ANOTHER house wiring question (this one's basic)

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Article #9457

#9457

From: Nick Sayer
Date: Sat, 12 Jan 1991 08:53

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The radio shmuck testers seem to say, and a volt meter seems
to prove, that there is an AC potential between hot and ground
and hot and neutral, but there is no potential between neutral
and ground.

Now ground and neutral clearly are not the same thing. I would
expect negative side effects were I foolish enough to hook
a light bulb between hot and ground.

But wait! In AC, every half cycle the current goes the other
way! So why isn't there a potential between neutral and ground?
Inquiring minds want to know!

What, exactly is the theory here? Ground is connected (basically)
to a big pipe in the dirt, and hot and neutral go up to the pole,
but some more details for a complete software weenie would be
great.

-- 
Nick Sayer              | Think of me as a recombinant    | RIP: Mel Blanc
mrapple@quack.sac.ca.us | Simpson: Homer's looks, Lisa's  |   1908-1989
N6QQQ  [44.2.1.17]      | brains, Bart's manners, and     |  May he never
209-952-5347 (Telebit)  | Maggie's appetite for TV.  --Me |  be silenced.

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From: mrapple@quack.sac.ca.us (Nick Sayer)
Newsgroups: sci.electronics
Subject: ANOTHER house wiring question (this one's basic)
Message-ID: <kJhTxoE@quack.sac.ca.us>
Date: 12 Jan 91 08:53:55 GMT
Organization: The Duck Pond, Stockton, CA
Lines: 23