Does this panel need to be re-wired and the grounds and neutrals separated ?

[bdn2004]

A 200 Amp overhead service feeds an outdoor 200A fused disconnect on the outside of the house. Circa about 1960.
3 - #3/0 wires in metal conduit go from that disconnect, through the crawlspace 50', to a 200 Amp panel board in the middle of the house.

The conduit is bonded with a short piece of copper tubing at the disconnect switch outside. I'm saying this is the main bonding jumper.
But there is no ground rod at that location, instead the conduit was bonded where it entered the panelboard to a line that went directly to the underground water pipe on the neutral.

A few years ago the panel inside was changed to a 200A circuit breaker panelboard instead of the fused panel. The electrician installed a short piece of PVC conduit between the floor and the crawlspace to get the #3/0 installed to the new panel board. The rest of the 50' run of metal conduit remained untouched. As with the other panel that was taken out, all the neutrals and equipment grounds are on the neutral bar. I'm thinking that the metal pipe was the ground electrode conductor, it got chopped off - but its still grounded via the neutral that's tied to the ground at the panelboard.

MY QUESTION.... do these grounds need to be separated with separate ground bars to the branch circuits? Can I put a jumper around the PVC ... but what real good does that do ? as it's grounded via the neutral at the disconnect.

 

[waross]

Grounding at the disconnect:
Code versus functionality.
Functionality;
Functionally the neutral may be providing a good ground for the switch housing and for the conduit;
But
Code;
Some AHJs may accept the this installation.
Some AHJs may require a bonding jumper across the PVC.
Some AHJs may require a jumper across the PVC and require that the neutral be lifted from ground at the switch/breaker.

Neutrals and grounds in the panel.

I'm saying this is the main bonding jumper.

The age of woke that we are living in allows us to say almost anything.
Unfortunately for your installation, the AHJ will be guided by the code rather that what you say.
With few exceptions, the code mandates one and one only bonding jumper from the neutral to ground in a system.
That connection is to be in the service panel.
Any argument that that point is at the switch/breaker is rendered moot by the absence of a direct connection to a grounding electrode at that location.
While residential breaker panels are generally used as service panels, they may also be used as sub panels.
With few exceptions, there shall be no connection between the neutral and the ground at sub panels.
To that end, residential panels are constructed with separate neutral bars and separate ground bars.
There may be a screw, a wire jumper, or a metal strap jumper between the neutral bar and the ground bar.
Code versus functionality.

Functionality;
Functionally this mixing of grounds and neutrals on the same bar provides system grounding. however while solid ground faults are generally easy to locate, the absence of a single connection between the neutrals and the grounds may complicate the trouble shooting of ground leakage issues.
Code;
Some AHJs may accept the this installation.
Some AHJs may require that the grounds and neutrals be separated, and a single bonding jumper be installed.

Summary: Without actually seeing the installation and the applicable codes, and the usual caveat concerning free advice on the internet:
The installation may be safe.
But,
It is very unlikely that an AHJ would accept the installation as code compliant.

 

[bdn2004]

Thanks for the reply... it's not just a disconnect - it's a fused disconnect right below the meter. So it is the Service and that cable going into the panel would be a feeder and the inside panel is a sub-panel. Yes one connection between the neutral and the ground - that is the main bonding jumper, by definition. And I don't think it meets 2023 NEC either and the grounds and neutrals should be separated at that panel. Just a hassle for something that's not caused any problems for 60+ years. This was something that came up on a home inspection.

I think a ground rod should be installed outside by the disconnect and the water pipe inside bonded to that service entrance ground as well.

 

[waross]

I think a ground rod should be installed outside by the disconnect and the water pipe inside bonded to that service entrance ground as well.

Yes.
Also the grounds and neutrals should be separated.
A code compliant grounding conductor should be extended from the new ground at the service disconnect to the ground bar in the (sub) panel.
You may be getting neutral current passing through the grounding electrodes.
This may be degrading both your grounding electrode and the utilities grounding electrode.
The code is a living document that is developed and amended from time to time is response to actual incidents.
The code has been growing for at least 75 years that I am aware of.
The oldest code book that I have seen was dated 1948.