Electrical – How to move the neutral-ground bond to the house from the pole

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Suppose I have a setup like this: I take my power at a pole. The utility wants me to fit circuit protection there for a very long run to my house.

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By my read of things, this makes it a main panel and therefore this is the primary grounding point. And therefore the panel in the house is a subpanel.

Trying to answer this question, I found a NEC section (Article 310.15(B)(7) not to be confused with the table of the same number) which allows feeder in this case to be sized like service lateral, logical since it's doing the same job.

I would really, really like to have the neutral-ground bond at the house instead of the pole.

In my travels through NEC I could swear I saw a section that liberalizes where the N-G bond is in this case… and I thought might even permit omission of that long ground wire. But I can't find it again.

Can anyone help me find it?

Best Answer

Yes, but only if you have a single, non-fused switching means at the pole, not a panel

You can do this if and only if the switch at the pole is a single switching means (fault-rated, non-fused disconnect switch), not any sort of panelboard, enclosed breaker, or fused switch. In this case, the switch at the pole becomes a hot-sequence meter disconnect (as opposed to the service disconnecting means), and is permitted by NEC 230.82(3):

(3) Meter disconnect switches nominally rated not in excess of 1000V that have a short-circuit current rating equal to or greater than the available short-circuit current, provided that all metal housings and service enclosures are grounded in accordance with Part VII and bonded in accordance with Part V of Article 250. A meter disconnect switch shall be capable of interrupting the load served. A meter disconnect shall be legibly field marked on its exterior in a manner suitable for the environment as follows:

                              METER DISCONNECT
                            NOT SERVICE EQUIPMENT

This may require consultation with the AHJ and/or utility -- they may require such a disconnect to be installed cold sequence i.e. ahead of the meter instead. This is normally only seen on socket-metered 480V services where yanking the meter out of its socket under load is a good way to get yourself roasted by arc flash, but nothing in the NEC prohibits a meter disconnect on a 120/240V service.

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