What kind of company fixes power line damage...

[Mark R]

Originally posted by: MikeyIs4Dcats
hell, there is even an instance where a man was killed by a 9 volt battery.

A 9V battery cannot electrocute you from outside your body. It's pretty much impossible - unless you have a serious heart condition, or possibly, some sort of implant like a pacemaker.

The electrical resistance of the body is way too high (even with internal electrodes), unless the electrical current is delivered by electrodes touching, or inside, the heart.

Now, the story as you retold it sounds impossible, but the actual story is slightly different. Said person managed to electrocute themselves with an ohm-meter that they were using to check electrical cables. Ohm-meters for electrical insulation testing, while they may be powered by a 9V battery, actually step the voltage up internally, and typically test with 500 or 1000 volts. Said meters are potential hazard even when used correctly, and if misused can easily cause electrocution.

 

[jlee]

Originally posted by: alkemyst

Originally posted by: jthg

Originally posted by: MikeyIs4Dcats
messing with the secondary drop to your home is not smart. it is live voltage and would likely kill you if you don't know what you are doing.

Well, it's completely insulated at the attachment point. Besides... its only 120V, not like 240V in some countries You're safe if you make sure that you always fall away from the power source in case you're paralyzed...

Anyways, I'll start calling around on Monday.

Thanks for the replies.

Edit: Actually, what I said is wrong. Since the power coming into a home is 3 phased, you could potentially get 240V.

WTF...120V or not it's at full amps. You'd have a likely chance of dying from that...

please don't give advice on things that you KNOW NOTHING ABOUT.

OP, you need an electrician. You obviously do not have the skillset to accomplish this safely.

It should not be that expensive.

You just quoted the OP, and told him not to give advice to himself...?

 

[alkemyst]

Originally posted by: Mark R

Originally posted by: MikeyIs4Dcats
hell, there is even an instance where a man was killed by a 9 volt battery.

A 9V battery cannot electrocute you from outside your body. It's pretty much impossible - unless you have a serious heart condition, or possibly, some sort of implant like a pacemaker.

The electrical resistance of the body is way too high (even with internal electrodes), unless the electrical current is delivered by electrodes touching, or inside, the heart.

Now, the story as you retold it sounds impossible, but the actual story is slightly different. Said person managed to electrocute themselves with an ohm-meter that they were using to check electrical cables. Ohm-meters for electrical insulation testing, while they may be powered by a 9V battery, actually step the voltage up internally, and typically test with 500 or 1000 volts. Said meters are potential hazard even when used correctly, and if misused can easily cause electrocution.

http://www.darwinawards.com/darwin/darwin1999-50.html

Either way the power was from a 9V battery...nothing else.

It had nothing to do with voltage, it was 100mA that did it. That's all it takes to stop a heart.

 

[alkemyst]

Originally posted by: randomlinh

Originally posted by: alkemyst
touching a live wire with one hand can still kill you...there is a lot of incomplete advice being given here.

Have any of you actually worked on anything, yet alone live power lines?

i think the don't touch with both hands was suppose to be a joke. at least, i hope so...

There are many that belief this and will talk about it as if they did this. Like if you are wearing sneakers you can't get electrocuted because the rubber prevents you from being grounded.

 

[alkemyst]

I love how a poster can come in, make a thread that's shows they have no knowledge of WTF they are taking on and within a few replies become a WIKI-expert and start giving advice to others.

While a few mA is all it takes to kill you...I don't find myself that worried while working on such circuits...however, 120V+ @ even 15A I am making sure the power is dead.

 

[jthg]

Originally posted by: alkemyst
I love how a poster can come in, make a thread that's shows they have no knowledge of WTF they are taking on and within a few replies become a WIKI-expert and start giving advice to others.

While a few mA is all it takes to kill you...I don't find myself that worried while working on such circuits...however, 120V+ @ even 15A I am making sure the power is dead.

Don't assume that everyone is a "WIKI-expert". What are your credentials?

As for the darwin award page you linked, I find it hard to believe that the resistance below the skin can drop as low as 100ohm. So, as an experiment, I did the next best thing - I stuck the leads of an ohm meter into my mouth and gave them a few good licks with my tongue. It came out to ~150 kilo-ohms. That doesn't prove anything about the resistance of "good conducting electrolytes of the body", but if 1" of tongue and saliva has 150 kilo-ohms, how much resistance would 1 meter of flesh have?

Edit: I found a slab of beef! It's been drained of most of its bodily fluids, but it came out to ~500 kilo-ohms.

 

[imported_Baloo]

That would still be your power companies responsibilty. Your responsibility begins where the wire exits the meter. I'm betting the meter is not between your roof and the utility pole.

 

[alkemyst]

Originally posted by: jthg

Originally posted by: alkemyst
I love how a poster can come in, make a thread that's shows they have no knowledge of WTF they are taking on and within a few replies become a WIKI-expert and start giving advice to others.

While a few mA is all it takes to kill you...I don't find myself that worried while working on such circuits...however, 120V+ @ even 15A I am making sure the power is dead.

Don't assume that everyone is a "WIKI-expert". What are your credentials?

As for the darwin award page you linked, I find it hard to believe that the resistance below the skin can drop as low as 100ohm. So, as an experiment, I did the next best thing - I stuck the leads of an ohm meter into my mouth and gave them a few good licks with my tongue. It came out to ~150 kilo-ohms. That doesn't prove anything about the resistance of "good conducting electrolytes of the body", but if 1" of tongue and saliva has 150 kilo-ohms, how much resistance would 1 meter of flesh have?

Edit: I found a slab of beef! It's been drained of most of its bodily fluids, but it came out to ~500 kilo-ohms.

I am not sure what you mean by credentials...I have done a lot of work on electrical systems, took college level courses on them, and know enough that just being able to 'fall away' from a shock is not going to be enough to save your ass.

Seriously though, you didn't even know what an electrician was prior to this thread and now you are a Level 34 Electrical Journeyman.

 

[jthg]

Originally posted by: alkemyst
I am not sure what you mean by credentials...I have done a lot of work on electrical systems, took college level courses on them, and know enough that just being able to 'fall away' from a shock is not going to be enough to save your ass.

Seriously though, you didn't even know what an electrician was prior to this thread and now you are a Level 34 Electrical Journeyman.

What makes you think I didn't know what an electrician is? I was simply wondering whether professional electricians are willing to do the construction work of putting an attachment into a wall.

I've worked with and taken courses on electricity plenty of times, in both high school and college. I didn't go into the field professionally (I'm CS), but I've worked with custom-built (i.e. wires everywhere) robotic systems powered by 12V and 120V. There's also minor stuff like wiring up a disposer or putting in a new light fixture.

In no way am I saying that 120V is not dangerous, plenty of people die from it every year. It is not, though, the guaranteed insta-death that a lot of you are making it out to be. Some common sense goes a long way. Stuff like powering off exposed leads before working on them, not touching leads with both hands until you're sure it's not live (even after powering it off) and checking for damaged insulation on live wires before touching them.

Oh, and would people just please stop talking about how much current the power line carries?

 

[jthg]

Originally posted by: Baloo
That would still be your power companies responsibilty. Your responsibility begins where the wire exits the meter. I'm betting the meter is not between your roof and the utility pole.

I'm really hoping that I can get the power company to do this, or at least that they offer to do it for a fee. If I get a contractor to do it, who knows whether they will do it right.

 

[Mark R]

Originally posted by: alkemyst
Either way the power was from a 9V battery...nothing else.

It had nothing to do with voltage, it was 100mA that did it. That's all it takes to stop a heart.

While I accept that the Darwin Awards site do a bit more research than others, even they conceded that this is unverified, and that there is no documentary evidence that suggests this event ever took place as described.

While the electrical resistance across the torso may be 100 ohms - the resistance of the arms is much higher. I find it exceptionally unlikely that a point internal electrode in a finger would be able to deliver enough current across the heart to do what is claimed.

 

[misle]

Originally posted by: DrPizza
My question, because misle mentioned it: the secondary drop is 240V? I thought there were 2 wires that are 180 degrees out of phase, each with a potential difference of 120V to the ground. Am I mistaken?

This pic should help: Single Phase Transformer connection
There should be 3 wires from the single phase transformer to the house (called the secondary). 2 lines carrying 120VAC (phase to line (neutral) or ground) and a neutral. You get 240VAC by bridging the 2-120VAC lines (phase to phase).

The 2 conductors are the same phase (unless it is a 3-phase setup). By the way, I'm assuming a Wye connected single phase transformer setup.

The three conductors are usually twisted together, called Triplex. The neutral is usually stranded steel and it also acts as the supporting wire for the copper or aluminum conductors.

Normally, there's no current/voltage on the neutral, unless there is a fault on the line or if you have a floating neutral. In either of those cases, you can be killed by the neutral.

To address other comments:
The reason people say Current kills, not Voltage is because it's true. Obviously there is a relationship between voltage and current, but in AC, it is not linear.
Current is the flow of electrons. The flow of electrons is what injures/kills you.
Voltage is simply a measurement of potential difference.

 

[spaceman]

COMPLAIN.
DONT RISK IT IF YOU ARENT A LISCENCED ASS SCRATCHING ELECTRICIAN
MAKE SURE THEY ARE INSURED/BONDED IF YOU HIRE!!!!!

 

[manlymatt83]

Originally posted by: BlackTigers91
Call the city and bitch up a storm. They'll have it fixed for you, since it sounds like the power company should fix it - I would think.

 

[db]

Depending on your deductible, home insurance may pay for this.

 

[MikeyIs4Dcats]

Originally posted by: Mark R

Originally posted by: MikeyIs4Dcats
hell, there is even an instance where a man was killed by a 9 volt battery.

A 9V battery cannot electrocute you from outside your body. It's pretty much impossible - unless you have a serious heart condition, or possibly, some sort of implant like a pacemaker.

The electrical resistance of the body is way too high (even with internal electrodes), unless the electrical current is delivered by electrodes touching, or inside, the heart.

Now, the story as you retold it sounds impossible, but the actual story is slightly different. Said person managed to electrocute themselves with an ohm-meter that they were using to check electrical cables. Ohm-meters for electrical insulation testing, while they may be powered by a 9V battery, actually step the voltage up internally, and typically test with 500 or 1000 volts. Said meters are potential hazard even when used correctly, and if misused can easily cause electrocution.

none the less, he was still killed by the 9v battery. He actually intentionally poked the electrodes into his fingers.

 

[MikeyIs4Dcats]

Originally posted by: Mark R

Originally posted by: alkemyst
Either way the power was from a 9V battery...nothing else.

It had nothing to do with voltage, it was 100mA that did it. That's all it takes to stop a heart.

While I accept that the Darwin Awards site do a bit more research than others, even they conceded that this is unverified, and that there is no documentary evidence that suggests this event ever took place as described.

While the electrical resistance across the torso may be 100 ohms - the resistance of the arms is much higher. I find it exceptionally unlikely that a point internal electrode in a finger would be able to deliver enough current across the heart to do what is claimed.

I'd have to lolok for it again, but the article I read said it had been confirmed by the Navy, as the man in question was in the Navy when he did it. They had a safety memorandum dedicated to it.

 

[MikeyIs4Dcats]

and the reason that more people are killed by 120v than any other voltage is because a) it is the more common voltage we are exposed to (in the US at least) and b) people do not respect it's ability to kill you.