Almost got electricuited...

Philippine Mango

Diamond Member
Oct 29, 2004
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Damn, i'm really scared right now or something.. I was in the process of attaching my TV to hang above my shower when I slipped and the TV (which I forgot why it was plugged in) slipped out of my hands. In the process of falling I managed to turn on the shower which made things all the more interesting. Sparks flew everywhere but thankfully there wasn't any water on me when the TV shorted out...

Man what an evening...
 

Stumps

Diamond Member
Jun 18, 2001
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sounds like somebodies trying to score a Darwin Award.

TV in the shower...now that's just stupid.
 

SSP

Lifer
Oct 11, 1999
17,727
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Originally posted by: Stumps
sounds like somebodies trying to score a Darwin Award.

TV in the shower...now that's just stupid.

I was about to post the same thing.

Submit your application before you take a shower. Or we'll just do that for ya..
 

BrownTown

Diamond Member
Dec 1, 2005
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That wouldn't kill you though. I've zapped myself with 120V AC several times and it just gives you a bad jolt.
 

Sc4freak

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Oct 22, 2004
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Originally posted by: BrownTown
That wouldn't kill you though. I've zapped myself with 120V AC several times and it just gives you a bad jolt.
If its from a wall socket you're probably going to be dead. It isn't the voltage that kills you, its the current. High amperage at 1V can probably kill you.
 

jagec

Lifer
Apr 30, 2004
24,442
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Originally posted by: BrownTown
That wouldn't kill you though. I've zapped myself with 120V AC several times and it just gives you a bad jolt.

Your skin's resistance goes WAY down when wet, however. Try jumping in a pool, and then zapping yourself again;)

Shower TV...admit it, you're just going to use it to watch porn.

Originally posted by: Sc4freak
Originally posted by: BrownTown
That wouldn't kill you though. I've zapped myself with 120V AC several times and it just gives you a bad jolt.
If its from a wall socket you're probably going to be dead. It isn't the voltage that kills you, its the current. High amperage at 1V can probably kill you.

No, because 1V isn't enough potential to drive that current. Remember, V=IR, no two ways about it. I suppose if you stuck electrodes directly into your flesh on either side of your heart, you might be able to kill yourself with a very low voltage, but that's really pushing the limits of a reasonable scenario.

And yes, I've zapped myself with 120VAC from a wall socket. Several times. It wakes you up, but certainly doesn't kill you.
 

Special K

Diamond Member
Jun 18, 2000
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Originally posted by: Sc4freak
Originally posted by: BrownTown
That wouldn't kill you though. I've zapped myself with 120V AC several times and it just gives you a bad jolt.
If its from a wall socket you're probably going to be dead. It isn't the voltage that kills you, its the current. High amperage at 1V can probably kill you.


It's a combination of both current and voltage that kills you. Static charge on a doorknob can be in the tens of thousands of volts, but it doesn't kill you because the amount of charge is in the microcoloumb range.

Likewise, a 1 V wire that can source up to 10 kA is not going to do much to you because that potential is not enough to overcome the resistance of dry skin, which I believe is in the 1k range.
 
Jun 19, 2004
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Mythbusters figured out that it's 6 AMPS across the heart for a kill scenario. Most appliances they tested in a tub (without a ground fault interrupter of course) hit the kill mark or well above.

That was in a tub of water though. I imagine just being wet from a shower improves your odds of surviving a great deal.
 

MrPickins

Diamond Member
May 24, 2003
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Originally posted by: MisterJackson
Mythbusters figured out that it's 6 AMPS across the heart for a kill scenario. Most appliances they tested in a tub (without a ground fault interrupter of course) hit the kill mark or well above.

That was in a tub of water though. I imagine just being wet from a shower improves your odds of surviving a great deal.

6 amps? You need to watch that episode again. It takes far less than 1 amp across the heart to kill a person. Closer to 100 mA.
 

jpeyton

Moderator in SFF, Notebooks, Pre-Built/Barebones
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Aug 23, 2003
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Almost isn't good enough.