Heating element grounding question

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nsgibson
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Heating element grounding question

Post by nsgibson »

Hello all! I am building a 5 gal copper pot still (my first one) and decided after lots of forum reading to go electric and due to the still size decided to go with a 120VAC 1500w water heater element and 15A controller. I constructed a female threaded heater mount at the bottom. I have a 14ga 3 wire cord that will plug into the controller but my question is about the connection of the other end to the element. Obviously black and white would attach to the element screw connections but for the ground wire, is it typical to connect that directly to the still itself? I have found a couple references to doing this in the threads here but those were comingled with discussions on earth ground stakes etc. I plan to solder a copper tab directly to the side of the still near the element port and just connect the green ground wire to it with a small bolt. Is this the right way to approach this and am I missing anything? Appreciate any feedback..I have learned so much already here.
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bluefish_dist
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Re: Heating element grounding question

Post by bluefish_dist »

Ground is connected to the still. If you use element cover, there is usually a spot for the ground. If not, just screw it to the still.
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cranky
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Re: Heating element grounding question

Post by cranky »

nsgibson wrote: I plan to solder a copper tab directly to the side of the still near the element port and just connect the green ground wire to it with a small bolt. Is this the right way to approach this
That's exactly how I grounded my little pot.
nsgibson
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Re: Heating element grounding question

Post by nsgibson »

Thanks!
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