quote:

Originally posted by cas:
I'd put a meter on it. I've seen wood 2x4's and 2x6's carrying voltage a few times. Not a full 120-240, but enough to give the ouchies.

I call bullshit , unless the wood was wet and was tracking .

quote:

Originally posted by selogic:

quote:

Originally posted by cas:
I'd put a meter on it. I've seen wood 2x4's and 2x6's carrying voltage a few times. Not a full 120-240, but enough to give the ouchies.

I call bullshit , unless the wood was wet and was tracking .

I've no idea what "and was tracking" means, and I'm not going to call bullshit on cas' assertions, for "There are more things in heaven and earth" than I've experienced, but I will say that if wood is so wet it's conducting enough current to be dangerous, an electrical fault is far from the only problem

quote:

Originally posted by ensigmatic:

quote:

Originally posted by selogic:

quote:

Originally posted by cas:
I'd put a meter on it. I've seen wood 2x4's and 2x6's carrying voltage a few times. Not a full 120-240, but enough to give the ouchies.

I call bullshit , unless the wood was wet and was tracking .

I've no idea what "and was tracking" means, and I'm not going to call bullshit on cas' assertions, for "There are more things in heaven and earth" than I've experienced, but I will say that if wood is so wet it's conducting enough current to be dangerous, an electrical fault is far from the only problem

I was giving him an out with the tracking thing . No way in hell wood is going to carry current , much less enough to cause that kind of reaction .

Any chance you were leaning against the washer or dryer? You said this was the laundry room. I've seen a few appliance cabinets become energized over the years. Pinched wire, faulty ground. It happens. You can check from a screw on either to a known ground to see if you have voltage.

My guess.... Aliens. You got probed.

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^I hate it when that happens!

Go buy a $20 Klein Non-Contact Voltage Detector Pen from your local hardware store. Everyone should own one anyway.

Test it in a couple outlets (and on your TV) to get a feel for how it works. Then go poke around the area you think you were shocked.

Something is seriously wrong here.

Either it's in the wall or there is something wrong with the drill, but either way it needs to get sorted out so it doesn't happen again.

I used to do theatrical lighting many years ago and was hooking up some dimmer packs directly to a live panel that couldn’t be shut down. We did it occasionally and were careful. Always 2 people present, one working, one outside the room watching, with a 2x4 handy.

We were hooking up Strand CD80’s to 120v 3 phase lugs (5 huge bare conductors). I made a mistake and briefly caught one of the hot phases. A lot of power ran through those guys. 12 channels rated at 2400w each.

It got my attention for sure.

New House!?! CALL THE BUILDER NOW! Document it and have them look into it.

Cheers.

Glad you are OK and surprised about the mystery of the origin.
FWIW, when they run wiring horizontally like that they usually and should tap a metal plate directly in front of the stud so you won't accidently hit a wire if you need to go into a stud.
This is usually also done for copper piping for water.

quote:

Originally posted by Rightwire:
My guess.... Aliens. You got probed.

The best explanation yet.

quote:

Originally posted by PASig:
You probably hit a 120V Romex cable that was stapled to a stud. 240V would’ve killed you on the spot I’d think?

Did you find a tripped breaker for that circuit?

Have to respectfully disagree. I have taken 220 volts several times in my life with no effect other than the jolt from the electricity. Both here and in the states as well as a couple of European countries. Yeah, it does "get your attention". Not sure where the 240 volts data came from. Normal voltage here in the states is either 110 or 220. At least as I recall.

quote:

Originally posted by Elk Hunter:
Not sure where the 240 volts data came from. Normal voltage here in the states is either 110 or 220. At least as I recall.

Not anymore.

It used to be nominal split-phase residential service was 220/110VAC. That was gradually raised over the years. It's now 240/120VAC and has been for two, three, or more decades.

In fact I usually measure 125VAC on my outlets and have for years.

quote:

Originally posted by Elk Hunter:
Not sure where the 240 volts data came from. Normal voltage here in the states is either 110 or 220. At least as I recall.

Not for a long time, but it was years ago. Now it's 120 and 240.

https://www.quick220.com/page/cp-voltage.html

The power delivered to your home is 120 or 240 volts. This is called "nominal voltage." That means it's the standard voltage as measured at the transformer outside your home. Nominal voltage can vary up to plus or minus 5 percent from its stated definition.

quote:

Originally posted by ensigmatic:

quote:

Originally posted by Elk Hunter:
Not sure where the 240 volts data came from. Normal voltage here in the states is either 110 or 220. At least as I recall.

Not anymore.

It used to be nominal split-phase residential service was 220/110VAC. That was gradually raised over the years. It's now 240/120VAC and has been for two, three, or more decades.

In fact I usually measure 125VAC on my outlets and have for years.

Most here run 125 as well.

BUT...
I have consulted the power company in the past over the actual number they are required to provide. As a public utility their SOP rules say 120 / 240 MINIMUM. IF it falls below that they should adjust. However I had them refuse to change on one house I serviced that averaged 118 no load volts after monitoring it via a grafting recorder for a week. Only years later, after a neighbor on the same transformer upgraded their service, did they change the transformer.

I believe the US went to 120V in 1967 from what I read.

quote:

Originally posted by selogic:

quote:

Originally posted by cas:
I'd put a meter on it. I've seen wood 2x4's and 2x6's carrying voltage a few times. Not a full 120-240, but enough to give the ouchies.

I call bullshit , unless the wood was wet and was tracking .

Call it whatever you like. Can’t change the facts.

I would think wet wood for the tub drain, but I’ve seen it an attic as well where an HVAC fan’s speed controller was energizing the woods studs. No idea what that was voltage wise, other than it setting off a voltage sensor. These were both in wood frame apartment buildings built in 1979 so it’s not like it was new green wood. That one was a fluke (pardon the pun), hvac guy asked me if there was power in a circuit, I checked it, then I just happened to grab the next stud over from the wire and the sensor in my hand went off.

I worked as an electrician there 11 or 12 years, one thing I learned was never say never , and don’t trust electricity to do what it’s supposed to do. Especially in that complex.

Residential power provided to my HVAC typically varies from 239VAC to ~250VAC, with either "phase" reading half of that at any given time. Here in SE AL, that number will rise and fall based on load imposed by how many heat pumps are running on my street at any given time.