[TowerTalk] Fw: CQ article error(?)

[Carl]

 My 3 wire electric drop comes from the telephone pole in my back yard, across my yard, to a metal pole on my house.  Through this 
metal
 pole the 3 wires enter my house to my inside breaker panel.  Should I ground this outside metal pole to an outside earth ground 
rod, and
 connect it into my tower grounds ?

 Confused,
Carl  K8AV



>> It has nothing to do with tripping a breaker or not tripping a breaker
>> because of multiple paths. The breaker is always in the hot lead.
>> Whether the return path is via the neutral lead or the ground (green
>> wire) lead or both, makes no difference to the breaker.
>>
>> The ground wire is connected to equipment chassis to ensure that there
>> is a low resistance return path for a fault that may come in contact
>> with the chassis. It also keeps that chassis close to earth potential in
>> case of a fault so that fault path does not include a person in contact
>> with that chassis and earth.
>>
>> The neutral and ground (green wire) are kept separate only so that
>> neutral current does not flow on the ground wire under normal operation.
>> If neutral current were to be allowed on the ground wire under normal
>> operation it could raise the potential of a chassis above local ground
>> due to voltage drop in the ground wire carrying current.
>>
>> By the way, there can be as many earth grounds of the grounding
>> conductor as you may like. It doesn't have to be grounded to earth only
>> at the panel. But the neutral must be grounded to earth only at the panel.
>>
>> 73
>> Gary  K4FMX
>