Beepster

Ah yes... but isn't that just a more convenient version of the old two probe testers? I probably should snag one anyway but if my current tester does the same thing I'd like to use it if only to feed my brain with some old school electrical knowledge. I find that type of thing interesting. Cheers.

Those yellow stubby testers are great for checking incorrect wiring, but they won't tell you if you have a low voltage leak from Ground to Neutral.

The wife and I installed an exhaust fan in the main bathroom today. Oddly, nobody had ever done it ... but there is a switch in the bathroom that does nothing, so we assumed it was for a fan that never got installed. We were right.

We got up in the attic and right at the very end of the wall above the shower where the fan would logically go, there was a wire that was buried in the insulation. The wife gave it a tug, and the wire came up out of the insulation and the ends were bare, not a single wire nut. Just a bare 14 gauge wire jammed down in the 23 year old blown in insulation. It's amazing the place didn't burn down years ago.

I checked it with my meter and there was 2.3VAC from N-G, H-G, and H-N. I go flip the switch and check it again at the end of the wire and got 120VAC from H-G and H-N ... but still 2.3VAC from N-G. This would not have shown up on one of those little yellow testers.

I go kill the switch and verify the 120VAC was gone, and it was.

The ends of the wire were all bent and mangled so we cut an inch or so off, then stripped it back, installed the fan, ran the vent hose, and went to test it. Dead! No lights in the bathroom, no fan, no outlets. After running around in a panic mode and flipping breakers, it dawned on me to check the GFI breaker by the sink, and low and behold, when I cut the wires, even with only 2.3VAC going through them, it tripped the GFI. Reset it and everything worked perfectly.

Point is ... if there's a grounding problem, it doesn't take much of a voltage to really screw things up. Like I said before, 0.3VAC from N-G is the maximum allowance for copiers. There used to be a registration card I had to fill out with voltage readings, circuit amperage, install date, etc etc that I had to send back to the manufacturer. If they didn't get it, they wouldn't honor the warranty if something happened.

Sorry for the long post ... bored. Probably should just go to bed. Heh.

Bub, the voltage you measured is getting more common every year. The ground and neutral should be at the same potential but as the electrical grid is expanded the utility companies get sloppy with grounding. Rural areas often use grounding rods on the property to avoid this. I wouldn't be concerned about your leakage but it's good to check it every year or two.

You should check the panel ground connection to be sure it's tight and also look at any water pipe grounds for corrosion.

Not sure on the building your in Beep but another thing kinda along the lines Bub and John are talking about.

I wonder how the load is distributed throughout the building.  As these places get older and maintenance does things, loads become unbalanced with improper installation.

Example is adding more items to one side instead of equally across the box.  Thats the advantage of running things on 220 vs 110.  Makes you keep it balanced.  When the unbalanced occurs, the current will try and find easier ways to the neutral or ground wiring.

Just a thought on the balancing within the building.

Wow... this takes me back to the mid 60s. There is nothing quite like getting your lip zapped by a SM57 pistol mic... playing outdoors.

About 10 years ago the Dr had me taking a low dose of trazadone to help me sleep. I was taking 50mg but using a 100mg tablet so I would hld the tablet and break it in half. I was staying up late back then and didn't turn on the light when I came to bed and would notice that the tablet would make a visible spark when I would break it... I've never seen another tablet do that. I wouldn't feel it but I sure could see it. Weird, me thinks.

This is just one more reason to not like cold weather... but I wonder if static electricity is a year 'round problem in Yuma... ???

J

hmm... You guys are worrying me a little. I don't think I'm really gonna have the time or resources to mess with this to the extent suggested.

Couple of questions... I've mentioned the Belkin power bar which as I said is supposed to condition the power but I also spent the extra dough and got a fancy Coolermaster 700w PSU for the DAW. I seem to recall it has proctection features as well. I mean if something is actually out of whack with the power in here should those two things just cut the power before something nasty happens? 

  Also my humidifier got here today. Stupid thing says I'm supposed to replace a filter all the time which is annoying me because I can't afford to constantly be dumping cash into it. I pulled the filter out and it looks like it something I might be able to rinse out however it also mentions that hard water will make the filter clog up faster. Water is definitely hard in here. Maybe I should run the water through my Brita first. 

Meh... I'm sure everything will be fine. I think the power in my old place was worse than the power here. Lights were always dimming and stuff there. Haven't had any of that here. 

Cheers.

LOL Craig... that reminds me of the time I wrapped a little piece of clear tape (Scotch tape) around each foot on my cat... it was hilarious.. she danced. Of course I took them off pretty quickly. The cat was NOT amused.
Cats also love it when you get a small paper bag, put a few dried beans in it, and tie it to their tail... not that I have ever done that.
The funniest thing I have ever seen a cat do was when I was a teen... there was a dead snake in the back yard. I would hold the cat and drop it on the snake and I swear the cat would hit the ground and bounce straight back up into my arms with no visible movement of her legs or feet. She did it like four times then bounced off at an angle... I am sorry but to a young me... that was really LOL funny and harmless to the cat (at least physically).
I just pet them now... lately they have been getting revenge though.
Don't get me wrong, I am a cat person. I really like cats. I seem to be a cat magnet. Cats  can do some really hiarious stuff. I'll need to save that picture you posted... I bet that cat is really ticked off! Cats are very conservative, they do NOT like anything new... and they only keep you around because you feed them. Their snake eyes are a hint...
 
J

Beep... open your sockets (with the main breaker OFF) and check to see if your ground wires are tight. All of them, the circuit is all connected and even a couple of loose ground wires will make noise and cause other problems. You may also need to do a new ground outside at the power meter. If the one you have is not deep/long enough it wont ground well... and I imagine your soil could make a difference in how well your circuit is grounded. Also, power provider may come out and help you. I know Georgia Power will because they have come to my house to help me solve electrical noise... no charge either.

J

I wouldnt hurt your head to much with the electrical beep until you run the humidifier for a while-As long as it isnt hitting you everytime you touch something plugged into the wall.

Do you know what your humidity levels are inside?

Is this a single house or a housing complex of some sort?

If its a house, you can work with that if it comes to it.

Although I do have access to my own unit's panels I think I'd be breaking my lease if I started yanking off the faceplates.

I'll see how the humidifier does and re-read the info on this power bar and my PSU.

The care instructions for this humidifier are ridiculous. It has a DAILY maintenance section as well as a weekly maintenance section. If I did all that crap I'd be spending a few hours a week just screwing around with the thing. Forget that shiz... lol. It'll get rinsed and wiped when I can see it's getting dirty.

You definitely need to filter the water for your humidifier Beepster, otherwise you're going to see large amounts of dust lying on everything and I'm not sure it's too healthy to be breathing in vapor from unfiltered water. You could even get the cheapo bottles of distilled water from the supermarket which would be ideal. Otherwise yes Brita that junk up! I would do your best to follow the care instructions because humidifiers can get clogged and dirty very quickly if you don't stay on top of them. The last thing you need is for it to start growing mold. 

Also I would start with the lowest setting and increase it until the static is no longer a problem. I think a lot of people overdo it with humidifiers - excessive damp is as much of a problem as dry air. Put it this way, if your windows are getting wet then it's definitely too high.