago
    Anonymous

    you need a several hundred dollar voltage tester to test without disassembly
    you might be able to identify one by just removing the cover plate though

  2. 11 months ago
    Anonymous

    It’ll take you like 2 hours to pull them alll

  3. 11 months ago
    Anonymous

    In any other country where the cpc is undersized compared to live conductors due to the short time they carry current, you could simply measure the difference in impedance between neutral and ground back to e.g. the breaker housing.
    Unfortunately Americans seem to not be able to work this out so use the same sized coc in romex.
    Of course you could measure the impedance from neutral to cpc at the socket looking for extremely low values but it's not definitive.
    Turn off power first of course.

    • 11 months ago
      Anonymous

      >you could simply measure the difference in impedance between neutral and ground back to e.g. the breaker housing.

      >simply

      • 11 months ago
        Anonymous

        Very simply.
        Plug a fricking toaster into the top outlet and measure the bottom in the Ac range on a multimeter between the neutral and the ground.
        You should get a big difference when the toaster is on vs off.
        The distance from the panel should increase the voltage the further you are, you can map your outlet chain this way.

        • 11 months ago
          Anonymous

          >distance from the panel should increase the voltage the further you are
          h-uh
          interesting

  4. 11 months ago
    Anonymous

    outlets are wired like that internally.

    • 11 months ago
      Anonymous

      NO, they are not. And why the frick would they be? It would defeat the entire purpose of having a grounding conductor.

  5. 11 months ago
    Anonymous

    Just bought a house with some 2 prongers in the basement. Can I just swap in GFCI's and use a surge protector for electronics vs having to run a ground from the box?

    • 11 months ago
      Anonymous

      are the wires in exposed metal conduit or hidden behind walls
      if its in conduit you can bond a ground wire to the conduit on both ends and you get a real ground

      • 11 months ago
        Anonymous

        Haven't pulled em yet, but my intuition would be no. If they're conduit/boxed I was just gonna green wire em. I've just got some other stuff to do before I bother with the wiring, and I'm curious if I can plug in a TV/computer etc and not be totally worried that I'm going to blow them all up.

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