Dutch445
Elite Member
Hi all
about to undertake a patio project in the back yard, sort of between the house and garage.
I want to use power for low voltage landscape lights along and around the new patio, in the
block wall, etc.
the garage has it's own subpanel, fed underground from the main house panel. it's not very
large, maybe room for 10 circuits.
out from the back corner of this garage was an electric outlet on a 4x4 post, weather resistant
with a twist style 3 prong 25 amp receptacle. (maybe for a hot tub??)
i removed this, and inside the garage above where the conduit came out thru the wall
was it's GFCI switch, mounted in a work box with no outlet, just the GFCI switch. I plan
on using this circuit to put an outdoor 120v receptacle to use with the low voltage transformer
for the landscape lighting. this is all the easy part
my question comes after this.
during some light excavation behind the garage (not part of the patio project, but a raised bed
vege garden area) we removed the sod and found a ground rod drove into the ground, with
bare copper wire attached to it. since i found it with my little bucket and didn't notice it right away,
i have no idea if it was still attached to any wires heading into the garage or not, there is no
obvious wire sticking out of the house that i can say used to be attached. it's a short rod,
about 24".
the question is could this GFCI circuit have needed it's own ground? or could it be ground for
the subpanel, which is near the front of the garage and this ground was out back?
the inside of the garage is finished with steel siding, and insulated, so it's not as easy as
following wires, they are all buried within the walls.
about to undertake a patio project in the back yard, sort of between the house and garage.
I want to use power for low voltage landscape lights along and around the new patio, in the
block wall, etc.
the garage has it's own subpanel, fed underground from the main house panel. it's not very
large, maybe room for 10 circuits.
out from the back corner of this garage was an electric outlet on a 4x4 post, weather resistant
with a twist style 3 prong 25 amp receptacle. (maybe for a hot tub??)
i removed this, and inside the garage above where the conduit came out thru the wall
was it's GFCI switch, mounted in a work box with no outlet, just the GFCI switch. I plan
on using this circuit to put an outdoor 120v receptacle to use with the low voltage transformer
for the landscape lighting. this is all the easy part
my question comes after this.
during some light excavation behind the garage (not part of the patio project, but a raised bed
vege garden area) we removed the sod and found a ground rod drove into the ground, with
bare copper wire attached to it. since i found it with my little bucket and didn't notice it right away,
i have no idea if it was still attached to any wires heading into the garage or not, there is no
obvious wire sticking out of the house that i can say used to be attached. it's a short rod,
about 24".
the question is could this GFCI circuit have needed it's own ground? or could it be ground for
the subpanel, which is near the front of the garage and this ground was out back?
the inside of the garage is finished with steel siding, and insulated, so it's not as easy as
following wires, they are all buried within the walls.
