internet at home... kinda

[juldea]

Well. The situation as it is:

My apartment now has cable TV and internet.

However, my room doesn't have any grounded outlets (with three-prongs). My surge protector, which provides enough outlets for my computer, needs a three-pronged outlet to connect to. Therefore, my computer is currently turned off. :(

Luckily kobold has a grounded outlet in his room, so his computer is set up. It's the only outlet of the kind in the apartment, near as I can tell.

Anyone know anything about whether or not this is legal? I'd think that apartments these days should have all grounded outlets.

Ah well. At least I have some computer to use... and a book to finish, and a room to organize, so perhaps I should get on that, eh? :)

[EDIT]: looks like such things as "grounding adapters" exist... they plug into two-prong outlets and ground on the outlet faceplate screw. I guess Randy and I will go buy some of those tomorrow!

Comments

[zonereyrie.livejournal.com]

Oh, about those adapters - while your out buying those pickup a tester. They make cheap 'pen testers' - you basically use it to close the circuit to ground. If it lights up, there is ground, if not, there isn't.

The adapters don't always really ground - because even if you connect it to the screw there may be no ground circuit at all from there to earth ground. Earth ground is required for any real grounding - no earth, no circuit ground.

One thing that is often done is to tie the ground to the nearest copper water line. Since the water lines are required to be grounded to earth at the point of entry into the building, it is generally a good path to the earth ground. You could also drill a little hole in the wall and run a single copper wire down the outside of the building and either tie into an existing earth ground (look for the phone box, etc - they have grounds coming off of them, trace it) or you can drive a new ground into the, um, ground and tie to that.

[juldea.livejournal.com]

Hmm. This is all getting beyond my handyman-fu. I'd love to learn, of course, but I don't have the knowledge currently...

[zonereyrie.livejournal.com]

The annoying thing about MA is that even if you know how to do the wiring, you have to be a certified electrician to make any permanent changes. Anything hardwired into the dwelling is electrician time.

But if it can be unplugged you can do it yourself. Generally speaking.

Some years back I once put in conduit and an extension from a 220V line that fed the stove to power a dryer in an apartment - circuit breakers and all. But we connected it with a pigtail to the existing wall jack, so it could be unplugged. So it was a really fancy extension cord. ;-)