# the sheetrock has voltage



## william1978 (Sep 21, 2008)

..................


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## william1978 (Sep 21, 2008)

What kind of sheetrock was it lead lined sheetrock? :laughing::laughing:


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## B4T (Feb 10, 2009)

william1978 said:


> What kind of sheetrock was it lead lined sheetrock?


Sounds like that Chinese junk they are having all kinds of trouble with


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## william1978 (Sep 21, 2008)

Black4Truck said:


> Sounds like that Chinese junk they are having all kinds of trouble with


 That very well could be it.


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## SparkYZ (Jan 20, 2010)

A guy I used to work for had a customer...When she took a shower, said the water felt like needles comin' down. She calls a plumber, he cant figure it out, so they call him.
He runs the water, tests for voltage, and got voltage from the running water to ground....

Scary!!


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## hiamp (Mar 14, 2010)

The mobile home was built in the 70's


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## william1978 (Sep 21, 2008)

hiamp said:


> The mobile home was built in the 70's


 Old Chinese sheetrock huh??????


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## hiamp (Mar 14, 2010)

SparkYZ said:


> A guy I used to work for had a customer...When she took a shower, said the water felt like needles comin' down. She calls a plumber, he cant figure it out, so they call him.
> He runs the water, tests for voltage, and got voltage from the running water to ground....
> 
> Scary!!


 
bond wire very important


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## B4T (Feb 10, 2009)

hiamp said:


> The mobile home was built in the 70's


 
Then maybe the paint came from China and they have some toxic metals mixed it the pigment


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## william1978 (Sep 21, 2008)

Black4Truck said:


> Then maybe the paint came from China and they have some toxic metals mixed it the pigment


 Would lead paint give a reading?


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## RIVETER (Sep 26, 2009)

hiamp said:


> MOBILE HOME.........I had a weird one today. A customer complained about getting shocked off the sheetrock. I touched it and couldn't feel anything. I tested between the ground on an outlet and the sheetrock and sure enough 47 volts ac. I found the bond screw was installed in the panel and removed it. (the main service was on a pole). Sure enough no more voltage. Very strange it must have been the kind of paint they used that made it conductive


Yes, strange. What thought process made you go to the bonding screw?


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## B4T (Feb 10, 2009)

william1978 said:


> Would lead paint give a reading?


That would be a first.. there was always warnings about kids eating it, but never a shock hazard.

Those Chinese find new ways of inventing the wheel or getting rid of things that are very expensive to dump the proper way.

Mixing something in paint keeps it locked into the pigment, so you would think it was safe..


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## william1978 (Sep 21, 2008)

Black4Truck said:


> That would be a first.. there was always warnings about kids eating it,
> 
> 
> > Did you eat lead chips when you were little?:laughing:


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## Toronto Sparky (Apr 12, 2009)

Lead conducts although not all that well, They also used to make a foil backed wallpaper.


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## wildleg (Apr 12, 2009)

by any chance did you also check the metal siding for voltage ?


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## B4T (Feb 10, 2009)

william1978 said:


> Black4Truck said:
> 
> 
> > That would be a first.. there was always warnings about kids eating it,
> ...


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## hiamp (Mar 14, 2010)

RIVETER said:


> Yes, strange. What thought process made you go to the bonding screw?


The first thing I checked was the panel, thought there might be a neutral hooked to a breaker or bare and touching a hot. I looked at a minute and noticed the bond screw was screwed in. As you know a sub-panel must have 4 wires and the neutral floating. I removed the bond screw and re-tested. The voltage was gone from the sheetrock. I was there all of 20 minutes. I amaze myself sometimes


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## hiamp (Mar 14, 2010)

wildleg said:


> by any chance did you also check the metal siding for voltage ?


no I didn't but I'm sure there isn't any voltage now.


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## Grimlock (Aug 4, 2009)

"*The sheetrock has voltage"*

Sounds like a bad thriller movie... :laughing:


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## 220/221 (Sep 25, 2007)

> I amaze myself sometimes


You didn't fix the problem you only masked it.

Get back there before someone gets killed.

edit: OK. it's a 4 wire feed so no one will die  Still, the neutral is failing and an open neutral can be hazardous to equipment and appliances.


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## RIVETER (Sep 26, 2009)

220/221 said:


> You didn't fix the problem you only masked it.
> 
> Get back there before someone gets killed.


Can you explain why he may have left it un-fixed? And, what do you think could cause that problem?


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## McClary’s Electrical (Feb 21, 2009)

I would be concerned about WHERE the voltage was coming from. 

YOu did not fix anything. 

Just like your comment about the bond wire towards the shower,,,,,that would not fix anything,,,,your masking a problem. The voltage is coming from somewhere.


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## 220/221 (Sep 25, 2007)

Look at the *neutral feed wiring and terminations*.

If the current can't "get back" on the neutral, it will find another path.

Water piping is a common route. Siding is another.

Sheetrock is not so common but it's concievable. Think foil backed sheetrock. Think nails/screws. Think of a place where the foil may contact piping.

OK. I read that is is indeed a four wire feed. The neutral is not *open *but it is not carrying the load like it's supposed to. My guess is that it will completely fail soon. If it is a four wire feed, you did good by removing the bond screw but you still didn't "fix" it.


Go back and take a look at the neutral wire and terminations.


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## wildleg (Apr 12, 2009)

yeah, I was wondering if he fixed it also.. . the whole shell could be energized, but he didn't check it. . .


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