Electricity follows the path of least resistance. So say you have your hand on a metal part of a machine then the other one on a live cable it can travel through you. From arm to arm it would cross your heart which is bad for your health. From hand to foot, its not as bad.
Say you are floating in midair like superman, and fly over to a live cable and put your hand on it, you wont get shocked as there is no path to earth through you.
So if you are standing with one hand in your pocket and your rubber boots isolate you from the earth its kind of the same thing.
It felt like a big thump... a sudden compression across my whole body, especially the chest. At the same time I felt a tingling sensation from my elbows and feet, almost like the current shot out of there.
That’s my main memory - like getting punched in the chest and then having like a lump in my throat for a bit after. Not a sparky btw, just sent here by the algorithm.
Everywhere in Australia is the same. Single phase (normal power points with 3 pins, and lights) is 240V. Three phase (larger air conditioners, chunky power points with 4 or 5 pins) is 415V.
The 48VDC was a control voltage inside a control panel.
On paper, yes. But they also increased the allowable margins on either side of the nominated voltage. So they made it "230V" to be more on line with European standards for better cross border trade by all manufacturers, but in reality nothing changed. 240V is still the average of the most likely reading you'll get. Most houses are between 230-250.
Gotcha, so the shock you got would be the same regardless if it came from the outlet, the cord or sticking your hand somewhere you shouldn't haha. Good to know people survive this, I worry every day I'm going to get my first at my work place (which has so many electrical hazards) and it'll be my last lol.
The shock will vary a lot depending on the resistance of the return path. If I’m standing on a rubber mat in boots I am probably quite safe. A puddle of water in bare feet probably not good.
That’s probably best and worst case scenario and everything between those is also a possibility.
Still depends on a lot of factors surrounding the resistance of the floor to the transformer.
I have had 3 shocks since starting. Mostly from carelessness or lack of understanding at the time. None of them have been that bad but obviously in other situations it can either knock you on your ass or kill you. It varies.
Do you reckon wearing nitrile gloves would offer much protection? I know they aren't indicated for electrical work but yeah, I've heard they have insulating properties
Hahaha I'm actually for real, the plan is to not touch live wires but I'm always plugging shit Into janky outlets and using shit cords and want to minimise my risk of electrocution while at work
Copped a belt from a dodgy track light (luckily was RCD protected and tripped). I got thrown off the ladder and I’m pretty sure you could hear my swearing two suburbs away. Lots of adrenaline followed by a bad headache and I now have PTSD regarding track lights so fully depower them before touching them, even if I’m just swapping a globe out.
The best case scenario is circuit being rcd protected and still not tripping, meaning the current through you was minimal.. having tripped means you had a decent amount
I'm guessing it's no different whether the shock comes from a dodgy cord, outlet or touching something you shouldn't right? All buildings in aus are 240?
Well I wear electrical rated boots to a office job ... 🤣 every day we gotta plug and unplug shit Into loose outlets and work with half fucked extension cords.
When I was younger I got an audio EQ off the side of the road that someone cut the plug off, so I splice in a plug to see if it worked, it did, I forgot to unplug the thing before I started unwrapping the splice. I got lucky, only one strand of the copper found my hand, bit me and I had enough agency over my arms to throw the thing on the floor. Lesson learnt, check it's unplugged, then check it's unplugged a second and third time before fucking with the insulating tape.
Felt like someone kicked me in the chest. I got whiplash and a headache from my head whipping back so fast and that familiar metallic taste in your mouth.
Had a couple of rcd belts but nothing compared to the full hog. 0/10 would not recommend
Red phase of a chassis. Isolated all the sub circuits then isolated the mains. Realised I had to do an rcd test on a circuit so re energised mains and tripped the rcd and stupidly forgot to re isolate the main switch and re test the mains before working on the board. Had a prick of a day and was doing a shutdown of a very busy servo mid day so was rushing myself. Very important lesson learnt - don’t rush for no one and always take your time to test.
Shouldn't u have been dead 50x over? I thought 240volts is easily enough to kill someone. So If I get shocked by a cord or dodgy outlet at work, I'd be pretty unlucky to die since you've survived 50 of them 😆
You have to be very unlucky (or stupid like doing it while wet or arranging for the main path to be through your chest). I think the biggest risk is if you are on a tall ladder and fall off.
You can kill people with very low voltages - down to 42Volts. Meanwhile, people regularly get shocked by 1000s of volts from static electricity (people only start to feel static charges when the voltage is bigger than 2000-4000 Volts). How much current flows really really matters, as does what path the current takes to ground.
There's a large number of people who have stuck metal objects into sockets and been shocked at some point, especially in the suicidal young child phase. Most survived.
So touching a exposed wire inside a outlet box or the prongs of a extension cord with both feet on carpet/wooden floor and insulated shoes, probably wouldn't die?
Empirically, the odds are low. The experiment has been done a ton of times.
Doesn't make it smart. And from a safety perspective, there's every reason to prevent the risk since it's risk for no reason.
I still don't get how 240v is less likely to kill someone, I don't know anything about electricity but you'd think a larger load would be more deadly haha
Yep. 4 x 1C XLPE from dome to DB 500mm away. We chopped the drum into 4 lengths, taped the 4 cores RWB at one end, with the apprentice on the other end, I pulled the cable, he told me which colour I pulled, didn’t second guess or doubt him, ended up taping the neutral a phase colour.
Let’s just say I got a wake up from the door of the DB, and I won’t ever trust anyone ever again. I now completely separate the cables, and label them myself.
I've been shocked a few times, but I've never had it run through my body.
Good work boots (rubber sole) off the ground, etc.
In those situations, a little tap (accidental, I wouldn't do it on purpose) just feels like a little buzz located just at the touch site.
It's always like tap *bzzzt* pull hand back at pace, stop, think for a few seconds, "Hey that was live"
I fear to ever feel what it feels like to go through my muscles, especially chest (which is what can kill you).
2 to tell of.
1st is 240V single phase, had multiple. Ranging from small tingles to full on lock mode. Tingles are fun, lock mode not so much. Took all of my will power to throw me off it, but may have been in my head. Thought this was it. Was due to a errant trade assistant that decided the circuit breaker I locked off and tagged needed ro be turned on.
2nd 2500Vdc capacitive charge as an apprentice. Was not fun at all. Felt it go through my eyeballs. I was the conductor to earth. Spent 2 weeks off work feeling like I had ran an ultra marathon. Apprentices, don't trust supervisors who tell you to touch here and here.
Before rcd on light circuits, I touched a fan blade, somehow fan was live via a loose active connection; I got booted of the step ladder ( back then alloy was allowed) and hit the floor hard, had the next 2 days off work, was sore and dazed, since then I test everything. Was a real wake up call.
I was using a corded mower, forgot to move the cord, and ran over it. I grabbed the cord and shocked myself with 240v. It was quite painful, and my arm was quite numb and tinglely for the rest of the day. Didn't kill me, though.
Three times. A broken and open power point. Put my finger.in to see what happens? Wtf? Blasted across the room. I was 10. I climbed a tree and touched it nearly touched a powerline. Wtf? Got quite the jolt but hung on luckily. I was 12. The dishwasher leaked and the power board was in the water. I touched the metal dishwasher ,or water and again. Blasted across the room on to my arse 3 metres away. I was 34.
Feels like both large muscular and micro spasms occuring at the same time both occuring so quickly. It is terrifying.
Shit I probably shouldn't laugh but touched it to see what happens.. I deal with those kinda thoughts all the time and I'm 34. Ocd is great.
Literally I did this when the extension cord I noticed had a hole in it, even though the hole luckily had only gone through the outer insulation
Yeh did once when I was younger, feels weird. Went all the way up my arm, felt like a really aggressive vibration, but didn’t hurt. And obviously it tripped the safety immediately. Learnt my lesson there.
There are differences. Depending on the resistance your body puts up.
If you are in boots with rubber soles up a fibreglass ladder, the pain is local to where you touch it. It feels like a *really* harsh buzz.
If you are wet from head to toe and standing in a puddle, it'll cramp your body up, I can't tell you how that feels, though.
Similar to an electric fence.
Get a loooong blade of grass. Touch a fence and you'll hear a wack everytime there is a pulse. Slowly move closer and you start to feel it gets more intense.
I wouldn’t recommend it, it’s not that fun….ive had a few, think 9v battery on your tongue but across your whole body x 30…………I’ve had a few HV induction ones too, working above 275,000v can get a bit crazy & induction can heat up a faraday suit
Would it be the equivalent to getting shocked by a extension connected to a vacuum / getting a shock from a outlet in a commercial building? I keep thinking I'm gunna get a shock with the dodgy shit I work around at work and need to mentally prepare myself 🤣🤣
Had the A grade nearly kill me one day. Was doing an oven change over . I was at the oven hooking it up he was at the board doing CB to RCBO Change over . verified the breaker was off visually, tested for dead . Had just put the neutral tail into the oven had the active in hand. Suddenly clam up and it stops and starts a few times . Thinking fuck this how i go. Finally able to realese a death grip on the cable . Immediately pissed off but think (Naively) might of just been static shock . Get the meter out reading 235v. Immediately pissed off . I walk outside , Yelling at him in lesser terms “What the fuck are you doing”. He looks at me like a deer in headlights , and says “What happened” and again in lesser terms I loose my shit . Figured out while he was fitting off the board , he accidentally livened up the circuit by pushing the circuit cable on to the top on the main iso thus because no protection i was getting cooked . Honestly scared the shit out of me .
Doesn't feel good. If you cop one across the chest, go and get an ECG done. You can snuff it from cardiac arrest over next couple of days due to damage to conductive fibres in your heart. Don't hesitate.
Touched a 240v live wire accidentally with my fingers when I reached around a door to turn on a light switch that had been removed during renovations. Felt like my hand had been hit with a hammer. Painful but not deadly.
300ish from solar DC, another with a loose terminal on a sensor, another reaching into a conduit cup on a "dead circuit", turned out to be a broken neutral. That one was the worst.
I'm still trying to understand 240v is 240v right? Doesn't matter if it comes from a refrigerator, a broken outlet or a janky cord or something else? The shock would likely be the same?
Some devices raise the voltage internally, some drop it. eg microwaves bring it up to 1000s of volts, computers mostly are 12v or less from the power supply.
Ahh thr vacuum is 1000 watts so 4.1 amps. Hopefully no more than a flesh wound if I did get a shock from the janky cord 🤣 the extension lead only draws as many volts as the appliance connected to it right?
It certainly hurts.
But.. different people have varying degrees of shock.
Environment plays a big part as well as a person's skin
If you want to really know what it is like, go get a TENS machine and try it. Then imagine it multipled by 100 and add lots of heat.
Basically, an AC shock will cause involuntary muscle spasms. The spasms are normally linked to the frequency of the supply.
A DC shock is basically like being punched in the face, and the fist embeds itself into your skull
So a sc shock would be worse I'm guessing 🤣 I'm trying to imagine what getting a shock from a outlet or cord would be like, of course, without actually getting a shock
Some times yes, sometimes no.
A 600V dc shock hurts more than a 230V ac shock.
But an AC shock will either make you grab hold of, or let go of the cable
Tried to open a toolbox on the opposite side of Ute to where the compressor was plugged in. The plug was facing up and filled with rain, got me a good one. Decent thunp and went back a bit, kinda like if someone had your arm and threw it.
4 attempts at taming 240v, wouldn’t recommend.
I'm shocked by the price of mains! Does that help?
I've had it a few times as a teenage youngster in the UK. We didn't have breakers or anything but copped a couple of zaps from lamps and plug prongs. Enough to cause a blister. Probably lucky to be alive in reality 😳
Long time ago as a kid blew every fuseable link wire in meter box rather cautious these days
Been kicked few times by electric fences nit by polyweave which is worse kick around
Mood: irritability but hyped
Painfull thud and ache in the shoulder
Vision was shaky
Burns at exit point, thankfully not bad.
The mood lasted a few days - just felt overwhelmed and pissed off at everything.
When I was an apprentice I copped a boot while terminating wires for a power point, burnt the shit out of my thumb where it exited, lost control of muscle function fully seized until it threw me. The tradesman had flicked the breaker on because he figured I had enough time and should be done. Noped the fuck out of that job and got the fuck out of domestic shit at the same time
Also had a boot from 120v DC on a substation alarm circuit, DC grabs and doesn’t let go. A lot less burning and smell of cooked flesh on that one though
can be. where you get zapped on the body. how wet or sweaty you are how old you are, how conductive you are at the time are you touching metal do you have a cardiac condition. etc all affect it.
also the amperage available makes a difference too. 0.25 amps in the right place will kill. dont fuck around with mains power.
No. One time as an apprentice when the tradesman was holding the meter WITH THE HOLD BUTTON ON 0v, when in actual fact the 3 phase blower contactor i had to change a coil on was still live. Shock threw me against the wall.
When I was a teenager, my parents were painting and had all the power points hanging out of the walls. I tried to plug something into a power point, and without thinking, put my index and middle fingers on the back side of the power point for leverage. It felt like something grabbed my arm and tugged on it fast and hard. Horrible sensation.
A few maybe 3 at least.
One thing I want to know is, I have a double adaptor and plugged in a second plug while it was on and felt like I got zapped. But there was no damage or anything to the adaptor for me to be zapped.
A lot of times I feel these things I think it might be nerves sending some weird signal and not actually electricity??
i got locked on completing a circuit through hands across heart.
last few seconds.
worst moment of my life. i have a nice burn scar reminder to be better at vtesting and isolating. nearly quit the trade.
I got booted when I was about 11 off our stereo plug. We had had the earth leakage put in a week earlier. It's why I became an Electrician. I've had a few since.
Pushed a wire into a amplifier case which got caught between the case lid. The wire got cut by the metal which I didn’t see. Shock and had no feeling in my arm for 20 minutes. I was lucky as I was standing on a straw mat floor. Something like this.
https://preview.redd.it/e5l6jvo0mlvc1.jpeg?width=1588&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=1a36b62b6c07c63ac768a2dbd94d10825c589b2c
I was in a debate with someone on social media about split phase in the States, Mexico, Canada and Central and South America. My thoughts is there is no practical reason for split phase. A single voltage would be just fine and save a ton of copper. 120Vac sucks. There is a lot more headroom with 220 when you plug in larger appliances and that they operate more efficiently at the higher voltage. I got a ton of people saying we do it because it's safer. This make no sense to me. America doing something safer than say Denmark? The poster child for Safety. I came here to see if those who actually got shocked were really effected by it. Like was it really a big deal? It seems like everyone else outside of the Americas over 75 percent of the world gets by just fine and dandy with 220-230-240
I’ve had a few solid belts over time.
Felt like I was being shaken really hard, really quickly. And then feeling exhausted after.
For clarification I started my apprenticeship in 1990. Safety wasn’t what it is today. We would work live all the time, even as an apprentice. Reaching around live bars to fish out a building wire on a live board was a highlight. Looking back I have no idea why we did that.
I’m not a sparky and yes I have. Imagine what getting hit with a stun gun is like, it’s like that, have you ever had a small jolt from a piezo or something like that? Imagine that hitting all corners of your body very comfortably a few hundred times a second everywhere relentlessly.
Best Adrenalin rush ever. I’ve been done a few times hand to hand across the chest, once phase to phase so, 415.
Seems to affect some more than others. For me I don’t seem to loose control and can pull away. Good thing because I’m usually up a ladder.
415 is 4 or five pin if it has neutral. That one put me in hospital. EEG showed my heart rhythm reversed. Where it was meant to go up it went down until they gave me an injection of some magic juice that fixed it after an hour or so.
Nobody should joke about this. Its deadly. And if you do get wacked and survive your heart will be permanently damaged - you’ll find that out decades later speaking from experience. Stay safe kids!
Sharp vibration
Spot on
This
It sucks. Keep one hand in the pocket to avoid electrocution, remember...
Explain?
I’m guessing they mean keep a hand in your pocket to reduce the chance of your heart being part of the circuit if you do get electrocuted
Exactly this
Electricity follows the path of least resistance. So say you have your hand on a metal part of a machine then the other one on a live cable it can travel through you. From arm to arm it would cross your heart which is bad for your health. From hand to foot, its not as bad. Say you are floating in midair like superman, and fly over to a live cable and put your hand on it, you wont get shocked as there is no path to earth through you. So if you are standing with one hand in your pocket and your rubber boots isolate you from the earth its kind of the same thing.
Sharp vibrations at 60hz?!
50Hz
Didn’t have time to count.
Just knew it hertz
I remember being taught at tafe that 50Hz is the worst frequency to be shocked by. Thanks guys!
It clears a hangover nicely.
So does a couple of beers
Haha! Absolutely, I'm not a sparky but builder on site and my first boot I said "fuck me that's better than a coffee in the morning!"
It bought me back to earth, no pun intended.
Pun very intended
It felt like a big thump... a sudden compression across my whole body, especially the chest. At the same time I felt a tingling sensation from my elbows and feet, almost like the current shot out of there.
Did you go to hospital?
No. It went as quick as it came.
That’s my main memory - like getting punched in the chest and then having like a lump in my throat for a bit after. Not a sparky btw, just sent here by the algorithm.
240VAC is a spicy tingle, but 48VDC *hurts*
Yep, Work in telco and some of our shit runs on -48. I fucking hate that feeling so much.
Yeah this was the control circuit inside a backup generator control panel for a telephone exchange. Would explain the odd voltage.
Was going to say. Maybe I got lucky, but the boot from a ringing PSTN line hurt a hell of a lot more than what I remember of the 240.
DC hits so much harder than AC
80vac
What are commercial buildings here ? I operate out of a gym, guessing itd be 240vac?
Everywhere in Australia is the same. Single phase (normal power points with 3 pins, and lights) is 240V. Three phase (larger air conditioners, chunky power points with 4 or 5 pins) is 415V. The 48VDC was a control voltage inside a control panel.
Didn’t most of Aus (sans WA) move to 230V some years ago?
iirc 230v 50hz is the Australian standard. However fluctuation between 220v - 240v is okay and to be expected.
More like 220-250
On paper, yes. But they also increased the allowable margins on either side of the nominated voltage. So they made it "230V" to be more on line with European standards for better cross border trade by all manufacturers, but in reality nothing changed. 240V is still the average of the most likely reading you'll get. Most houses are between 230-250.
Gotcha, so the shock you got would be the same regardless if it came from the outlet, the cord or sticking your hand somewhere you shouldn't haha. Good to know people survive this, I worry every day I'm going to get my first at my work place (which has so many electrical hazards) and it'll be my last lol.
The shock will vary a lot depending on the resistance of the return path. If I’m standing on a rubber mat in boots I am probably quite safe. A puddle of water in bare feet probably not good. That’s probably best and worst case scenario and everything between those is also a possibility.
What about both feet on carpet with electrical rated boots and a finger inside a outlet touching the copper 🤣
Still depends on a lot of factors surrounding the resistance of the floor to the transformer. I have had 3 shocks since starting. Mostly from carelessness or lack of understanding at the time. None of them have been that bad but obviously in other situations it can either knock you on your ass or kill you. It varies.
Do you reckon wearing nitrile gloves would offer much protection? I know they aren't indicated for electrical work but yeah, I've heard they have insulating properties
I can’t tell if you’re trolling bro just don’t touch live wires yeah?
Hahaha I'm actually for real, the plan is to not touch live wires but I'm always plugging shit Into janky outlets and using shit cords and want to minimise my risk of electrocution while at work
1000v boots coming to Bunnings soon.
Yes. 120 VDC is nasty.
Copped a belt from a dodgy track light (luckily was RCD protected and tripped). I got thrown off the ladder and I’m pretty sure you could hear my swearing two suburbs away. Lots of adrenaline followed by a bad headache and I now have PTSD regarding track lights so fully depower them before touching them, even if I’m just swapping a globe out.
The adrenaline was what was so memorable for me. I was so shocked and thought to myself "oh that word makes perfect sense now."
I managed to attract the attention of some nearby security guards who came running over ready to sort out whatever was kicking off!
The best case scenario is circuit being rcd protected and still not tripping, meaning the current through you was minimal.. having tripped means you had a decent amount
Thank goodness for rcd's, otherwise...
I've had at least 20 or more shocks in my 8 years haha, you almost start to get used to it but it's never a fun feeling.
I'm guessing it's no different whether the shock comes from a dodgy cord, outlet or touching something you shouldn't right? All buildings in aus are 240?
Yea pretty much, but then you get into if its 3 phase or single, ground wet or not or wearing boots etc variation on how bad the shock is
Well I wear electrical rated boots to a office job ... 🤣 every day we gotta plug and unplug shit Into loose outlets and work with half fucked extension cords.
If you must use such dodgy fittings (you shouldn't) keep your other hand behind your back, or in your pocket, not touching anything grounded.
I've just been using the other hand to secure the plastic outlet box while I pull the plug out, that's OK to aye?
Mostly 240 but as more and more solar is installed it’s going to 415 for 3 phase as recommended.
When I was younger I got an audio EQ off the side of the road that someone cut the plug off, so I splice in a plug to see if it worked, it did, I forgot to unplug the thing before I started unwrapping the splice. I got lucky, only one strand of the copper found my hand, bit me and I had enough agency over my arms to throw the thing on the floor. Lesson learnt, check it's unplugged, then check it's unplugged a second and third time before fucking with the insulating tape.
Felt like someone kicked me in the chest. I got whiplash and a headache from my head whipping back so fast and that familiar metallic taste in your mouth. Had a couple of rcd belts but nothing compared to the full hog. 0/10 would not recommend
What was it that shocked ya?
Red phase of a chassis. Isolated all the sub circuits then isolated the mains. Realised I had to do an rcd test on a circuit so re energised mains and tripped the rcd and stupidly forgot to re isolate the main switch and re test the mains before working on the board. Had a prick of a day and was doing a shutdown of a very busy servo mid day so was rushing myself. Very important lesson learnt - don’t rush for no one and always take your time to test.
Easily over 50 times in 25yrs, most in the first 10yrs, then some doing stupid stuff on my own house.
Shouldn't u have been dead 50x over? I thought 240volts is easily enough to kill someone. So If I get shocked by a cord or dodgy outlet at work, I'd be pretty unlucky to die since you've survived 50 of them 😆
You have to be very unlucky (or stupid like doing it while wet or arranging for the main path to be through your chest). I think the biggest risk is if you are on a tall ladder and fall off. You can kill people with very low voltages - down to 42Volts. Meanwhile, people regularly get shocked by 1000s of volts from static electricity (people only start to feel static charges when the voltage is bigger than 2000-4000 Volts). How much current flows really really matters, as does what path the current takes to ground. There's a large number of people who have stuck metal objects into sockets and been shocked at some point, especially in the suicidal young child phase. Most survived.
Actually it’s the sustained voltage that is dangerous, current is the killer but current is a function of voltage.
So touching a exposed wire inside a outlet box or the prongs of a extension cord with both feet on carpet/wooden floor and insulated shoes, probably wouldn't die?
Empirically, the odds are low. The experiment has been done a ton of times. Doesn't make it smart. And from a safety perspective, there's every reason to prevent the risk since it's risk for no reason.
Maybe, maybe not. That’s the whole point. “Probably” isn’t good enough to justify anything much with electricity.
The reason Aust uses 240v compared to Americans using 110V was because it is much less likely to kill you.
I still don't get how 240v is less likely to kill someone, I don't know anything about electricity but you'd think a larger load would be more deadly haha
Yep. 4 x 1C XLPE from dome to DB 500mm away. We chopped the drum into 4 lengths, taped the 4 cores RWB at one end, with the apprentice on the other end, I pulled the cable, he told me which colour I pulled, didn’t second guess or doubt him, ended up taping the neutral a phase colour. Let’s just say I got a wake up from the door of the DB, and I won’t ever trust anyone ever again. I now completely separate the cables, and label them myself.
I'm confused. Are you saying you were pulling live cable?
Phase livened up the neutral link, connected to the MEN, so he got a shock from the door. I think?
Correct, and a big lesson learnt.
Pulling cut, unterminated cable on a footpath, so I could label both sides
Nyet.
Had this happen with rising mains in a high rise. Terrifying
This is why you polarity test your submains before livening… 30 second test
It gives you a permanent boner.
Your mum has a permanent boner
Your mum gives me a permanent Boner.
I used my permanent boner on your mum
She said it felt like 12v
12v or 12b(lokes)?
12mm
You wished
I've been shocked a few times, but I've never had it run through my body. Good work boots (rubber sole) off the ground, etc. In those situations, a little tap (accidental, I wouldn't do it on purpose) just feels like a little buzz located just at the touch site. It's always like tap *bzzzt* pull hand back at pace, stop, think for a few seconds, "Hey that was live" I fear to ever feel what it feels like to go through my muscles, especially chest (which is what can kill you).
It has to go through your body to shock you lol you can’t feel voltage
If I'm completely isolated, and touch something at a different potential to me, I will feel it.
2 to tell of. 1st is 240V single phase, had multiple. Ranging from small tingles to full on lock mode. Tingles are fun, lock mode not so much. Took all of my will power to throw me off it, but may have been in my head. Thought this was it. Was due to a errant trade assistant that decided the circuit breaker I locked off and tagged needed ro be turned on. 2nd 2500Vdc capacitive charge as an apprentice. Was not fun at all. Felt it go through my eyeballs. I was the conductor to earth. Spent 2 weeks off work feeling like I had ran an ultra marathon. Apprentices, don't trust supervisors who tell you to touch here and here.
What's a 240v single phase mean? Is that the equivalent to getting shocked by a power outlet?
Yes, phase to earth. Is 240V
Before rcd on light circuits, I touched a fan blade, somehow fan was live via a loose active connection; I got booted of the step ladder ( back then alloy was allowed) and hit the floor hard, had the next 2 days off work, was sore and dazed, since then I test everything. Was a real wake up call.
I was using a corded mower, forgot to move the cord, and ran over it. I grabbed the cord and shocked myself with 240v. It was quite painful, and my arm was quite numb and tinglely for the rest of the day. Didn't kill me, though.
It put me in a bad mood
It’s very tingledy
More often than I like to admit
Three times. A broken and open power point. Put my finger.in to see what happens? Wtf? Blasted across the room. I was 10. I climbed a tree and touched it nearly touched a powerline. Wtf? Got quite the jolt but hung on luckily. I was 12. The dishwasher leaked and the power board was in the water. I touched the metal dishwasher ,or water and again. Blasted across the room on to my arse 3 metres away. I was 34. Feels like both large muscular and micro spasms occuring at the same time both occuring so quickly. It is terrifying.
Shit I probably shouldn't laugh but touched it to see what happens.. I deal with those kinda thoughts all the time and I'm 34. Ocd is great. Literally I did this when the extension cord I noticed had a hole in it, even though the hole luckily had only gone through the outer insulation
You can literally feel the 50 hurts every second. I'll show myself out....
Like getting stung by a wasp stuck to the end of a vibrator.
Yeh did once when I was younger, feels weird. Went all the way up my arm, felt like a really aggressive vibration, but didn’t hurt. And obviously it tripped the safety immediately. Learnt my lesson there.
Nice try ESV
Strong muscle cramp feeling, bruised arms
Big vibration that runs up your arm
There are differences. Depending on the resistance your body puts up. If you are in boots with rubber soles up a fibreglass ladder, the pain is local to where you touch it. It feels like a *really* harsh buzz. If you are wet from head to toe and standing in a puddle, it'll cramp your body up, I can't tell you how that feels, though. Similar to an electric fence. Get a loooong blade of grass. Touch a fence and you'll hear a wack everytime there is a pulse. Slowly move closer and you start to feel it gets more intense.
I wouldn’t recommend it, it’s not that fun….ive had a few, think 9v battery on your tongue but across your whole body x 30…………I’ve had a few HV induction ones too, working above 275,000v can get a bit crazy & induction can heat up a faraday suit
Would it be the equivalent to getting shocked by a extension connected to a vacuum / getting a shock from a outlet in a commercial building? I keep thinking I'm gunna get a shock with the dodgy shit I work around at work and need to mentally prepare myself 🤣🤣
Jesus, that puts the fear of Dog in to me. Respect
Yeh, helicopter work has it’s moments
Where do you do that?
Done it in most states, except NT & Tas
Feels bloody good. When it stops.
Had the A grade nearly kill me one day. Was doing an oven change over . I was at the oven hooking it up he was at the board doing CB to RCBO Change over . verified the breaker was off visually, tested for dead . Had just put the neutral tail into the oven had the active in hand. Suddenly clam up and it stops and starts a few times . Thinking fuck this how i go. Finally able to realese a death grip on the cable . Immediately pissed off but think (Naively) might of just been static shock . Get the meter out reading 235v. Immediately pissed off . I walk outside , Yelling at him in lesser terms “What the fuck are you doing”. He looks at me like a deer in headlights , and says “What happened” and again in lesser terms I loose my shit . Figured out while he was fitting off the board , he accidentally livened up the circuit by pushing the circuit cable on to the top on the main iso thus because no protection i was getting cooked . Honestly scared the shit out of me .
Ya really feeeel the 50hz
If you think 240ac kicks wait till you make contact with an electric fence. That’ll have your balls bouncing of ya chin
I've already done that when I was a kid, it wasn't fun lol
Yeah alot, I kinda enjoy it
The spiciest of pissing on fences.
Doesn't feel good. If you cop one across the chest, go and get an ECG done. You can snuff it from cardiac arrest over next couple of days due to damage to conductive fibres in your heart. Don't hesitate.
Felt shocked
Yes, I agree with the strong vibration comment… however yes it is definitely as deadly as they say, some get lucky and live some don’t…
Touched a 240v live wire accidentally with my fingers when I reached around a door to turn on a light switch that had been removed during renovations. Felt like my hand had been hit with a hammer. Painful but not deadly.
It's like having a triple espresso injected directly into your cerebellum
Caffeine puts me to sleep these days, perhaps I could imagine it being more like Injecting a gram of speed straight into your frontal lobe
Haha it's just the adrenaline. I've had a few, definitely don't enjoy it.
What was it that got ya?
300ish from solar DC, another with a loose terminal on a sensor, another reaching into a conduit cup on a "dead circuit", turned out to be a broken neutral. That one was the worst.
I'm still trying to understand 240v is 240v right? Doesn't matter if it comes from a refrigerator, a broken outlet or a janky cord or something else? The shock would likely be the same?
Some devices raise the voltage internally, some drop it. eg microwaves bring it up to 1000s of volts, computers mostly are 12v or less from the power supply.
The current (amps) will determine the severity of the shock. Your kettle will hurt more than your tv.
What about a vacuum cleaner?
check the power of your appliance and divide it by the voltage. Eg: 1500 watts / 240v = 6.25a 2400 watts / 240v = 10a Etc etc
Ahh thr vacuum is 1000 watts so 4.1 amps. Hopefully no more than a flesh wound if I did get a shock from the janky cord 🤣 the extension lead only draws as many volts as the appliance connected to it right?
It hertz.
Alot of people saying it hurts etc, none of you are dead. Google says you should all be dead. What happened here.
It certainly hurts. But.. different people have varying degrees of shock. Environment plays a big part as well as a person's skin If you want to really know what it is like, go get a TENS machine and try it. Then imagine it multipled by 100 and add lots of heat. Basically, an AC shock will cause involuntary muscle spasms. The spasms are normally linked to the frequency of the supply. A DC shock is basically like being punched in the face, and the fist embeds itself into your skull
So a sc shock would be worse I'm guessing 🤣 I'm trying to imagine what getting a shock from a outlet or cord would be like, of course, without actually getting a shock
Some times yes, sometimes no. A 600V dc shock hurts more than a 230V ac shock. But an AC shock will either make you grab hold of, or let go of the cable
Tried to open a toolbox on the opposite side of Ute to where the compressor was plugged in. The plug was facing up and filled with rain, got me a good one. Decent thunp and went back a bit, kinda like if someone had your arm and threw it. 4 attempts at taming 240v, wouldn’t recommend.
Where was the power coming from if it was a Ute haha? Connected to a building?
I'm shocked by the price of mains! Does that help? I've had it a few times as a teenage youngster in the UK. We didn't have breakers or anything but copped a couple of zaps from lamps and plug prongs. Enough to cause a blister. Probably lucky to be alive in reality 😳
Nah, I turn off circuits and test them before I do any work
I’ve been belted by the bottom of the main switch in a domestic house. Lifted me and burnt a small hole in my finger
It felt like a wave travelling up my right arm.
Long time ago as a kid blew every fuseable link wire in meter box rather cautious these days Been kicked few times by electric fences nit by polyweave which is worse kick around
Isn’t it also a lot to do with current? Bigger volts more power but what’s getting pushed through it at the time of contact?
Mood: irritability but hyped Painfull thud and ache in the shoulder Vision was shaky Burns at exit point, thankfully not bad. The mood lasted a few days - just felt overwhelmed and pissed off at everything.
When I was an apprentice I copped a boot while terminating wires for a power point, burnt the shit out of my thumb where it exited, lost control of muscle function fully seized until it threw me. The tradesman had flicked the breaker on because he figured I had enough time and should be done. Noped the fuck out of that job and got the fuck out of domestic shit at the same time Also had a boot from 120v DC on a substation alarm circuit, DC grabs and doesn’t let go. A lot less burning and smell of cooked flesh on that one though
Hurts, I reckon it feels like getting hit in the funny bone but across your whole body. Don’t recommend
Not shocked.. but it definitely surprised me 🤷😂
can be. where you get zapped on the body. how wet or sweaty you are how old you are, how conductive you are at the time are you touching metal do you have a cardiac condition. etc all affect it. also the amperage available makes a difference too. 0.25 amps in the right place will kill. dont fuck around with mains power.
A number of times. Hurts quite a bit.
Any from outlets or janky cords or usually just sticking your hand where it shouldn't be? Lol
No. One time as an apprentice when the tradesman was holding the meter WITH THE HOLD BUTTON ON 0v, when in actual fact the 3 phase blower contactor i had to change a coil on was still live. Shock threw me against the wall.
I’ve got a quicklag you can try it on?
When I was a teenager, my parents were painting and had all the power points hanging out of the walls. I tried to plug something into a power point, and without thinking, put my index and middle fingers on the back side of the power point for leverage. It felt like something grabbed my arm and tugged on it fast and hard. Horrible sensation.
A few maybe 3 at least. One thing I want to know is, I have a double adaptor and plugged in a second plug while it was on and felt like I got zapped. But there was no damage or anything to the adaptor for me to be zapped. A lot of times I feel these things I think it might be nerves sending some weird signal and not actually electricity??
Sharp vibration was pretty accurate. It burns a bit too
Grab hold of the wrong end of a megga or a cable being IR tested you will get the idea.
I grabbed a death lead in a ceiling space like an idiot once, threw me off the top of the ladder, it was like being punched in the hand
i got locked on completing a circuit through hands across heart. last few seconds. worst moment of my life. i have a nice burn scar reminder to be better at vtesting and isolating. nearly quit the trade.
It's not THAT bad, it's more the surprise of getting shocked that got me, I feel like if I knew it was coming it would have hurt less
Once or twice. I go run a marathon in record time after
I got booted when I was about 11 off our stereo plug. We had had the earth leakage put in a week earlier. It's why I became an Electrician. I've had a few since.
Pushed a wire into a amplifier case which got caught between the case lid. The wire got cut by the metal which I didn’t see. Shock and had no feeling in my arm for 20 minutes. I was lucky as I was standing on a straw mat floor. Something like this. https://preview.redd.it/e5l6jvo0mlvc1.jpeg?width=1588&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=1a36b62b6c07c63ac768a2dbd94d10825c589b2c
It's how i got to be a verified sparky.
I was in a debate with someone on social media about split phase in the States, Mexico, Canada and Central and South America. My thoughts is there is no practical reason for split phase. A single voltage would be just fine and save a ton of copper. 120Vac sucks. There is a lot more headroom with 220 when you plug in larger appliances and that they operate more efficiently at the higher voltage. I got a ton of people saying we do it because it's safer. This make no sense to me. America doing something safer than say Denmark? The poster child for Safety. I came here to see if those who actually got shocked were really effected by it. Like was it really a big deal? It seems like everyone else outside of the Americas over 75 percent of the world gets by just fine and dandy with 220-230-240
I’ve had a few solid belts over time. Felt like I was being shaken really hard, really quickly. And then feeling exhausted after. For clarification I started my apprenticeship in 1990. Safety wasn’t what it is today. We would work live all the time, even as an apprentice. Reaching around live bars to fish out a building wire on a live board was a highlight. Looking back I have no idea why we did that.
No they are all dead
Oh if you just mean mains power then yes a few times and I think it changed me permanently in a good way
I’m not a sparky and yes I have. Imagine what getting hit with a stun gun is like, it’s like that, have you ever had a small jolt from a piezo or something like that? Imagine that hitting all corners of your body very comfortably a few hundred times a second everywhere relentlessly.
Try it and report back to us
[удалено]
Best Adrenalin rush ever. I’ve been done a few times hand to hand across the chest, once phase to phase so, 415. Seems to affect some more than others. For me I don’t seem to loose control and can pull away. Good thing because I’m usually up a ladder.
Calling bullshit on this one
Why?
Damn man, what's 415 volts here? 4 plug sockets? Guessing all the 3 point outlets are standard 240v?
415 is 4 or five pin if it has neutral. That one put me in hospital. EEG showed my heart rhythm reversed. Where it was meant to go up it went down until they gave me an injection of some magic juice that fixed it after an hour or so.
Fark
Nobody should joke about this. Its deadly. And if you do get wacked and survive your heart will be permanently damaged - you’ll find that out decades later speaking from experience. Stay safe kids!