boat dock with lift (small) on kansas lake, customer gets a shock when exiting the water at ladder. another electrician wired the lift and gfci outlets. i loaned my gfci tester to the customer and he said it triped ok. but he still could measure a voltage from water to ladder. even with the circuit wires disconnected except for ground i assume. nearest dock to this one is about fifty feet what can i test to fix this prob. grounding will not work. i will go see this myself in a week or so.
boat dock shock
- Thread starter jethro
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Pierre C Belarge
Senior Member
- Location
- Westchester County, New York
Are you sure you are in Kansas..remember what Dorothy said in the Wizard of Oz when the house landed on the witch of the east? Toto I don't think were in Kansas...
Sorry, I don't know what came over me...
Sorry, I don't know what came over me...
dbuckley
Senior Member
- Location
- Canterbury, New Zealand
The ground of the socket is not equipotential to the lake. Supplementary grounding rods may be a good first step.
- Location
- Lockport, IL
- Occupation
- Retired Electrical Engineer
If you disconnect all power to this dock, and the problem persists, then the nearest boat dock is your most likely candidate. Spend some time there, to see if they have a problem. You might also suggest replacement of the ladder with a non-metallic version. The owner of any boat or any dock will never be able to predict when some other boat, or some other dock, may be sending current through the water. Any extra precaution is worth considering.
You might also ask whether anyone felt a shock while swimming. If so, then I strongly recommend that nobody swim in that water, until the problem is found and corrected. I have read stories of a swimmer in distress, and a person on the dock jumping into the water in a rescue attempt, and both persons dying. I think the concept is called ?drowning by electrocution.? The shock that your body experiences prevents you from being able to use your arms and legs to even tread water. I have a theory (which means only that this is what I would try, if I found myself in this situation) that your best course of action is to stay vertical, to keep your arms and legs close to your body, and to tread water with as little motion of your hands and feet as possible.
You might also ask whether anyone felt a shock while swimming. If so, then I strongly recommend that nobody swim in that water, until the problem is found and corrected. I have read stories of a swimmer in distress, and a person on the dock jumping into the water in a rescue attempt, and both persons dying. I think the concept is called ?drowning by electrocution.? The shock that your body experiences prevents you from being able to use your arms and legs to even tread water. I have a theory (which means only that this is what I would try, if I found myself in this situation) that your best course of action is to stay vertical, to keep your arms and legs close to your body, and to tread water with as little motion of your hands and feet as possible.
winnie
Senior Member
- Location
- Springfield, MA, USA
- Occupation
- Electric motor research
You've entered the twilight zone of stray voltage. Key the eeeeeerrrrie music....
Take a look at this related thread: Lots of ideas, both good and bad (I take credit for the latter).
http://forums.mikeholt.com/showthread.php?t=78799
The key is that there are many possible sources for this current, and you need to systematically exclude the various possibilities. Sometimes you will find something broken that you can fix (eg. a ground to neutral fault). Sometimes the source of the the current has nothing to do with the property electrical system. I wish that I could offer more help, but I have no direct experience in this field; I simply sit behind my computer screen and think about theory
Good luck!
-Jon
Take a look at this related thread: Lots of ideas, both good and bad (I take credit for the latter).
http://forums.mikeholt.com/showthread.php?t=78799
The key is that there are many possible sources for this current, and you need to systematically exclude the various possibilities. Sometimes you will find something broken that you can fix (eg. a ground to neutral fault). Sometimes the source of the the current has nothing to do with the property electrical system. I wish that I could offer more help, but I have no direct experience in this field; I simply sit behind my computer screen and think about theory
Good luck!
-Jon
Pierre C Belarge
Senior Member
- Location
- Westchester County, New York
patric said:
I sit here with 3 computers on, 6 screens, a code book on my lap, and multiple other references. I also keep my "smart arse" thesarus handy!
:grin:Shocked Swimmer?
Shocked Swimmer?
I am not a qualified electrician, rather a safety coordinator. However, I live in a houseboat and have a little experience here. Non marine battery chargers are often left on in this boat or that one to keep the batteries up while the owner is away. Many of these chargers have two wire plugs. Stray voltage finds its way to the water via inboard / outboards, aluminum hulls, etc, causing electrolysis damage to surrounding craft and zapping swimmers.
I've been wrong before and could be here too, but does this have any merit?
Thanks for listening,
Lonnie
California Delta Dweller
Shocked Swimmer?
I am not a qualified electrician, rather a safety coordinator. However, I live in a houseboat and have a little experience here. Non marine battery chargers are often left on in this boat or that one to keep the batteries up while the owner is away. Many of these chargers have two wire plugs. Stray voltage finds its way to the water via inboard / outboards, aluminum hulls, etc, causing electrolysis damage to surrounding craft and zapping swimmers.
I've been wrong before and could be here too, but does this have any merit?
Thanks for listening,
Lonnie
California Delta Dweller
- Location
- New Jersey
- Occupation
- Journeyman Electrician
I read an article a few years ago about people, who were seemingly good swimmers, "drowning" near boat docks. Someone finally figured out that many of the so called "drownings" were actually electrocutions. Stray voltage causes can be very difficult to find. Good luck.
Cavie
Senior Member
- Location
- SW Florida
And now we know the reason for ARt #682:wink: Yes ka5rcd that is why you have that chuck of sacrificial zinc on the bottom of your boat, or you used to, better go see.
quogueelectric
Senior Member
- Location
- new york
The current
The current
Is most likely coming from the neighbors dock. These people should be arrested it was probably a homeowner wiring his own dock. I was once on a girlfriends friends boyfriends boat when I saw someone had wired the whole dock in poco triplex and I said on the boat that whoever wired this dock should be arrested and then shot. The boat owner said "I WIRED THIS DOCK" I still have scars on my toungue from biting it after insulting the boat owner This was 20 yrs ago I wonder what the state of the dock wiring aluminum triplex is in today. Run directly under the dock in contact with the water?
The current
Is most likely coming from the neighbors dock. These people should be arrested it was probably a homeowner wiring his own dock. I was once on a girlfriends friends boyfriends boat when I saw someone had wired the whole dock in poco triplex and I said on the boat that whoever wired this dock should be arrested and then shot. The boat owner said "I WIRED THIS DOCK" I still have scars on my toungue from biting it after insulting the boat owner This was 20 yrs ago I wonder what the state of the dock wiring aluminum triplex is in today. Run directly under the dock in contact with the water?
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