Executive Summary: What are the consequences of a poor grounding system? A faulty grounding system (SPT) causes accidental electrocutions, recurring damage to electronic boards, electromagnetic noise in telecommunications, failure under lightning strikes, and fires. Testing soil resistance annually with certified ground testers ensures safety and RETIE standard compliance.
7 Consequences of a bad grounding system.
There are several consequences that this can bring, among these we can highlight the following:
1-Loss of ability to transfer dangerous currents through “the least possible intentional resistance” giving way to accidental paths (for example, human contact), which can cause everything from premature equipment failure to human fatalities.
2-Loose points, grounding conductors that no longer have continuity between the point of the load they should protect and the bars in the panels or between bars and the grounding system.
3-If the installations are not checked regularly, it may be that at the time of installation, as a result of a mistake, the installers have mixed the neutral with the ground, causing currents in the safety cable (ground) and thereby energizing dangerous points or the rest of the network.
4-The system would lose the capacity to limit voltages caused by lightning or accidental contact of the distribution company's conductors with high-voltage conductors. Allowing dangerous voltages to pass through to sensitive equipment that could cause fires.
5-Loss of the common low impedance point in all circuits would cause the absence of equipotentiality of the installation, with this there would be no stabilization of the voltage under normal operating conditions (with which any equipment connected to the system would not be subjected only to a potential difference).
6-A grounding system operating with high grounding values causes problems in the power quality of the installation.
7-If a grounding system has been sized incorrectly, it is very certain that once installed it will not comply with the maximum required resistance values, which will imply an economic loss to try to achieve the required value, in addition to possible architectural changes that were not contemplated in the construction.