Grounded and grounding conductors must be connected at(Category: Electrical) •  the service panel only •   never •   all subpanels •   all boxes and panels •   all possible locations

Great! Here's a simple breakdown of the terms grounded, grounding, and bonding, which often confuse people — but once you get the logic, it clicks:

⚡ 1. Grounded Conductor (Usually the Neutral)

• What it is: A current-carrying wire that returns electricity to the source.
• Color: White or gray.
• Why it's called “grounded”: It's intentionally connected to earth at the service panel, to keep the voltage stable and provide a reference point for the system.
• Key role: Completes the normal circuit loop.

🟩 Example: The neutral wire in a standard outlet circuit.

🛡️ 2. Grounding Conductor (aka Equipment Ground)

• What it is: A safety wire that carries fault current only in emergencies — like when a hot wire touches a metal appliance.
• Color: Bare copper or green.
• Where it connects: To metal parts of outlets, appliances, panels — and eventually to a ground rod.
• Purpose: Gives stray electricity a low-resistance path back to earth to trip the breaker and stop the hazard.

🟩 Example: The green or bare wire connected to the metal case of a washing machine.

🔗 3. Bonding

• What it is: The process of connecting all metal parts together electrically — like the metal piping, metal boxes, and panels — so they’re at the same voltage.
• Purpose: Prevents shock from voltage differences between metal parts.

🟩 Example: Bonding the cold water pipe and panel together so a person touching both won’t get shocked if a fault occurs.

✅ In the Service Panel:

• Neutral (grounded conductor) is bonded to the grounding conductor and to the ground rod (electrode).
• This happens only in the main panel — not in subpanels.

🔄 Quick Analogy:

Think of a plumbing system:

• Hot wire = water flowing into a faucet
• Neutral (grounded) = drain returning water back
• Grounding wire = emergency overflow drain
• Bonding = connecting all metal parts so no one gets shocked by touching two pipes

Let me know if you want a visual diagram or if you want to go deeper into subpanel setups or ground rods!