Anyone who understands electricity can tell me why I'm not dead?

[BD2003]

So I have a turtle in a 30 gallon tank, about 10 gal or so of water is in it. I have an electric filter that liked to spontaneously stop working, so first I went about my business and cleaned the tank for like a half hour, my hands were submerged almost the entire time. When I finally got around to the filter, I took it out of the water and went through my usual routine of slapping the shit out of it until it finally turns back on. Except it wasnt turning on, so as I'm inspecting it I get this super painful electric shock when I accidentally touched the part where the base of the power cord fits into the filter. I could see that the cable was just hanging off by a thread, with bare wire showing and everything.

As far as I can tell, there was basically a bare power plug connected directly to a wall socket, submerged in water the entire time. I always would have figured that a live wire submerged in a puddle of water would be insta-death as soon as I touched the water...at least it is in the movies! But my turtle was just kicking it in there for weeks without a problem, I didn't feel the slightest shock or tingle when I put my hands in the water, and it merely just hurt like hell for an instant when I touched the bare wire.

I still don't fully understand electricity and circuits, etc....so I guess what I'm wondering is why aren't my turtle and I dead, or at least why didn't I get shocked as soon as I touched the water?

 

[IronWing]

Water plus you plus whatever you standing on didn't constitute a good path to ground or at least not a better path to ground that the wires in the damaged cord.

 

[OCGuy]

How are you sure you aren't?

 

[brianmanahan]

How are you sure you aren't?

*whipser* i see dead turtles

 

[Rakehellion]

The current coming from the wall outlet isn't that deadly. Don't learn all your science from sitcoms.

 

[Rubycon]

If you were grounded better, i.e. outside standing on damp concrete and put your hand in the water you would feel a shock but still not as strong as touching the wire directly!

The conductivity of water is related to the amount of ions present. Extremely pure water isn't a conductor and water that comes from the ocean will spark if splashed on live conductors carrying a few hundred volts. (Actually it's more like a pretty pink fire!

When you touched the wires there was a good path, lucky for you it was very short!

If you had an old metal framed tank and it was touching something grounded and you were leaning over where the metal band was touching your chest while you touched that wire it could have stopped your heart.

This is why it's recommended to connect these things to a GFCI. The leakage current to trip is still enough to produce a fairly uncomfortable shock but far less than what would kill.

Don't believe that nonsense you see in the movies either. If there's a pool party and someone throws a radio in the pool, sparks aren't going to fly and everyone gets to fry! Not gonna happen. Grab that radio (assuming GFCI outlets aren't in use which they are SUPPOSED to be!) and walk out of the pool with it and you will light up like a Christmas tree. Well not quite but you wouldn't want to do that. :biggrin:

 

[OCGuy]

I think I have seen this movie....so prepare for what is going to happen.

Your turtle is going to join up with other neighborhood turtles to fight crime, taking all of their direction from a talking rat. Hijinks will ensue.

 

[rudeguy]

If you were grounded better, i.e. outside standing on damp concrete and put your hand in the water you would feel a shock but still not as strong as touching the wire directly!

The conductivity of water is related to the amount of ions present. Extremely pure water isn't a conductor and water that comes from the ocean will spark if splashed on live conductors carrying a few hundred volts. (Actually it's more like a pretty pink fire!

When you touched the wires there was a good path, lucky for you it was very short!

If you had an old metal framed tank and it was touching something grounded and you were leaning over where the metal band was touching your chest while you touched that wire it could have stopped your heart.

This is why it's recommended to connect these things to a GFCI. The leakage current to trip is still enough to produce a fairly uncomfortable shock but far less than what would kill.

Don't believe that nonsense you see in the movies either. If there's a pool party and someone throws a radio in the pool, sparks aren't going to fly and everyone gets to fry! Not gonna happen. Grab that radio (assuming GFCI outlets aren't in use which they are SUPPOSED to be!) and walk out of the pool with it and you will light up like a Christmas tree. Well not quite but you wouldn't want to do that. :biggrin:

I hate it when you make the rest of us look dumb

 

[Papa Hogan]

I've spoken to guys that dig who have been electrocuted and lived to tell the tale. One gentleman in particular said that he had a spade and a probe in the ground and had a hand on each when a backhoe cut into a high-voltage line nearby. He said he could not let go of the tools and was unable to say anything until the backhoe operator completely cut the line after he realized that his coworker was getting zapped.

 

[Ruptga]

I hate it when you make the rest of us look dumb

I'm sorry you like your women dumb.

 

[rudeguy]

I'm sorry you like your women dumb.

What are you talking about? I love women that are smarter than me.

But if I didn't give Ruby hassle about nerding out, her circuits could overload and she might soft reset.

 

[zinfamous]

were it a salt water tank, the outcome might have been different. electricity only travels well through water with high ion content. This is why being in the ocean during an electrical storm is bad. A fresh water lake, not so bad.

Your backyard swimming pool isn't that bad either--but a crowded public pool is, because of all the salty people/water ratio. Ditto the bathtub--smaller volume of water with large salt producer (you) can be dangerous.

 

[rudeguy]

I've spoken to guys that dig who have been electrocuted and lived to tell the tale. One gentleman in particular said that he had a spade and a probe in the ground and had a hand on each when a backhoe cut into a high-voltage line nearby. He said he could not let go of the tools and was unable to say anything until the backhoe operator completely cut the line after he realized that his coworker was getting zapped.

F that!

I got zapped tons of times doing car audio but it was never anything bad, it was just funny. Then one time I was holding a shop light and I didn't know the cord was frayed. I was standing in a puddle and my muscles just weren't working right. I was able to let go after I figured it out but that shit is scary.

Its the amps that get ya!

 

[Ruptga]

related

 

[Papa Hogan]

F that!

I got zapped tons of times doing car audio but it was never anything bad, it was just funny. Then one time I was holding a shop light and I didn't know the cord was frayed. I was standing in a puddle and my muscles just weren't working right. I was able to let go after I figured it out but that shit is scary.

Its the amps that get ya!

He didn't even have to touch the wires to get shocked...he was close to the cut with hands on metal objects in the ground. Digging is very dangerous these days with more electric lines going underground. Why couldn't they keep it up in the air away from people planting gardens?

 

[Papa Hogan]

related

What if you were flashing your BIOS during a thunderstorm and you got hit by lightning?
—njsg:awe:


lol

 

[rudeguy]

He didn't even have to touch the wires to get shocked...he was close to the cut with hands on metal objects in the ground. Digging is very dangerous these days with more electric lines going underground. Why couldn't they keep it up in the air away from people planting gardens?

Above ground lines fail 10x what below ground do.

 

[Papa Hogan]

What?

A 2000 study by the Maryland Public Service Commission looked at the reliability of “comparable”
overhead and underground feeders and concluded
that the impact of undergrounding the lines was, at
best, “unclear.”

 

[Pulsar]

*whipser* i see dead turtles

Why don't you whipser your pomes to him.

 

[rudeguy]

What?

Shrug

I can only tell you my experience from working at the cable co. Above ground lines were unreliable at best. Below ground never had problems unless some stuck something into them.

Could very well be the opposite for power lines. But I can't see why.

 

[Papa Hogan]

Shrug

I can only tell you my experience from working at the cable co. Above ground lines were unreliable at best. Below ground never had problems unless some stuck something into them.

Could very well be the opposite for power lines. But I can't see why.

Who cares about cable TV? If it gets cut, what happens? Oh no! Grandma (and I) can't watch Price is Right @ 10! What would a hospital do without power?
Then again, my CATV service for internet is UG (don't have TV with them). I think the problem with CATV service overhead is that squirrels chew the protective sheathing off the cables, and water intrudes. CATV SHOULD be underground. Phone? Don't have a landline, so I don't know.

 

[rudeguy]

Who cares about cable TV? If it gets cut, what happens? Oh no! Grandma (and I) can't watch Price is Right @ 10! What would a hospital do without power?

Run on the massive backup generator it has installed?

What would the hospital do without internet and phones that it relies on?

 

[Red Squirrel]

Water is very high resistance. So most of the power was probably exiting through the cord's ground as it was closer, or neutral.

As for overhead vs underground, I'm glad to say my lines are overhead, otherwise I would not have been able to get fibre internet. They are not doing underground plant as it's too expensive and lot of logistical nightmares. Most of the existing underground copper is also very very old and if the air dryer at the CO fails they often get lot of water in them and there are lot of issues. Underground would only be better if cities had networks of manholes that you can walk through, so it would make maintenance/upgrades possible.

 

[Papa Hogan]

Run on the massive backup generator it has installed?

What would the hospital do without internet and phones that it relies on?

It definitely needs internet and phone, yes, but if you're in the middle of heart surgery and you lose phone and internet. "Hey, I can't google the next step." "Internet's out." "Ok, let me call my colleague." "Phone's down, too." What happened? Lose power and the respirator shuts down.

Better hope that generator has been well-maintained. And it doesn't run out of diesel.

 

[SheHateMe]

You're not dead because you forgot to leave us your stuff before you went.