Do-it-yourself grounding in the country: diagram, photo
Many people prefer to spend the summer in a country house. This is a great option to take a break from the bustle of the city, grow your own vegetables and fruits. But this article will not be about gardening, but about safety. If in the process of building high-rise buildings the developer necessarily provides for grounding, then the private sector must take care of itself. Let's talk about how to make grounding in the country with your own hands. The scheme and the connection process - this is what attention will be focused on.
What is grounding and why is it necessary?
Electric current can be compared with water in only one property. Both liquid and electricity flow along the path of least resistance. Today we are almost completely dependent on the availability of electricity. Almost all household appliances are held on it, from the TV to the heating equipment.
Each of these devices has fuses and insulation, which is designed to protect the consumer from Imagine what can happen if the layer of insulating material is broken. That's right, you can get electrocuted. It is good if an automatic machine is installed that will de-energize the equipment in time. If not, then the consequences can be dire. To prevent anything like this from happening, they install grounding in the country with their own hands, the scheme of which may be different, but the essence is the same.
What is the ideal ground?
This question can be answered unequivocally: the one that has the least resistance. We have already figured out that the current will go where there is less resistance. In our case, it is necessary to achieve the smallest possible value. Note that the human body also has its own resistance. It varies depending on climatic conditions and human condition. For example, the resistance of a person in an intoxicated state is negligible, which is why it is always harder for a drunk person to survive after a strong electric shock.
In our case, we will stick to the value of 4 ohms. In this case, the grounding resistance should be slightly less than this figure. In any case, it is desirable to find out such information in the PUE. Well, now let's go directly to the topic.
What is the importance of soil?
Many may say that there is no difference where and to what depth to dig in the ground, and they will be absolutely wrong. Type and other factors are of paramount importance. But in any case, there is a general rule. It lies in the fact that the more the earth is saturated with water, the deeper it is necessary to hammer the electrodes. You also need to reduce their step.
And now about the type of soil. It also has its value in terms of resistance. For example, peat - 20 Ohm * m, black soil and clay - 25-30 Ohm * m, sandy loam - 150 Ohm * m. Sand is also worth mentioning, the resistance of which reaches from 500 to 1000 Ohm * m. This parameter increases depending on the depth of groundwater. As you can see, do-it-yourself grounding in the country, the diagram of which will be discussed a little lower, is not so easy to do correctly.
All about electrodes
The first thing to decide is the depth of the electrodes. It is recommended not to bury them deeper than 3 meters, but less than 1.5 meters from the surface is also impossible. Much depends on how deep the water is. If it is 2.5 meters, then it will be enough for you to drive the electrodes to a depth of no more than 2 meters.
The grounding scheme at the dacha (mounted by oneself) implies a certain step (distance) between the electrodes. It usually makes sense to keep a distance of 1.2-3 meters. As for the number of electrodes in the circuit, there should be at least three of them. Arrangement form - in a row or a triangle. The distance from the contour to the foundation of the building is at least 3 meters. In any case, it is advisable to seek help from electricians. Let you do the installation work yourself, but it still doesn’t hurt to find out about the type of soil and the depth of water from professionals. In addition, a do-it-yourself grounding scheme in the country house can be drawn up, since there are currently plenty of options for the sample. Well, now let's move on.
We make grounding in the country with our own hands: diagram, photo
In this section, we will talk about the circuits used for grounding. The most common scheme is a triangle with electrodes at the vertices. In this case, it is necessary to understand that the entire contour must be at the same depth (below the freezing of the soil).
A separate matter is the connection of the circuit. By themselves, the electrodes dug into the ground do not carry any load. Before the grounding is completely ready, they must be interconnected. For this, fittings are suitable as a last resort.
As for the type of connection, welding should be a priority, moreover, it is necessary to use just such a method of connecting the electrodes to each other. A steel strip is drawn from one electrode to the power cabinet (electric panel). As electrodes, you can use a section of 4 x 4 mm, fittings 12 x 12 mm, a steel pipe with a wall thickness of at least 3.5 mm or a steel strip 12 x 4 mm. In general, this, as well as a shovel and a crowbar, should be quite enough to equip a full-fledged grounding.
About the material and cross section of the electrodes
We can safely say that it is necessary to build on the section of the material. But you need to understand that it also plays an important role whether you can hammer the selected electrode into the ground. For example, you can give preference to a steel rod sharpened at the base and it doesn’t matter if it is a profile pipe or an I-beam. If you took a corner, then it can be cut with a grinder. This will turn out a sharp wedge, which is very convenient to drive into the ground. But as for the reinforcement, corrugation is unacceptable here due to a decrease in soil resistance.
If you have the opportunity to purchase a ready-made grounding kit, then do so. It is a set of copper-plated electrodes one meter long. The structure is connected with threaded connections. It is very convenient, and installation is carried out as quickly as possible, however, the price of such a kit is rather big. By the way, it doesn’t matter at all whether grounding is done in the country with one’s own hands for a gas boiler or microwave oven, since the steel strip is connected to the power cabinet. Therefore, all equipment will be grounded.
to give their own hands: step by step instructions
Now is the time to start earthworks. We have already decided on the material of the electrodes and the depth of their occurrence. Now you need to choose a suitable place. The priority is to dig a trench no further than 10 meters from the shield. First of all, we dig a trench half a meter wide and a meter deep in the form of an equilateral triangle. From it we make a trench to the power cabinet. If the density and type of soil allow, then we drive in the electrodes at the vertices of the triangle. Otherwise, small wells will have to be drilled.
It is noteworthy that if we drilled wells, then the recess can be covered with soil, mixing it with salt. This will significantly reduce the resistance, but the corrosion process will proceed more actively. After installation, the electrodes should rise slightly above the ground so that they can be welded. Please note that doing grounding in the country with your own hands without welding is unacceptable. After the welding work is completed and we get a closed triangle, we lead the strip to the power cabinet. There we fasten it with a 10 mm bolt and weld it to the strip.
Verification work
After you have completed all the above steps, you need to check the resistance of the circuit. For this we need an ohmmeter. In this case, it is desirable to involve a specialist from the energy department. He will make the necessary measurements, if the grounding at the dacha, the diagram of which was given a little higher, was done correctly, will draw up the necessary documentation.
If we have achieved a resistance of less than 4 ohms, then excellent, if not, we expand our circuit with the help of additional electrodes. If everything is in order, then we fall asleep trenches. At the same time, the use of construction debris and any other waste is unacceptable. You need to fill it with homogeneous soil.
It is important
Please note that many experts recommend filling the circuit with water, thereby reducing its resistance. Often this is done before the arrival of an employee from the energy department, so that there are no problems with the documentation. But we tried not for the sake of printing on paper, but for our own safety, do not forget about it.
If you live in a rocky area, then the vertical arrangement of the electrodes will not suit you. In this case, it is advisable to use horizontal or radial types of electrodes. A step of 3 to 10 meters is required, and the electrodes should be arranged in the form of divergent beams or a grid.
Conclusion
Another great way out is grounding in the country on a pile foundation. In this case, you do not need to dig a trench and clog the electrodes. It is enough to make a competent contour of piles. But you need to understand that in this case, the likelihood of electrochemical corrosion increases. Consequently, the piles will last an order of magnitude less than they could. But in terms of reliability, this is an excellent solution from any side.
In general, we figured out how to make grounding with our own hands. There is nothing particularly difficult, the most important thing is to be careful at all stages, take into account the depth of soil freezing, the level of groundwater and other important parameters. In any case, if you do everything right, you will be satisfied. The risk of electric shock from household appliances will be minimized.