11-29-2007, 02:05 PM
Caroline, first let me say from all of us that we admire your bravery at attempting this without detailed training. We were all there once. fear not.
Some basic terms:
Grounding- (also known as Earthing in the UK) Is when you connect the outside surfaces of your metal electrical gizmo to the planet we live on.
Bonding- When you connect the outside surfaces of your metal electrical gizmo to each other
Double Insulated: The electricity on the inside of the gizmo cannot possibly connect to the outside of the gizmo.
UL and CSA certified electrical gizmos are either double insulated or well bonded and grounded. Most gizmos are grounded through the 'ground pin' on the power plug. Some gizmos may actually have a separate 'grounding terminal' which is typically a bare copper terminal where you attach a bare copper grounding wire. If the electrical rack is UL or CSA certified, the entire rack should be bonded to itself and grounded, usually through the main rack power strip, or through a separate grounding wire.
When you install a gizmo into a metal rack, you need to bond the gizmo to the other gizmos, and to the rack. Some racks do this with a rack power strip (everything in the rack plugs in there, and the ground plugs connect each component to the rack) and/or through bare metal mounting screws and screw holes.
A wheeled rack that is properly grounded and bonded won't be able to keep a static electricity charge. YOU, on the other hand, have the ability to store tens of thousands of volts of static electricity as you walk around your heated, dry office. You may be experiencing a static discharge, just like touching the metal lightswitch plate gives you a shock on a winter day.
Some basic terms:
Grounding- (also known as Earthing in the UK) Is when you connect the outside surfaces of your metal electrical gizmo to the planet we live on.
Bonding- When you connect the outside surfaces of your metal electrical gizmo to each other
Double Insulated: The electricity on the inside of the gizmo cannot possibly connect to the outside of the gizmo.
UL and CSA certified electrical gizmos are either double insulated or well bonded and grounded. Most gizmos are grounded through the 'ground pin' on the power plug. Some gizmos may actually have a separate 'grounding terminal' which is typically a bare copper terminal where you attach a bare copper grounding wire. If the electrical rack is UL or CSA certified, the entire rack should be bonded to itself and grounded, usually through the main rack power strip, or through a separate grounding wire.
When you install a gizmo into a metal rack, you need to bond the gizmo to the other gizmos, and to the rack. Some racks do this with a rack power strip (everything in the rack plugs in there, and the ground plugs connect each component to the rack) and/or through bare metal mounting screws and screw holes.
A wheeled rack that is properly grounded and bonded won't be able to keep a static electricity charge. YOU, on the other hand, have the ability to store tens of thousands of volts of static electricity as you walk around your heated, dry office. You may be experiencing a static discharge, just like touching the metal lightswitch plate gives you a shock on a winter day.