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This suggestion that there is a break in the ground rod connection puzzles me a lot. An open-circuit or high-resistance neutral on a polyphase or split-phase supply can result in both increased and decreased voltages at single-phase loads since the symmetry is lost. But if the symmetry is so poor that a 120V outlet receives 180V when the local ground rod is disconnected, the rod must be carrying a significant part of the neutral current and the neutral / MEN / CNE conductor must already be broken or high resistance somewhere upstream.

In the UK this would be considered a highly dangerous situatiion, where we would advise the customer to switch off and wait for the power company to fix the problem on their side. They would attend immediately and have been known to dig up the road there and then, because of the severity of the danger. Is this not the case in the USA? Would they consider it acceptable to rely on the customer's ground rod to hold the ground and neutral from drifting more than 50V away from where it should be?

Of course, if the neutral and ground are not linked in the consumer's installation, there is no relationship between the outlet voltage and the ground rod connection, so I am assuming Megawatt inferred that in this case the two are connected.
 
This suggestion that there is a break in the ground rod connection puzzles me a lot. An open-circuit or high-resistance neutral on a polyphase or split-phase supply can result in both increased and decreased voltages at single-phase loads since the symmetry is lost. But if the symmetry is so poor that a 120V outlet receives 180V when the local ground rod is disconnected, the rod must be carrying a significant part of the neutral current and the neutral / MEN / CNE conductor must already be broken or high resistance somewhere upstream.

In the UK this would be considered a highly dangerous situatiion, where we would advise the customer to switch off and wait for the power company to fix the problem on their side. They would attend immediately and have been known to dig up the road there and then, because of the severity of the danger. Is this not the case in the USA? Would they consider it acceptable to rely on the customer's ground rod to hold the ground and neutral from drifting more than 50V away from where it should be?

Of course, if the neutral and ground are not linked in the consumer's installation, there is no relationship between the outlet voltage and the ground rod connection, so I am assuming Megawatt inferred that in this case the two are connected.
Yes the power company would dig up what ever they had to since the problem was on their side not the customers side and they found that 2 crimp lugs where the power company attaches was loose and one of the bad crimp lugs was actually the grounded conductor. That house was built 9 years so it didn’t have but one ground rod. In 2003 the NEC changed to have to install 2 rods. Yes that is with out a doubt that is the most important wire, just like the UK earthing is so important
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Yes the power company would dig up what ever they had to since the problem was on their side not the customers side and they found that 2 crimp lugs where the power company attaches was loose and one of the bad crimp lugs was actually the grounded conductor. That house was built 9 years so it didn’t have but one ground rod. In 2003 the NEC changed to have to install 2 rods. Yes that is with out a doubt that is the most important wire, just like the UK earthing is so important
You talk about in the UK this situation is highly dangerous, yes it is that’s why I worked with him for hours to get his problem fixed.
 
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From a distance it is difficult for @Megawatt to advise you of further actions from what he has already done so your best course of action is to wait for the power company to attend.
Westward thank you for jumping in and helping me end that conversation l didn’t know what else to tell him
 
But my question is about what you said about the ground rod connection being bad. If he had found the rod disconnected, reconnected it and then the problem disappeared, there would still have been a dangerous situation because the supply should not rely on the ground rod to provide a neutral. Therefore as I see it, the only correct course of action is to switch off the main switch and call the PoCo. Any tinkering with the rod could be dangerous, or at best disguise the broken PoCo neutral.
 
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But my question is about what you said about the ground rod connection being bad. If he had found the rod disconnected, reconnected it and then the problem disappeared, there would still have been a dangerous situation because the supply should not rely on the ground rod to provide a neutral. Therefore as I see it, the only correct course of action is to switch off the main switch and call the PoCo. Any tinkering with the rod could be dangerous, or at best disguise the broken PoCo neutral.
Lucien I repeatability told him to call the power as far as he said he was going to take it loose I told him I think twice to turn off his 200 amp breaker so when it was took loose it would not be no danger. I’m sorry I didn’t mean no harm
 
@Megawatt there is no need to keep apologising Lucien is not criticising you he is just trying to understand the OPs situation.
 

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