Shocking behaviour

[nigelnorris]

I spilled a small amount of wort while mashing, and then the lights and sockets went out in my kitchen. I went to the cupboard under the stairs and turned the fuse switch thing back on and the kitchen came back to life. I went to turn my ACE boiler on [which had been off the whole time] and got a shock off of it.

I never had a mains shock before, scared the bejesus out of me.

Anyway I turned it back on from a distance, using a wooden spoon, and it seems to getting up to boil ok. Guess I'll just have to remember not to touch any of the metal parts of it in future.

 

[terrym]

I would get it checked out.
It is maybe dangerous as it is at present, although it may just need drying out.
But what if someone else touches it?
Is a few litres of beer worth the risk of getting electrocuted?

 

[Gunge]

Hurts don't it? I once left an FV to cool in the bath and forgot to turn off the tap. Ended up with the kitchen below getting flooded. I turned the mains electric off and waited a few hours before tentatively flicking the switch - no harm done. Once whilst fiddling with a plugged-in glue gun, I touched a wire that I shouldn't. My whole body was painfully vibrating (50 Hertz, I believe!) and I could feel myself rapidly getting physically hot, but was totally paralysed and couldn't do a thing. My onlooking missus and pal thought it was hilarious until the realised that I might actually be dying. I remember thinking "please don't touch me" but she had the good sense to reach for the switch instead, at which point I collapsed to the floor. I've heard that mains electric will either throw you off or exert a grip that will pretty soon kill you. I fell for the latter scenario, and was effectively wired-up to the mains for 10 seconds or so. To my shame I'm still pretty laid-back when fiddling with electrical stuff. One day my luck might run out.

 

[Covrich]

My Ace boiler was very dodgy.. I didn't spill it kept blowing the fuse out on the house.. We think wort or water was seepin through to the electrics..

Sent it straight back..

 

[Clint]

One of the reasons I didn't go for an all in one electric system....I WOULD have had bother with it! I like my 32 litre pot!

 

[Clint]

See...here it is,behaving itself as we speak!

 

[Ajhutch]

I spilled a small amount of wort while mashing, and then the lights and sockets went out in my kitchen. I went to the cupboard under the stairs and turned the fuse switch thing back on and the kitchen came back to life. I went to turn my ACE boiler on [which had been off the whole time] and got a shock off of it.

I never had a mains shock before, scared the bejesus out of me.

Anyway I turned it back on from a distance, using a wooden spoon, and it seems to getting up to boil ok. Guess I'll just have to remember not to touch any of the metal parts of it in future.

Glad you’re ok, getting a shock is indeed very scary

 

[Ajhutch]

I've heard that mains electric will either throw you off or exert a grip that will pretty soon kill you.

That’s interesting, I had a shock once but it was instantaneous and I let go / got thrown off. I was changing electric sockets upstairs, some builders were working downstairs and “don’t switch that fuse back on” was too complicated an instruction for them. Screamed the house down I did.

 

[nigelnorris]

Actually mine wasn't as bad as any described here, more like the sensation you get when you touch your tongue to a 9v battery, only up my arm. And it was instantaneous, stopped as soon as it started.

 

[Saisonator]

Any electrical equipment like this should be plugged into a socket with RCD protection.

 

[Fil]

Somethings not right, i would disconnect from mains and pull the base off and then...

#1 check there is a secure earth(green/yellow) connection to the metal structure. And check for loose or stray connections, trace each wire in turn from one end to the other ensuring its secured and insulated or isolated at each end, and if you discover any loose or badly isolated/insulated connections fix any signs of heat damage photograph and send to your supplier tho, that can only get worse unremidied.

#2 check for moisture/water ingress, tissue paper is a fantastic moisture detector as a single drop will get absorbed and be visibly damp. so ensure the base insides are bone dry.
stuff the base with loose tissue/bog or kitchen roll sit upright, CLOSE THE TAP! and fill with water and leave overnight, Drain, upturn and check the tissue in the base for any evidence of moisture, if found contact the supplier, we are still in the EU so all consumer electrical goods should not fail within 5 years..

 

[Bigcol49]

Hi!
I once cut through a mains cable with an angle grinder. Fortunately, it was the feed to the grinder.
Nothing worse than a loud pop, but a definite sixpence and half-crown moment :smile:

 

[nigelnorris]

Somethings not right, i would disconnect from mains and pull the base off and then...

#1 check there is a secure earth(green/yellow) connection to the metal structure. And check for loose or stray connections, trace each wire in turn from one end to the other ensuring its secured and insulated or isolated at each end, and if you discover any loose or badly isolated/insulated connections fix any signs of heat damage photograph and send to your supplier tho, that can only get worse unremidied.

#2 check for moisture/water ingress, tissue paper is a fantastic moisture detector as a single drop will get absorbed and be visibly damp. so ensure the base insides are bone dry.
stuff the base with loose tissue/bog or kitchen roll sit upright, CLOSE THE TAP! and fill with water and leave overnight, Drain, upturn and check the tissue in the base for any evidence of moisture, if found contact the supplier, we are still in the EU so all consumer electrical goods should not fail within 5 years..

Okey dokey, I'm going to do exactly that. tomorrow.

 

[Clint]

I would drag it up the garden and kill it with a hammer.

 

[Nicks90]

I got a shock when I was doing the electrics in the kitchen last month. Wife thought the power had tripped and went and turned it back on whilst I was face deep putting in the new cooker electrics.
Blew me clear across our 5 meter wide kitchen and I literally bounced off the opposite wall.
Ended up with a burn on my index finger, a big bruise on the back of my head and for some unknown reason (and rather embarrassingly) bruised testicles...

Electrics are dangerous and respect should be paid, much more so than with hot liquid or gas....as both of those can be seen or smelt. Electricity just smacks you out the blue

 

[bomberns127]

liquid and electricty does not mix!!! dont use till its sorted and earthed properly,
240v in this country can stop yer ticker, dont use till sorted.

 

[RichieBeer]

...and for some unknown reason (and rather embarrassingly) bruised testicles...

"Bruised Testicles"

I don't mean to make light of your unfortunate incident and sincerely hope you're OK, but that might just be the name of my next beer.

 

[IainM]

I strongly suggest you follow Fil's advice. Apart from that, this thread reminds me of a hostel I stayed in in Cusco. The shower head was live, so standing up under it resulting in a rather unpleasant shock. We figured it out though. You had to kneel as low as possible. That way there was never a contiguous stream of water between you and the shower head.

 

[Clint]

....my advice is the best!

 

[Covrich]

Boils done time to switch off and add flame out