Grounding A Well

[Regis Tration]

Recently I had no choice but to cut off the corroded top of my well casing. Here is what it looked like:

I replaced the casing with PVC and a Fernco coupling. I know that many people disapprove of the Fernco coupling, but the well is in an extremely remote ocean island location with no vehicles, and a shed building is over the well. Here is what it looks like now:

The question is: Does this well casing need to be electrically grounded, and if so, how should it be done? The casing is not exposed to lightning, as it is covered by a shed building. The old steel casing had been grounded to a ground rod when the well was new, but the ground lug that was attached to the steel casing quickly rusted off and fell away. So the submersible pump was operated for years without a ground on the well casing. The pump is powered by a generator. The pump is a 240 volt two wire type (so two hot wires and one ground). I am reluctant to drill through the remaining steel casing to attach a ground wire because I don't want to accelerate the corrosion of the casing.

Thank you.

 

[Valveman]

The pump/motor has a ground wire. That should be all you need.

 

[Sponsor]

 

[Bgard]

Connect the ground wire from the pump to the generator ground lug

 

[Texas Wellman]

Steel casing, being sunk deep into the ground, is already well grounded. As noted ground the pump to the electrical system.

I assume running the pump via genset can be expensive and time consuming. Have you considered going solar ?

 

[Craigpump]

To be NEC compliant, the pump, well cap & casing need to be bonded & grounded.

If you were in CT, and I did the well inspection for a real estate transaction, this would fail.

No ground. Unless it's an older installation and is grandfathered in.
Plastic well cap not to code.
Furnco Coupling, not to code.
PVC casing extension, not to code.
No conduit for the wire.

 

[Regis Tration]

The pump/motor has a ground wire. That should be all you need.

Thank you, should I connect the pump/circuit ground wire to the ground rod or just leave it as is?

 

[Regis Tration]

Steel casing, being sunk deep into the ground, is already well grounded. As noted ground the pump to the electrical system.

I assume running the pump via genset can be expensive and time consuming. Have you considered going solar ?

Yes, Texas Wellman, I have am working on a design for solar. It is a seasonal house and we try to conserve water so the pump doesn't run very often. I only start the generator to run the well pump. It runs for about 6 minutes. I use a few gallons of gasoline per season. But I'd like to have the solar to power other things too. Thank you.

 

[Regis Tration]

To be NEC compliant, the pump, well cap & casing need to be bonded & grounded.

If you were in CT, and I did the well inspection for a real estate transaction, this would fail.

No ground. Unless it's an older installation and is grandfathered in.
Plastic well cap not to code.
Furnco Coupling, not to code.
PVC casing extension, not to code.
No conduit for the wire.

Thanks craigpump. The well is on a small uninhabited island 10 miles out to sea. It is difficult to get qualified professionals to come on site. I did the best I could to prolong the life of the well with the tools, materials, and skills that I have.

 

[Valveman]

Thank you, should I connect the pump/circuit ground wire to the ground rod or just leave it as is?

Hopefully your breaker box is already connected to a ground rod. But it wouldn't hurt to connect to another ground rod if available.

 

[Boycedrilling]

In my state, Washington, pump installers are licensed as specialty electricians/plumbers. Our work is to 2017 NEC code. It is inspected and approved by the AHJ, Washington State Dept of Labor & Industries.

NEC 250.112(m) Metal Well Casing. Where a submersible pump is used in a metal well casing, the well casing shall be connected to the pump circuit equipment grounding conductor.

My electrical inspectors specifically look for this in pump installations. I WILL receive a correction notice if this is not done. Some well caps have a grounding screw and lugs built into them. I drill a 1/4" hole in the casing and then bolt a 2 conductor mechanical lug inside the casing. I attach it with a stainless steel bolt and nut. A self tapping screw is not acceptable and will be rejected by my inspectors. The grounding wire coming up the well from the pump is attached to one lug. The grounding wire coming from the power source is attached to the other lug. Takes 5 minutes and costs less than $3 for materials.

 

[Craigpump]

In my state, Washington, pump installers are licensed as specialty electricians/plumbers. Our work is to 2017 NEC code. It is inspected and approved by the AHJ, Washington State Dept of Labor & Industries.

NEC 250.112(m) Metal Well Casing. Where a submersible pump is used in a metal well casing, the well casing shall be connected to the pump circuit equipment grounding conductor.

My electrical inspectors specifically look for this in pump installations. I WILL receive a correction notice if this is not done. Some well caps have a grounding screw and lugs built into them. I drill a 1/4" hole in the casing and then bolt a 2 conductor mechanical lug inside the casing. I attach it with a stainless steel bolt and nut. A self tapping screw is not acceptable and will be rejected by my inspectors. The grounding wire coming up the well from the pump is attached to one lug. The grounding wire coming from the power source is attached to the other lug. Takes 5 minutes and costs less than $3 for materials.

You would be amazed at how many new wells pass inspection without being properly bonded & grounded.

 

[Regis Tration]

In my state, Washington, pump installers are licensed as specialty electricians/plumbers. Our work is to 2017 NEC code. It is inspected and approved by the AHJ, Washington State Dept of Labor & Industries.

NEC 250.112(m) Metal Well Casing. Where a submersible pump is used in a metal well casing, the well casing shall be connected to the pump circuit equipment grounding conductor.

My electrical inspectors specifically look for this in pump installations. I WILL receive a correction notice if this is not done. Some well caps have a grounding screw and lugs built into them. I drill a 1/4" hole in the casing and then bolt a 2 conductor mechanical lug inside the casing. I attach it with a stainless steel bolt and nut. A self tapping screw is not acceptable and will be rejected by my inspectors. The grounding wire coming up the well from the pump is attached to one lug. The grounding wire coming from the power source is attached to the other lug. Takes 5 minutes and costs less than $3 for materials.

Interesting and effective method, thank you Boycedrilling.