On this page 4 sections
Grounding is the connection to earth — nothing else
Grounding is the path from the electrical system to the earth itself: rods, a concrete-encased electrode, a metal water pipe, and the conductor that ties them together. If the question is whether metal parts of the house are bonded to each other, that is a different job.
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What a real electrode system is
Every grounding electrode present at the building is bonded into one system — rods, a Ufer (the concrete-encased electrode in the foundation), a metal water-pipe electrode, and the grounding-electrode conductor that lands them at the service (2025 California Electrical Code / NEC 2023, Article 250 Part III).
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What it is not
Connecting metal piping, a water heater, or a gas line to each other is bonding — same-potential, not earth. That work is on the bonding corrections page, and mixing the two words is how the wrong job gets quoted.
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How it usually shows up
An inspection or an insurer flags it, a panel change exposes it, or a mild shock from an appliance that should be quiet. Active tripping or a shock happening right now is diagnosis, not this job.
Send photos of the panel and what you can see at the water pipe and the rods, if any. We tell you whether the earth connection is actually there before anyone prices a rod.
Grounding system upgrade: a copper-to-PEX repipe can leave the house ungrounded
This is the failure mode a glance at the panel will miss. The water pipe used to be part of the ground. Plastic is not.
The water pipe used to be the electrode
Older houses often used the metal water service as a grounding electrode. Code still allows that — and still requires a supplemental rod alongside it. When the copper in the ground is cut out and replaced with PEX, the electrode disappears, and nothing at the panel announces it.
What we look for
Whether a metal water-pipe electrode is still continuous to the street, whether the required supplemental electrode is there, and whether the grounding-electrode conductor is sized and landed. A missing rod is the small version; an orphaned water-pipe electrode is the one that looks fine until you follow the pipe.
Grounding system upgrade: what the upgrade actually is
The work is adding or restoring the electrode system and the conductor that ties it to the service — sized to the service, landed where the code wants it, inspected with the rest of the correction.
Electrodes
A rod or rods, a connection to a remaining metal water pipe, or both — whatever the building actually has, bonded into one system rather than left as orphans.
The conductor
The grounding-electrode conductor is sized to the service (NEC 250.66), protected where it can be damaged, and landed at the service enclosure. Undersized or clamped to paint is not a ground.
The paperwork
If an insurer or an inspector asked for it, the work is documented to that ask. The fix is the same; who it is written up for is not.
When grounding isn’t the right job
Three neighbors get confused with this one. Each has its own job.
Metal parts, not earth
If the problem is a missing jumper on a water heater, unbonded CSST, or a subpanel with the bonding screw still in, that is bonding. The earth electrode will not fix it.
The panel itself was flagged
If the letter or the inspection named the panel — Federal Pacific, Zinsco, or a damaged enclosure — the electrode work rides along with a panel replacement. It is not a substitute for one.
Something is shocking or tripping now
A live symptom is diagnosis. Breaker and circuit work finds the fault; this job is the planned correction of a known missing ground.
Not sure this is the right job?
Tell us what you are seeing — what is tripping, what changed, or what you are planning — and we will tell you what the work actually is before anyone drives out.
Grounding questions
Is my house grounded?
We do not guess from the age of the house. We look at the electrodes that are actually there — rods, a Ufer, a metal water pipe — and at the conductor that lands them at the service. A panel that looks tidy can still have no real path to earth.
Can you just drive a ground rod?
Sometimes that is the whole correction. Sometimes the water-pipe electrode was orphaned by a repipe, the conductor is undersized, or the electrodes that exist were never bonded together. The rod is one part of a system, not a sticker that makes the house grounded.
Is this the same as bonding?
No. Grounding is the earth connection. Bonding is metal parts brought to the same potential as each other — that work is bonding corrections. They are related, they are not interchangeable, and quoting one for the other is how the wrong work gets done.
Will this stop mild shocks from appliances?
If the shocks are from a missing or broken earth path, restoring the electrode system is the right work. If they are from a live fault, that is diagnosis first. We tell you which one you have before anyone prices a rod.
Does an insurance letter about grounding mean I need a new panel?
Not by itself. Some letters name the electrode system; some name the panel and mention grounding as a side item. Send the letter through insurance corrections with photos — we say what it is actually asking for.
What are the three types of grounding systems?
At a house we care about the grounding rod or pipe at the building, the ground wire to the outlet boxes, and bonding of metal that can become live. Open-ground outlets are a common finding.
Still not sure it is the right job? Call (279) 972-9272 — available 24 hours.
Serving 19 communities across the Sacramento area
Litel Electric serves homeowners throughout all 19 communities in our service area — from Davis and Woodland to Roseville, Folsom, and Elk Grove.
Get estimate
Tell us what is happening, or what you are planning. We read the details, tell you what else we need to know, and explain the next step before anything is scheduled.
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You send the problem or the plan, with the address if you have it.
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We reply with what it involves and what has to be seen in person.
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Nothing is scheduled, and nothing is priced, until the equipment has been looked at.
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