Just got a shock from the mains...

hellarda

hellarda

hellarda

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As above... was just plugging in my laptop charger into an extension lead and i must have touched the plug for the lamp that was plugged in which i can now see had some bare wires exposed... (This is not my house btw so had no idea it was like that)

Got a pretty nasty sensation in my hand but didn't get thrown back or anything and feel fine, the trip switch tripped almost immediately.

Is it likely to have caused any damage?

I don't think this is medical advice but if it is mods feel free to lock/delete

EDIT: i was wearing quite thick shoes and on the first floor of the building would that have decreased how bad the shock was?
 
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With a little care, it's possible to touch both live and neutral on a plug while pulling it out. Wrap your fingers around it. Not useful knowledge, but feel free to try it out.

You're fine. Better yet, the next time you meet mains AC, it'll hurt less. I hear its possible to kill yourself with it, but short of tying the wires to your arm before switching on the mains, it's hard to see how. AC tends to throw you off.
 
JonJ678 said:
With a little care, it's possible to touch both live and neutral on a plug while pulling it out. Wrap your fingers around it. Not useful knowledge, but feel free to try it out.

You're fine. Better yet, the next time you meet mains AC, it'll hurt less. I hear its possible to kill yourself with it, but short of tying the wires to your arm before switching on the mains, it's hard to see how. AC tends to throw you off.
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Are you speaking from experience with your WC'd PSU by any chance?
 
I haven't managed to burn myself - was that on 230V fornowagain?

@ManLoveRules - it's from the PSU, a few lamps I rewired, a faulty usb plug, a HIFI I took apart and DIY electric arc welding. There are many, many ways to connect yourself to the mains :(

edit: it might be spot welding, not arc - featured one piece of metal attached to "live" and another to "neutral". There were certainly sparks involved.
 
JonJ678 said:
I haven't managed to burn myself - was that on 230V fornowagain?

@ManLoveRules - it's from the PSU, a few lamps I rewired, a faulty usb plug, a HIFI I took apart and DIY electric arc welding. There are many, many ways to connect yourself to the mains :(

edit: it might be spot welding, not arc - featured one piece of metal attached to "live" and another to "neutral". There were certainly sparks involved.
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Defiantly spot welding. Arc uses rods with an anti-oxidising coating on the outside.

Braver man than me, electric scares me.
 
If instead I attached two bits of metal to earth, and tried to join them using a third attached to live, would that count as arc? Would probably need to use something with a higher melting point than aluminium as the live rod, but not convinced anti-oxidation is a prerequisite.

Not sure it counts as brave. Curiosity kills cats, one day it'll get me.
 
You didn't even get burnt? Not hardcore enough. Even my electric fly swatter thing burns (well, maybe that's exaggerating, it does leave a mark though :p)
 
JonJ678 said:
I haven't managed to burn myself - was that on 230V fornowagain?
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Yeah, I was clearing a shop for refitting years ago this was. Isolated the mains panel, just cartridge fuses before rcds etc. Managed to chop through a 45A ring that fed from elsewhere without checking it first. All whilst up a ladder. Through me off said ladder, ruined my cutter and burned my hand. Left me somewhat shaken and wishing I'd paid more attention to my Dad (Electronic Engineer) to always double check the wire and never assume it's safe. Still, gave my crew a good laugh. I've caught a few over the years, high frequency high voltage (TV's) are the worst. They don't heal very well or fast.
 
That's worth knowing. It seems reasonable for 230V/13A to be less hazardous than 230V/45A. I'll try to learn from your mistake!

I hope I'll be more cautious with higher voltages, though you receiving more than one shock suggests caution isn't always sufficient.
 
JonJ678 said:
With a little care, it's possible to touch both live and neutral on a plug while pulling it out. Wrap your fingers around it. Not useful knowledge, but feel free to try it out.

You're fine. Better yet, the next time you meet mains AC, it'll hurt less. I hear its possible to kill yourself with it, but short of tying the wires to your arm before switching on the mains, it's hard to see how. AC tends to throw you off.
Click to expand...

This is awful advice, it may be doable but that's no reason to go playing with mains electricity.
 
JonJ678 said:
That's worth knowing. It seems reasonable for 230V/13A to be less hazardous than 230V/45A. I'll try to learn from your mistake!

I hope I'll be more cautious with higher voltages, though you receiving more than one shock suggests caution isn't always sufficient.
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To be fair it's usually when you cut corners or you're tired. But if you work around live equipment, diagnostics repairs etc, you're going to get a zap or two over the years. There's not much current, but the old HV stuff can have decent residuals and jump quite the gap with a good path. My old man always said keep one hand in your pocket, that way the voltage doesn't cross your chest/heart.
 
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Had a few shocks in my time, normally tingles then your arm aches for a little, even had a shock through the top of my head which wasn't fun! Bare cores above a loft hatch that I didn't spot till it was too late, Been very close to giving myself a 415v shock and actually blew two 80a Fuses while I was on, Won't be repeating that anytime soon.
 
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