Bubba po

So there I was, putting door casings into this barn-conversion property, where the first-fix electrics are all in, plus some of the sockets and light switches. Sparky is not one of our team, but the customer assures me that only the sockets are on - the light switch wires are all poking out of the back-boxes. Suddenly... WHAM!! A terrific belt on my left wrist where my flesh has touched across two wires; the upstairs light cicuit is live. I inform the customer who says dopily "Oh, the sparky's left all the switches on". "FFS!" say I... "hasn't the circuit tripped?"

"No... you must have a dehydration problem - if I ever get a belt the circuit breaker trips"

"I haven't got a dehydration problem, I've got a 'being electrocuted by some dozy ****' problem!"

So now I have two little grey marks on my wrist and a sense that I've "got away with it" once more. : Just one question: any of you lot out there who've had a jolt in the past, could you taste your fillings for ages after? Weird.

Simon 69

Good job it wasnt the ring main. The lighting circuit will only give you a tickle.....

Bubba po

Is that true? It's still 250v, isn't it?

Nido

Wired myself in a few times (by accident I should add!) and found my arms tingling for hours after.

Maz

iTrader: (34)

Lucky escape by the sound of it.

Bubba po

I just think myself lucky that the leccy travelled across two inches of skin, not through my body from hand-to-hand, for instance.

Lee247

Evening, Bubbs

I am very sorry, but ..........................................

Bubba po

It looks like Draclia's been at my wrist with ***-ash on his teeth.

Lee247

Your teeth will be slack by this time next week, mark my words

Odds on

I was working on the set of The Bill a few years ago. Whilst standing on top of a wall I managed to lean a Youngmans board against an old light while holding on to a water pipe...

I remember making a high pitched noise and probably looked like something off the readybrek advert for what seemed like an eternity!! I shock myself off the board in the end according to on lookers. (ranges between 5 - 10 seconds on who you ask )

Old style circuits (yes the dodgy ******* still have them) don't trip out I didn't stop shaking for 1/2hr after, while my collegues didn't stop laughing

Feels bloody wierd doesn't it?

billythekid

10 years ago I was in someones house, they had been having work done and there was a T&E stripped poking out of the wall... I managed to brush the wires.. OUCH! Felt my whole body go numb and my leg was buzzing.. my teeth were "wiggiling" for ages. Very odd as noted above. Dont ever plan on doing it again!!

dpb

Bubbs youve hardly been a live wire over teh other place cosidering you got the day orf ??

boxst

I took the bulb out of a light fitting that hangs on the wall, got distracted, forgot I took the bulb out and stuck my hand in the fitting.

I wasn't impressed, but it didn't leave any marks or pain afterwards.

Steve

kingofturds

iTrader: (1)

I was working on a lighting circuit on a British legion club a few years ago, when the architect came in and switched the power on to inspect the down lighting. 240 volts right across the chest **** me it hurt

Sonic'

Last time it happened to me I felt quiet strange for about a day, my head felt quite muggy and I was slightly dis-orientated for a good few hours

Wasnt the first time, and undoubtedley wont be the last either

The first time I did it, was actually on purpose to see what it felt like

Fuzz

415v up my arm and down my leg to earth when I was "fixing" a temperamental welder at work a few years back.
Numb muscles and stiff joints for the rest of the day.

Wont be doing that again in a hurry!!

Not quite the same as the old 9v battery on the tongue is it

logiclee

230V but yeh you are correct.

So if you come into contact with a 230V live conductor and are stood on the floor or touching ground then you are making a circuit to earth.
Ohms law is going to, hopefully, save your life. Amps I=Volts/Resistance (Very simplified for the purpose of the thread)

It takes liitle more than 30milliamps to send the average heart into fribrillation and even an average well protected lighting circuit will flow 5 or 6 amp before the MCB trips if it's not RCD protected.

The only reason you survive is because of the body's internal resistance, and the insulation provided by footware, socks, clothing, carpets etc.

That's why there is heavy restrictions in bathrooms, you dont have much added resistance to earth when you are sat in a bath full of water while touching copper piping.

Obviously the higher the volts the more resistance required to stay alive.

I work on live 11000V 3 phase systems.

Cheers
Lee

dairyglen

Few years back doing some iron on edging to a laminate shelf didnt notice the frayed wire on the iron, last stroke and a big jolt then bang, left me on the floor with a hole in side of my hand, worse pain ive ever had..........i now glue the edging on lol

leemonkeh

shouldn't worry to much mate. i'm a sparky. you'l only get really hurt if its a shower cable or cooker cable that shocks you. ring mains and lighting cables will just give you a small shock. as regards the filings taste i wouldn't know as i don't have any .

the_msp

[pedantic]

If you were electrocuted, you wouldn't have written this post, as, you'd be dead.

You received an electric shock, not an electrocution.

[/pedantic]

Shark Man

Don't ever do what I did last month and touch a spark plug lead on a car with a dead misfire saying "oo, look that plug lead looks a bit manky" Yes the plug lead was manky, which is why it repeatedly sent 50kilovolts through me.




Oh and to note: Dozy sparky rule no. 234....

When fitting new breakers into a distribution box, switch them all on. Don't bother checking to see if electrics are complete or if anyone is still working on them.

Yes that one had me cutting armoured cable with a hacksaw.

Tam the bam

iyeah but Yeah but I bet your false teeth joogle about when the voltage passes through you?











Only kidding

Lee247

Oh, shut your face, this is the funniest thread I have read in ages

logiclee

Nope, any 230V circuit will do it just depends on what resistance you are to earth and what protection is fiited to the supply.

Touch a lighting circuit while you are sweating, in bare feet etc, concrete floor etc and you could be dead. Another good one. is non RCD protected outside cables while kneeling on the grass/soil. Lower the resistance far enough and 230V is fatal without good RCD protection.

Cheers
Lee

Odds on

You can't beat laughing at other peoples misfortune. Especially when it involves them nearly killing themselves!!

Shark Man

Knowing what a full jolt of 30mA @ 240v feels like, 5amps on a sweaty body...oooerr.

matchmaker

Never had a physical shock, but years ago when I was working for the SSEB at Kincardine-on-Forth power station I was walking past the transformer farm when a 275kv breaker opened when a grid line earthed during a severe storm.



I was shaking for hours afterwards. My washing machine was doing overtime the next day too

Tam the bam

SSEB (must have been a long time ago) Kincardine-on-Forth power station ( just out of interest, is that now known as Longanet?)

logiclee

We've just rebuilt an 11kV Board, a small connection to a voltage transformer was the intial fault, the connection was poor and started arcing which ionizes the air drawing in moisture. The moisture in the busbar chamber built up until the 11kV was able to arc across the three phases causing a symetrical short circuit. Most of the chamber vapourised but not before blowing some components through the side of the double brick building.
The fault level was 150MVA.

That's why we always try and remote close when possible.

Cheers
Lee

kingofturds

iTrader: (1)

Also depends of the health of the person. I also seen the aftermath of a sparky dropping a spanner onto a 3 phase bus bar