[Glmoneydawg]

This thread is funny. I want one of you guys to run an experiment and stick a fork in the wall socket to determine the severity of the shock. Make sure you write down your expected results before you do it in case you aren't around to submit it for peer review yourself!

most stereo equip doesnt draw enough current to really hurt you(unless water is involved)i get shocked on a regular basis with my work(taking short cuts lol)at 120 volts it requires something like a toaster or hair dryer that draws significant amperage to give you a good wallop...otherwise its just an unpleasant tingling sensation...3 phase power is a whole other story though.Feel free to mock my mental capacity after all those shocksI will also use this as a defence for any dumb remarks i may make in this forum.

 

[Speedskater]

DANGER, DANGER, DANGER.
The current draw of an appliance has nothing to do with human safety.
If a human touches any two points with a 120V potential difference, death is a good possibility.

 

[Glmoneydawg]

DANGER, DANGER, DANGER.
The current draw of an appliance has nothing to do with human safety.
If a human touches any two points with a 120V potential difference, death is a good possibility.

Current draw has alot to do with it.At 120volts our bodies dont draw much current...complete a cicuit with something that draws major cuurent or water and your body carries that amperage...thats bad news...trust me i have done both many times.

 

[castleofargh]

most stereo equip doesnt draw enough current to really hurt you(unless water is involved)i get shocked on a regular basis with my work(taking short cuts lol)at 120 volts it requires something like a toaster or hair dryer that draws significant amperage to give you a good wallop...otherwise its just an unpleasant tingling sensation...3 phase power is a whole other story though.Feel free to mock my mental capacity after all those shocksI will also use this as a defence for any dumb remarks i may make in this forum.

maybe we can go easy with suggestions that electricity isn't dangerous. more so in a hobby where most amateurs have close to no understanding of electricity whatsoever.

even if we don't go as far as electrocution or heart fibrillation(that doesn't really require much current, only the right path), there are quite a few concerns about electrical shocks not being all that great for the human nervous system. so while most of us get your point, getting shocked is not something we should advertise to fellow audiophiles as a trifling matter.

 

[Glmoneydawg]

maybe we can go easy with suggestions that electricity isn't dangerous. more so in a hobby where most amateurs have close to no understanding of electricity whatsoever.

even if we don't go as far as electrocution or heart fibrillation(that doesn't really require much current, only the right path), there are quite a few concerns about electrical shocks not being all that great for the human nervous system. so while most of us get your point, getting shocked is not something we should advertise to fellow audiophiles as a trifling matter.

Gotcha.....definitely not recommending it!

 

[castleofargh]

you can't imagine how I love it when someone doesn't try to be right on the internet no matter the consequences.
it has become rare enough that your reply made me happy.

 

[Glmoneydawg]

Lol...my position was indefensible.

 

[pinnahertz]

DANGER, DANGER, DANGER.
The current draw of an appliance has nothing to do with human safety.
If a human touches any two points with a 120V potential difference, death is a good possibility.

This is correct. We almost never become part of a series circuit with the appliance, we're always in parallel with it, or possibly part of a voltage divider. We'll get whatever voltage is present at the contact point regardless of the current in the other circuit leg. If hot is ground-referenced, and we are connected to a better ground than the normal return path, we are even more in harms way. Fortunately the combination of dry skin and a degree of insulation from electrical ground by means of shoes and not standing on a grounded surface means we typically become living capacitors instead of conductors. The usual 120 VAC shock is annoying (the implication being you can't be both annoyed and dead). But safety dictates designing and handling as if one touch is your last, the attitude which helps insure it won't be.

 

[Glmoneydawg]

This is correct. We almost never become part of a series circuit with the appliance, we're always in parallel with it, or possibly part of a voltage divider. We'll get whatever voltage is present at the contact point regardless of the current in the other circuit leg. If hot is ground-referenced, and we are connected to a better ground than the normal return path, we are even more in harms way. Fortunately the combination of dry skin and a degree of insulation from electrical ground by means of shoes and not standing on a grounded surface means we typically become living capacitors instead of conductors. The usual 120 VAC shock is annoying (the implication being you can't be both annoyed and dead). But safety dictates designing and handling as if one touch is your last, the attitude which helps insure it won't be.

Large motor starting capacitors can be "annoying "also...and voltage doesnt usually kill you,amperage does .

 

[pinnahertz]

Large motor starting capacitors can be "annoying "also...

Any high voltage cap can hold a charge with shock potential. Old CTRs could knock you across the room even though the set's been off for hours. What does that have to do with grounding? Grab one terminal of a cap with a 600V charge on it, you know what you feel? Nothing, and you're even still alive. But grab both, and wacko!

and voltage doesnt kill you,amperage does .

Well you can't have a current without voltage, and you've left "time" out completely, which is a huge factor in both perceived shock an negative physiological results...so really...what's the point? Why are we doing this?

 

[Glmoneydawg]

Any high voltage cap can hold a charge with shock potential. Old CTRs could knock you across the room even though the set's been off for hours. What does that have to do with grounding? Grab one terminal of a cap with a 600V charge on it, you know what you feel? Nothing, and you're even still alive. But grab both, and wacko!

Well you can't have a current without voltage, and you've left "time" out completely, which is a huge factor in both perceived shock an negative physiological results...so really...what's the point? Why are we doing this?

Just checked...i didnt bring the thread here...but yep way off topic...i am easily distracted.

 

[rishabh]

I know its dangerous but I have been using the 3 - 2 prong adapter on many electronics without any issues so far. I'm talking about a couple of years now.

 

[Speedskater]

From the following page:
http://www.spgsamerica.com/information/shock-hazard

20 milliamperes is dangerous !
And 100 milliamperes can be deadly !!!

 

[colonelkernel8]

From the following page:
http://www.spgsamerica.com/information/shock-hazard

20 milliamperes is dangerous !
And 100 milliamperes can be deadly !!!

Edit: nevermind the article posted pretty much covers the whole gamut...

But it takes quite a bit of voltage to get that kind of current across the heart (and it matters how you conduct the voltage and the path of the current through your body). AC or DC also makes a huge difference as human tissue acts like a capacitor, and the higher the frequency, the lower the equivalent resistance. Dry skin itself has an extremely high resistance. It takes at least 30V of DC before it can even be felt. After that though, you're dealing with a lot of salty human body-water (hehe), and it's reasonably conductive. I could go on for a long time on how non-DC-offset mains AC is actually less dangerous than high voltage DC because of it "zeroing" its potential 50 or 60 times a second (preventing some of the effects of "not being able to let go" because of the tensed muscles) but I think I'll leave it at "it's enormously complicated, stay away from high voltage AC or DC".

 

[Glmoneydawg]

Edit: nevermind the article posted pretty much covers the whole gamut...

But it takes quite a bit of voltage to get that kind of current across the heart (and it matters how you conduct the voltage and the path of the current through your body). AC or DC also makes a huge difference as human tissue acts like a capacitor, and the higher the frequency, the lower the equivalent resistance. Dry skin itself has an extremely high resistance. It takes at least 30V of DC before it can even be felt. After that though, you're dealing with a lot of salty human body-water (hehe), and it's reasonably conductive. I could go on for a long time on how non-DC-offset mains AC is actually less dangerous than high voltage DC because of it "zeroing" its potential 50 or 60 times a second (preventing some of the effects of "not being able to let go" because of the tensed muscles) but I think I'll leave it at "it's enormously complicated, stay away from high voltage AC or DC".

Lol....i dont feel like we are helping the OP with his problem.