Up to around 3000v DC off a local generator IIRC (thus the dimming of
the prison lights as seen in many films is a load of old cobblers).
There was a DC v AC competition involving the public killing of an
elephant in the early days of deciding the "best" way to fry people;
prior to that Thomas Edison "perfected" his AC system by killing
numerous cats and dogs in experiments :-
http://www.ccadp.org/electricchair.htm

The local SPCA used to electrocute animals. Then they went to gassing, now
it's the needle.


--
Cheers

Roger T.
Home of the Great Eastern Railway at:-
http://www.highspeedplus.com/~rogertra/
Latitude: 48° 25' North
Longitude: 123° 21' West

On 3 Apr, 06:02, "Roger T." wrote:
Up to around 3000v DC off a local generator IIRC (thus the dimming of
the prison lights as seen in many films is a load of old cobblers).
There was a DC v AC competition involving the public killing of an
elephant in the early days of deciding the "best" way to fry people;
prior to that Thomas Edison "perfected" his AC system by killing
numerous cats and dogs in experiments :-
http://www.ccadp.org/electricchair.htm

The local SPCA used to electrocute animals. *Then they went to gassing, now
it's the needle.

--
Cheers

Roger T.
Home of the Great Eastern Railway at:-http://www.highspeedplus.com/~rogertra/
Latitude: *48° 25' North
Longitude: *123° 21' West

When we lived next to a 750v 3rd rail line, in the days when you could
have an allotment on the bank, our cat used to wander on to the tracks
quite regularly until one day, we assume, his tail swished against the
rail. When we finally caught up with him, there was a horrible smell
of singed fur and a bald patch on his tail. He kept away from the
rails after that.

I always understood that AC killed by high voltages but threw you off
so you might survive, but DC killed with low voltages because you just
stuck there!

MaxB

From: "MaxB"
Subject: Crossing London tube tracks
Date: 03 April 2008 08:52

On 3 Apr, 06:02, "Roger T." wrote:
Up to around 3000v DC off a local generator IIRC (thus the dimming of
the prison lights as seen in many films is a load of old cobblers).
There was a DC v AC competition involving the public killing of an
elephant in the early days of deciding the "best" way to fry people;
prior to that Thomas Edison "perfected" his AC system by killing
numerous cats and dogs in experiments :-
http://www.ccadp.org/electricchair.htm

The local SPCA used to electrocute animals. Then they went to gassing,
now
it's the needle.

--
Cheers

Roger T.
Home of the Great Eastern Railway
at:-http://www.highspeedplus.com/~rogertra/
Latitude: 48° 25' North
Longitude: 123° 21' West

When we lived next to a 750v 3rd rail line, in the days when you could
have an allotment on the bank, our cat used to wander on to the tracks
quite regularly until one day, we assume, his tail swished against the
rail. When we finally caught up with him, there was a horrible smell
of singed fur and a bald patch on his tail. He kept away from the
rails after that.

I always understood that AC killed by high voltages but threw you off
so you might survive, but DC killed with low voltages because you just
stuck there!

MaxB

Reminds me of a time, hundreds of years ago, when I was about 10, and my dad
was repairing the electric iron. He had it in bits, looking for why it
didn't get hot any more. After he had put it back together he plugged it in
and while he was putting his tools away, asked me to touch it. Being
extremely naive I assumed that he wanted to know if it was getting hot or
not. So I touched it. "No. it' still cold", I said. "Oh, but you have sports
shoes on, take one off", he said. I really couldn't imagine how this was
going to affect my appreciation of how hot or cold the iron was, but I took
a shoe off and felt the iron again. "Zappaaloo !!!" I wasn't thrown across
the room, I simply couldn't let go! Dad pulled the plug out of the socket,
and more in frustration than sorrow, complained that obviously the iron
still wasn't fixed.

All this is true, whatever that means.

On Thu, 3 Apr 2008 07:42:49 +0000, Bill Again wrote

Reminds me of a time, hundreds of years ago, when I was about 10, and my dad
was repairing the electric iron. He had it in bits, looking for why it
didn't get hot any more. After he had put it back together he plugged it in
and while he was putting his tools away, asked me to touch it. Being
extremely naive I assumed that he wanted to know if it was getting hot or
not. So I touched it. "No. it' still cold", I said. "Oh, but you have sports
shoes on, take one off", he said. I really couldn't imagine how this was
going to affect my appreciation of how hot or cold the iron was, but I took
a shoe off and felt the iron again. "Zappaaloo !!!" I wasn't thrown across
the room, I simply couldn't let go! Dad pulled the plug out of the socket,
and more in frustration than sorrow, complained that obviously the iron
still wasn't fixed.

All this is true, whatever that means.

I guess it means that you quickly gained a *real* appreciation of what
electricity can do - and you've remembered it all these years!

On Thu, 3 Apr 2008 08:55:44 +0000, Stimpy wrote:

On Thu, 3 Apr 2008 07:42:49 +0000, Bill Again wrote

Reminds me of a time, hundreds of years ago, when I was about 10, and my dad
was repairing the electric iron. He had it in bits, looking for why it
didn't get hot any more. After he had put it back together he plugged it in
and while he was putting his tools away, asked me to touch it. Being
extremely naive I assumed that he wanted to know if it was getting hot or
not. So I touched it. "No. it' still cold", I said. "Oh, but you have sports
shoes on, take one off", he said. I really couldn't imagine how this was
going to affect my appreciation of how hot or cold the iron was, but I took
a shoe off and felt the iron again. "Zappaaloo !!!" I wasn't thrown across
the room, I simply couldn't let go! Dad pulled the plug out of the socket,
and more in frustration than sorrow, complained that obviously the iron
still wasn't fixed.

All this is true, whatever that means.

I guess it means that you quickly gained a *real* appreciation of what
electricity can do - and you've remembered it all these years!

My grandfather (RIP, but not of electrocution) in the United States used to
test a light socket by wetting his finger and sticking it into the socket. As
he was wearing rubber-soled shoes, and took care not to ground himself
elsewhere, he only got a tingle.

I wouldn't recommend it as a fool-proof method.
--
Chris Hansen | chrishansenhome at btinternet dot com

Kevin: "I'm a atheist and I don't want a pervy priest saying any last rites
over me!"
Bob: "Cross-posting top-posters go straight to hell anyway ..."
from alt.obituaries

On Wed, 2 Apr 2008 23:52:23 -0700 (PDT), MaxB
wrote:

On 3 Apr, 06:02, "Roger T." wrote:
Up to around 3000v DC off a local generator IIRC (thus the dimming of
the prison lights as seen in many films is a load of old cobblers).
There was a DC v AC competition involving the public killing of an
elephant in the early days of deciding the "best" way to fry people;
prior to that Thomas Edison "perfected" his AC system by killing
numerous cats and dogs in experiments :-
http://www.ccadp.org/electricchair.htm

The local SPCA used to electrocute animals. *Then they went to gassing, now
it's the needle.

When we lived next to a 750v 3rd rail line, in the days when you could
have an allotment on the bank, our cat used to wander on to the tracks
quite regularly until one day, we assume, his tail swished against the
rail. When we finally caught up with him, there was a horrible smell
of singed fur and a bald patch on his tail. He kept away from the
rails after that.

I always understood that AC killed by high voltages but threw you off
so you might survive, but DC killed with low voltages because you just
stuck there!

There's a lot of pub science involved. Whether you get thrown away or
hang on more likely depends on which muscles are affected and/or
whether being thrown away is actually the result of a reflex reaction
to a shock that might not actually be life-threatening. Either are
equally harmful from the POV of burns (which can be internal and
follow bones) caused by the passage of enough current through the body
distinct from any effect upon the heart's rhythm.

On Thu, 03 Apr 2008 20:31:30 +0100, Charles Ellson wrote:

Whether you get thrown away or hang on more likely depends on which
muscles are affected

Aye all muscles work in pairs and one is normally stronger than the other.
Think of the bicep to bend your arm at the elbow and triceps to straighten
it. If the current is stimulating the stronger muscle you end up being
"locked on".

and/or whether being thrown away is actually the result of a reflex
reaction to a shock that might not actually be life-threatening.

Being thrown across the room is again a function of massively stimulating
the muscles, you involuntarily throw yourself across the room.

--
Cheers
Dave.

In message et, Dave
Liquorice writes
On Thu, 03 Apr 2008 20:31:30 +0100, Charles Ellson wrote:

Whether you get thrown away or hang on more likely depends on which
muscles are affected

Aye all muscles work in pairs and one is normally stronger than the other.
Think of the bicep to bend your arm at the elbow and triceps to straighten
it. If the current is stimulating the stronger muscle you end up being
"locked on".

and/or whether being thrown away is actually the result of a reflex
reaction to a shock that might not actually be life-threatening.

Being thrown across the room is again a function of massively stimulating
the muscles, you involuntarily throw yourself across the room.

Been there and done that. It was a small room about 12' X 12 and I was
sitting at a bench on onside when I caught mains from the back of a
toggle switch. Apparently I pushed my self away from the bench so hard
that I hit the wall on the far side of the room. I don't recall a lot
about it, apart from being scared stiff for a second or so as I realised
what was happening. I woke up sitting on the floor, colleagues reckoned
it was quite spectacular!!



--
Bill

me wrote:
Hence the advise....

Test if a wire is live by touching it to the BACK of the hand. The muscle
action is then to throw your hand away

Better still, test with a meter!

On Sat, 05 Apr 2008 23:59:50 +0100, Bruce Fletcher (Stronsay, Orkney)
wrote:

Test if a wire is live by touching it to the BACK of the hand. The
muscle action is then to throw your hand away

Better still, test with a meter!

A meter can be misleading if it has a high impedance, as many modern
meters do. It'll measure voltages induced into the wire that are not
actually there if you apply even a small "load".

--
Cheers
Dave.