Thank you for the questions tigerdunes. Downstairs unit is a 5 ton AC/nat gas package system. The downstairs 5 ton package unit did not sufficiently cool the house (partly because the ductwork in the crawl space had/has breaks in it). I think the package system was chosen because only a portion of the downstairs has useful attic space. A 24x24 foot area of the house is two story and the rest is single story with two of the downstairs areas having roofs with very small pitches, almost flat, thus no room for ducts. The living rooms and bedroom areas have gable roofs with attic access. The ductwork is under the house in the crawl space and there are floor registers in the hardwood floors. It is difficult, if not impossible to figure out how to get ductwork to the downstairs portion of the house which is covered by the second story except by running it in the crawl space. I am told some of the ductwork is rectangular metal which is in good shape and can be reused but some is round and has holes in it and must therefore be replaced. The upstairs unit is not a package unit. Ideally, it should also be replaced but it can probably limp along a bit longer. One technician recommended we put in one unit to take care of the upstairs and a portion of the downstairs with two thermostats and add a second unit to cover the rest of the downstairs. Since I do not see how ductwork could be put in to manage this without dropping the ceiling, this doesn't sound like a good idea. I think we should delay replacing the upstairs unit unless it really is a good idea to try to get the upstairs unit to service a portion of the downstairs. I think we need to focus on the downstairs. Probably need two package units for the downstairs to cover the present 2700 sq. feet and the 400 to 600 square feet we are planning on adding. What kind of package unit? What size? Would a heat pump be an idea? Hope I answered the questions and thank you for your thoughts. B

They need to have a path back to the panel (don't pretend you found "ground" on a pipe somewhere), but they don't need to be individual wires all the way back. You can join up grounds, and a #12 or #14 is ok. These are to carry the current from one fault somewhere for the time that it takes to trip the breaker, so they don't need to be bigger than the branch circuit wires and how many you join up doesn't affect wire size needed since we assume only one will be conducting fault current at a time. Connect the ground wires to any junction boxes along the route. You don't need to add additional junction boxes just for the grounds. The ground should follow as closely as practical the route of the hot and neutral on each circuit. If a fault current has to make a big loop (hot from the panel, fault somewhere to ground, and a different path on the other side of the house back to the panel) the breaker trip time can be extended because magnetic field effects limit the current. You want a very large fault current for a very short time to trip the breaker fast, not 40 amps for a long time heating things up before the breaker trips.

You can leave the grounded receptacles as is. Just install a GFCI type receptacle as the first one on each circuit and feed the rest from the load connection on the GFCI. Use the labels that come with the GFCI to indicate the GFCI protection and no equipment ground at each receptacle. The adapters ought to be outlawed and posession of them should at least be a flogging offense, IMHO Ungrounded lighting circuits are seldom as big an issue as receptacle circuits. Many appliances, tools, and other things have cords with a ground type plug indicating they should be grounded. The GFCI will protect you from shock with these things but in the case of electronic equipment, computers especially, a grounded circuit is almost a requirement to prevent equipment damage from a number of sources. Also, surge suppressors need the added connection to function properly. It wouldn't hurt to think about gradually upgrading all the receptacle circuits as you can, but no reason to hurry unless you get something requiring a ground.

2008 NEC 250.130 Equipment Grounding Conductor Connections. Equipment grounding conductor connections at the source of separately derived systems shall be made in accordance with 250.30(A)(1). Equipment grounding conductor connections at service equipment shall be made as indicated in 250.130(A) or (B). For replacement of non– grounding-type receptacles with grounding-type receptacles and for branch-circuit extensions only in existing installations that do not have an equipment grounding conductor in the branch circuit, connections shall be equipment grounding conductor in the branch circuit, connections shall be permitted as indicated in 250.130(C) (C) Nongrounding Receptacle Replacement or Branch Circuit Extensions. The equipment grounding conductor of a grounding-type receptacle or a branch-circuit extension shall be permitted to be connected to any of the following: (1) Any accessible point on the grounding electrode system as described in 250.50 (2) Any accessible point on the grounding electrode conductor (3) The equipment grounding terminal bar within the enclosure where the branch circuit for the receptacle or branch circuit originates (4) For grounded systems, the grounded service conductor within the service equipment enclosure (5) For ungrounded systems, the grounding terminal bar within the service equipment enclosure FPN: See 406.3(D) for the use of a ground-fault circuitinterrupting type of receptacle. 406.3 General Installation Requirements. Receptacle outlets shall be located in branch circuits in accordance with Part III of Article 210. General installation requirements shall be in accordance with 406.3(A) through (F). (D) Replacements. Replacement of receptacles shall comply with 406.3(D)(1), (D)(2), and (D)(3) as applicable. (1) Grounding-Type Receptacles. Where a grounding means exists in the receptacle enclosure or an equipment grounding conductor is installed in accordance with 250.130(C), grounding-type receptacles shall be used and shall be connected to the equipment grounding conductor in accordance with 406.3(C) or 250.130(C). (2) Ground-Fault Circuit Interrupters. Ground-fault circuit-interrupter protected receptacles shall be provided where replacements are made at receptacle outlets that are required to be so protected elsewhere in this Code. (3) Non–Grounding-Type Receptacles. Where attachment to an equipment grounding conductor does not exist in the receptacle enclosure, the installation shall comply with (D)(3)(a), (D)(3)(b), or (D)(3)(c). (a) A non–grounding-type receptacle(s) shall be permitted to be replaced with another non–grounding-type receptacle(s). (b) A non–grounding-type receptacle(s) shall be permitted to be replaced with a ground-fault circuit interruptertype of receptacle(s). These receptacles shall be marked "No Equipment Ground." An equipment grounding conductor shall not be connected from the ground-fault circuitinterrupter-type receptacle to any outlet supplied from the ground-fault circuit-interrupter receptacle. (c) A non–grounding-type receptacle(s) shall be permitted to be replaced with a grounding-type receptacle(s) where supplied through a ground-fault circuit interrupter. Grounding-type receptacles supplied through the groundfault circuit interrupter shall be marked "GFCI Protected" and "No Equipment Ground." An equipment grounding conductor shall not be connected between the groundingtype receptacles.