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lion
Joined: 27 Oct 2004
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 Posted: Thu May 01, 2008 7:20 am Post subject: electrocution and 110v devices: are we all idiots? |
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I have a lot of 110/120 volt gear around my place which I've been running through the adapter in the picture. The problem is, the adapter doesn't seem to be grounded (coffee grinder shown for comparison), nor have I found one that is. (The inset picture shows that the one I have was drilled to accommodate the ground plug, but I suspect the ground isn't actually connected to anything.)
So, are we all idiots? Does anyone know of a better / more esoteric adapter available here for US devices that are supposed to be grounded? I don't wanna die this way. |
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mrsquirrel
Joined: 13 Dec 2006
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| Posted: Thu May 01, 2008 1:45 pm Post subject: |
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Don't worry about it.
Back in Thailand a good few mornings I woke myself up sticking my finger into the water boiler to see if it was hot and got a wake up jolt of electricity.
Not worth worrying about unless you are old with a pacemaker. |
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lion
Joined: 27 Oct 2004
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| Posted: Thu May 01, 2008 3:20 pm Post subject: |
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Politely disagree.
I have taken 120v more than a few times: once when I was a kid, stirring some popcorn in a metal oil cooker with a metal fork, once a few years ago at home, wiping the front of an electrical outlet mounted on a stove, etc...
We have something in common: we've been lucky. Although there are many many stories of people who survive 120v, if you were to take 120v across the chest, straight thru the heart, from one hand to the other with both hands wet, it might well be a different story...
The thing that particularly worries me is the little custom-drilled "ground" hole in my adapter. |
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JustJohn
Joined: 18 Oct 2007
Location: Your computer screen
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| Posted: Thu May 01, 2008 3:47 pm Post subject: |
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I don't think they're trying to trick you; it's pretty obvious that it's not grounded. I think it's just so that it will accept plugs that have a ground.
I imagine you'd be pretty ticked if you were trying to plug in a device that had a ground and you couldn't because there was no hole for it... |
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nobbyken
Joined: 07 Jun 2006
Location: Yongin ^^
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| Posted: Thu May 01, 2008 3:53 pm Post subject: |
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In college I had a electrical engineering lecturer who kept his left hand in his pocket while he walked round class. He would touch circuits with his right hand, so the current wouldn't cross his heart.
I've had a few 240v shocks in my time, most from shear stupidity, and would I be right in thinking that a 110v shock would have more current and be potentially more lethal? |
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lion
Joined: 27 Oct 2004
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| Posted: Thu May 01, 2008 4:13 pm Post subject: |
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| nobbyken wrote: |
| would I be right in thinking that a 110v shock would have more current and be potentially more lethal? |
No no, 240 would entail twice as much current for a given resistance, but 110 could be enough...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electrical_resistance |
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ttompatz
Joined: 05 Sep 2005
Location: Kwangju, South Korea
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| Posted: Thu May 01, 2008 8:11 pm Post subject: |
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| lion wrote: |
| nobbyken wrote: |
| would I be right in thinking that a 110v shock would have more current and be potentially more lethal? |
No no, 240 would entail twice as much current for a given resistance, but 110 could be enough...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electrical_resistance |
Key word is current. Amps kill.... not volts or ohms.
12 volts can kill if you have enough amps. |
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OneWayTraffic
Joined: 14 Mar 2005
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| Posted: Sat May 03, 2008 7:14 pm Post subject: |
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| ttompatz wrote: |
| lion wrote: |
| nobbyken wrote: |
| would I be right in thinking that a 110v shock would have more current and be potentially more lethal? |
No no, 240 would entail twice as much current for a given resistance, but 110 could be enough...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electrical_resistance |
Key word is current. Amps kill.... not volts or ohms.
12 volts can kill if you have enough amps. |
This is true. A 0.1A current across the heart can send it into fibulation according to my old physics prof. On the other hand, people surviving the kilovolts in a bolt of lightning isn't uncommon.
Even a jolt of static electricity is in the thousands of volts. Dry skin can resist a DC current of about that much, though AC will go right through at 12V due to induction.
Electricity is a very inefficient killer. |
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lion
Joined: 27 Oct 2004
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| Posted: Sun May 04, 2008 5:27 am Post subject: |
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| ...but back OT, anyone seen anything vaguely resembling a grounded transformer here? |
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nobbyken
Joined: 07 Jun 2006
Location: Yongin ^^
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| Posted: Sun May 04, 2008 6:56 am Post subject: |
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We have an electric blender, electric kettle, electric coffee maker, etc..
Wife said we have too many gadgets, so I bought her an electric chair  . |
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