In Reply to: Finally! posted by Rod M on April 6, 2007 at 18:13:29:
The neutral wire is the grounded conductor, that means that if there is any fault that connects the supply wire to the neutral that it will cause the supply power fuse or breaker to trip.The ground wire, or grounding conductor is intended to provide protection in the event that the hot or supply wire becomes connected through an insulation or component fault directly to ground.
While at first glance it may seem that they provide the same function, that is not the case. The neutral is the return path for the AC supply system, and is part of the two-wire supply scheme. The ground wire, under normal circumstances, will only conduct electricity if there is a fault.
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Follow Ups
- Re: Finally! - StephenJK 18:28:02 04/06/07 (2)
- Thanks, and did I mention GFIs? - Rod M 18:39:26 04/06/07 (1)
- The GFI measures - kavakidd 22:34:25 04/06/07 (0)