# Hurt More 277/480V ?



## Cletis (Aug 20, 2010)

Those who have been shocked by both 277V and 480V single phase, which one hurts the most. Say you touch hot with thumb and either the neutral or other hot with pinky? Same exact conditions for both 



I follow all osha rules and never work live so I've never experienced any of the above circumstances. 

???


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## Elephante (Nov 16, 2011)

Cletis said:


> Those who have been shocked by both 277V and 480V single phase, which one hurts the most. Say you touch hot with thumb and either the neutral or other hot with pinky? Same exact conditions for both
> 
> 
> 
> ...


 _ I never got zapped by 277/480 ac voltage but I did get zapped by 456 volts dc. I just slightly touched it and gave be a nasty feeling on my arm muscles._


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## wdestar (Jul 19, 2008)

Hang on... I'm licking my fingers and gonna give it a shot:no:


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## Cletis (Aug 20, 2010)

*Pain*

I've always been interested in electrical impulses and how they interact in a bio-physical way with humans. I used to experiment with frogs with 120V, car batteries, welders, etc.. they react different every time. It's sort of hard to quantify. It seems more something else. 

What's worse 12V Car Battery 

120V 8 amps 960va

277V 3.x amps 960va

480V 2 amps 960va 

Is it related to power and amperage flow? A/C or D/C worse? 

Or is it like lightening and has different effects and cannot be repeated twice ever ? 

I've always heard it's the 277V neutral? or is that because no one expects that as a newbie so they are not prepared?? 

??


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## AFOREMA1 (Nov 23, 2009)

Cletis said:


> I've always been interested in electrical impulses and how they interact in a bio-physical way with humans. I used to experiment with frogs with 120V, car batteries, welders, etc.. they react different every time. It's sort of hard to quantify. It seems more something else.
> 
> What's worse 12V Car Battery
> 
> ...


12v car battery can help generate a whole bunch of juice at start up.


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## Elephante (Nov 16, 2011)

Cletis said:


> I've always been interested in electrical impulses and how they interact in a bio-physical way with humans. I used to experiment with frogs with 120V, car batteries, welders, etc.. they react different every time. It's sort of hard to quantify. It seems more something else.
> 
> What's worse 12V Car Battery
> 
> ...


 I heard that DC is worse because its harder to let go..I dont know if thats a myth and dont really want to find out. AC has oscillating properties that can cause muscle and heart misfires. If its heat your talking about I'll go with 480v.


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## 480sparky (Sep 20, 2007)

Enduring posts like this is the worst. :whistling2:


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## AFOREMA1 (Nov 23, 2009)

480sparky said:


> Enduring posts like this is the worst. :whistling2:


He does tend to post a lot of crap.


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## Elephante (Nov 16, 2011)

he is getting his doctrine in biophysics.. leave him alone...


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## captkirk (Nov 21, 2007)

Tony is Face Palming....(sorry no emodicon for it)


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## eric7379 (Jan 5, 2010)

Cletis said:


> Those who have been shocked by both 277V and 480V single phase, which one hurts the most. Say you touch hot with thumb and either the neutral or other hot with pinky? Same exact conditions for both
> 
> 
> 
> ...


If you really want to know that bad, why not try it for yourself? :jester:
Just joking, of course.

I got hit by 480 once about 10 years ago when I was younger and dumberer. The tip of one of my middle fingers went between two of the phases on a contactor. Felt like I got hit in the chest with a baseball bat. I was afraid to look down at my finger because I thought for sure the tip of it would be gone. It had a small hole on both sides of the finger and the skin was charred. It healed up fine, though.

I learned my lesson after that and I have not gotten shocked again. Yes, I do abide by all safety protocols now and never work hot.


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## Speedy Petey (Jan 10, 2007)

480 is the same as 240 in that you'd have to touch TWO 277 lines in order to get hit with 480. This is pretty unlikely. 

Most people who say they got hit with 240 really only got 120v first and never made it to 240v.


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## hotwire1955 (Jan 27, 2009)

Cletis said:


> I've always been interested in electrical impulses and how they interact in a bio-physical way with humans. I used to experiment with frogs with 120V, car batteries, welders, etc.. they react different every time. It's sort of hard to quantify. It seems more something else.
> 
> What's worse 12V Car Battery
> 
> ...


 Jeffrey Dahmer did the same thing then he started to eat people, you are one strange fellow


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## HARRY304E (Sep 15, 2010)

hotwire1955 said:


> Jeffrey Dahmer did the same thing then he started to eat people, you are one strange fellow


Good point...:laughing::laughing:


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## Southeast Power (Jan 18, 2009)

This happened back in the mid 80s
I was on a 6' ladder holding an exit light that was installed with greenfield and being used for a temporary inspection.
I was holding the box and was going to remove the fixture or something.
I pulled one of the red wire nuts to move it to where I could open the splice and one of the wires came out of the wire nut and touched my finger.

I had to buckle my knees and make myself fall off of the ladder to let go. I fell in a trash pile full of drywall and metal studs.

I could feel every part of the 60hz and only think I made it through two of them before I dropped.
I was a loud buzzing sound and a very physical grab.

This is why I don't twist stranded wires.
Someone twisted them and thought they were secure.


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## brian john (Mar 11, 2007)

Unfortunately, I have been hit by

120 VAC- several times through mu own stupidity
277 VAC-Hospitalized (electrician energized a circuit I was working on LOTO was in place), another time I blew a hole in my arm
120 VDC-servicing batteries
540 VDC-Left a disgusting copper taste in my mouth, went home sick (servicing batteries)

2nd degree burns at 400 VDC

It all hurts, it all should be avoided at all cost, safety measures exist for a reason.

At least once I thought this is it, I am not going to make it.

After I was hit the second time on 277 VAC I swore it would never happen again (about 20 years ago). Due to my improve practices LOTO, to date it has not happened.


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## Pete m. (Nov 19, 2011)

brian john said:


> 277 VAC-Hospitalized (electrician energized a circuit I was working on LOTO was in place)


Trying to figure out how the electrician that energized that circuit didn't also make a trip to the hospital...

Pete


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## Stab&Shoot (Aug 23, 2011)

Been hit with 120 plenty. 277 only once and that was enough. NOT NICE! A hack electrician that works in my area blew his thumb off on 480. They sewed it into his side so it could heal. He walked around looking like he was about to draw his six shooter on you at anytime.lol!


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## acro (May 3, 2011)

Speedy Petey said:


> 480 is the same as 240 in that you'd have to touch TWO 277 lines in order to get hit with 480. This is pretty unlikely.


Not true, in a corner grounded delta, you can get 480 from two of the lines and ground. 480 phase to phase, and 480 phase to ground.



I have never experienced anything more than 120v, and I don't want to either.


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## Big John (May 23, 2010)

Elephante said:


> I heard that DC is worse because its harder to let go....


 I don't know if there's any truth to that, but I do know that the threshold of sensation and pain are higher for DC than for AC. I'm not quite sure why, maybe because during a shock what you're feeling is the peak voltage of the AC?

-John


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## brian john (Mar 11, 2007)

Pete m. said:


> Trying to figure out how the electrician that energized that circuit didn't also make a trip to the hospital...
> 
> Pete


 
This was at a secure government facility, the paper work involved in reporting and follow up would have been horrific. All I wanted to do was get to the hospital. I had an employee take me off site as fast as possible.


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## 480sparky (Sep 20, 2007)

captkirk said:


> Tony is Face Palming....(sorry no emodicon for it)


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## sstlouis03 (Jun 23, 2011)

We used to work just about everything hot. I have been hit by 120, 208, 240, 277, 480. The worst one ever was 120, on any emergency light fixture, it bite and wouldnt let go. The only time i was seriously injured was when I wasnt actually shocked but had 2 wires go phase to phase on a 208-3phase system, 2nd degree burns up both hands to about my forearm. 480v will kick you like a mule, but wont hold on to you.


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## user8640521 (Jan 17, 2009)

brian john said:


> Unfortunately, I have been hit by
> 
> 120 VAC- several times through mu own stupidity
> 277 VAC-Hospitalized (electrician energized a circuit I was working on LOTO was in place), another time I blew a hole in my arm
> ...


trade show for me. 480vac, all three phases on the right arm, across
the front of a xfmr. blew me out of the way, and i couldn't breath for
a while, felt like i kept inhaling, and couldn't exhale.

co worker had lit up a disconnect feeding 4/0 camlocks coming down 
from the catwalk. my part in it, it was a 14 hour day putting in a trade
show, and i was just too tired to walk up to the catwalk one more time,
to put a lock on the switch.

that wasn't the worst shock. the worst one i've gotten was a little over
a year ago, on 120vac recessed lighting. i tripped a 20 amp breaker,
taking it hand to hand, across the chest. no arc. on top of an 8' ladder
in a ceiling.

it should have killed me, it didn't.


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## 8V71 (Dec 23, 2011)

Worst for me was 900vdc hand to hand in a radio transmitter. It left a bunch of tiny white holes in my palm. High frequency AC in the primary of switching supplies hurts like hell. Feels like being shocked and burned at the same time.


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## Stab&Shoot (Aug 23, 2011)

It's more about how you're grounded, tucking your nines under your arm working a hot switch and touching that screw is bad, but way worse if you were barefoot or worse still sitting on your azz!


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## michael3 (Mar 14, 2010)

It felt like I was punched in the arm by a professional heavy weight boxer. This is how I relearned not to trust anyone. The end result of that day could have been a lot worse.


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## nolabama (Oct 3, 2007)

brian john said:


> Unfortunately, I have been hit by
> 
> 120 VAC- several times through mu own stupidity
> 277 VAC-Hospitalized (electrician energized a circuit I was working on LOTO was in place), another time I blew a hole in my arm
> ...


I was asking our some of the guys here about being hit with dc. I have heard its way worse than ac. They seemed to agree it was worse.


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## 220/221 (Sep 25, 2007)

Never felt 240.

The difference between 120 and 277 is substantial. I don't even WANT to know what 480 feels like.

I only felt 277 once .....well, twice. 

Same jbox about 2 minutes apart :jester:. You know the story. Grid ceiling, barely accessible jb, office building, no idea where panels were, etc.


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## RGH (Sep 12, 2011)

120 for me..few years ago doing panel swap out..meter pulled and in my bag...2 circuits left to land...I grab this bx and pow.... how the hell did this happen....felt like the hammer hit me..you know that feeling...this mofo home owner was stealing power from a neighbor's garage and bring in back into the house near the pane...what I thought was a circuit out..as it should have been but was a tap coming back...mofo..damn near killed me..floor was wet jezzz I was lucky that day...120 has bit me a dozen times over 30yrs..nothing higher..


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## Big John (May 23, 2010)

Any of you Canucks ever get hit with straight 600V? I know it's a lot more common up there than it is here.

We've got 600 volt deltas, and that's one reason I never liked them is in the event one phase goes to ground, if some poor bastard gets shocked by either of the other phases, they're getting full system voltage. Apparently when these systems used to be much more common here, they were regular widow-makers.

-John


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## acro (May 3, 2011)

Worst for me was in an attic - my 1st house - probably over 110 in there. sweating like a mofo. All alone.

Had my brain turned off, but not the power. 

had the outer covering off the romex, folded the ground back, stripped the neutral and folded it back. So I had 4" of the bare ground gripped tightly in my sweaty left hand when I clamped down on the hot with my strippers in my right hand. The sweat caused my grip to shift and I was no longer just holding on to the insulated handles, apparently.


right through me like a SOB, both hands clamped down on the conductors. Took a while to force myself to let go. Never tripped the breaker like FulThrotl though. That must have been terrible.


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## sparky105 (Sep 29, 2009)

600 phase to phase fore finger and thumb pulling to wire nuted sets out of a 347 light jb both nuts came off but the flash was worst than the shock.
347 curcuit left unnuted above ceiling right in the top of the noodle felt like someone hit me on the head with a sledge hammer. alway look up going into a t bar that one knocked me out on my feet.
got held on a 120 v steel body jig saw about 25 yrs ago cutting the roof off a garage no ground in the middle extension cord the fall from the wall hurt more 
come to think of it I wonder how I made it out of my apprenticeship :001_huh:
have not been hit in 17 yrs since learned that to touch is to feel pain


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## Vintage Sounds (Oct 23, 2009)

Big John said:


> Any of you Canucks ever get hit with straight 600V? I know it's a lot more common up there than it is here.
> 
> We've got 600 volt deltas, and that's one reason I never liked them is in the event one phase goes to ground, if some poor bastard gets shocked by either of the other phases, they're getting full system voltage. Apparently when these systems used to be much more common here, they were regular widow-makers.
> 
> -John


Seems rare to hear about guys getting 600 shocks but most experienced sparkies seem to have at least one good 347v story. Usually involving some kind of ballast change in a fluorescent light or metal halide high bay. Scary, that's triple the voltage I've been shocked by.

Sent from my iPhone using ET Forum


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## BBQ (Nov 16, 2010)

Does it hurt more to get hit by a truck going 60 or a car going 60?


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## frenchelectrican (Mar 15, 2007)

BBQ said:


> Does it hurt more to get hit by a truck going 60 or a car going 60?


 
BBQ just try the locomovite then you will know why due I got hit 600 volts DC on diesel electric locomotive due some dumb custer (whatever you fill in ) bypass the LO/TO.

Merci,
Marc


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## BBQ (Nov 16, 2010)

That had to hurt:laughing:

Glad you are around to talk about it.


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## frenchelectrican (Mar 15, 2007)

BBQ said:


> That had to hurt:laughing:
> 
> Glad you are around to talk about it.


Yeah that freaking definely hurt!! I was black et bleu allover my body.

Good thing the Ground fault relay did kick out the feild power so I am still around if that relay not working I will be gone for sure.

Merci,
Marc


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## brian john (Mar 11, 2007)

BBQ said:


> Does it hurt more to get hit by a truck going 60 or a car going 60?


 
It all hurts and it all can kill.

BE CAREFUL


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## sagnew (Mar 24, 2011)

I was hit by 600V when I was 15. My big brother told me the power was off and it was OK to disconnect the equipment.  Afterwards he gave me a lecture about never trusting anyone and to check for yourself that the power was off.  Thanks Big bro!:thumbsup:


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## sagnew (Mar 24, 2011)

Oh ya, It really hurt!


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## JRaef (Mar 23, 2009)

Got a 480V hit (it was an ungrounded delta feed) while working on my back laying on some expanded metal (egg crate) walkway grating. Control panel was locked out, but someone had miswired an external control circuit to another 120V source, so it back fed the control transformer, making the load side of the main circuit breaker hot at 480V. I was adjusting a mag trip on the breaker, the adjustment was a knob underneath the load lug. I was using a long screwdriver to reach it and had my thumb on the shaft to steady it. Someone turned on that external circuit and the back feed made the breaker lug hot, then (Murhy's Law) my screwdriver slipped and I came in contact. The shock went through my hand and out my back because the sharp points in the egg crate grating poked through my shirt. I ended up with an interesting diamond burn pattern in the back of my shirt, but no permanent scars on my back. Didn't really hurt, but probably because there was not a lot of available energy in the circuit. I was also sweating so the current likely stayed on the skin.

The paperwork was a lot more distasteful, I lost a good 2 days of work explaining to various people and eventually lawyers (not classified as "people") how it happened and why my LOTO procedure didn't protect me from the backfeed. They traced the external circuit and work orders for the remote equipment, then fired the guy that did that. I thought that was a little harsh. Reprimand, sure, but messing up his life? Then again I have no idea if he was unauthorized to do the work or if this was his 10th offense or anything like that.


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## Chris1971 (Dec 27, 2010)

What a dumb question.:no:


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## FireInTheWire (Oct 30, 2011)

Was messing around with a light fixture when I was about 15 and got hit by 120. I am thinking there was a ground fault that energized the metal part I was touching. It felt like someone kicked me in the arm suuuuper hard.


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## Aegis (Mar 18, 2011)

Cletis said:


> Those who have been shocked by both 277V and 480V single phase, which one hurts the most. Say you touch hot with thumb and either the neutral or other hot with pinky? Same exact conditions for both
> 
> I follow all osha rules and never work live so I've never experienced any of the above circumstances.
> 
> ???


Good thing you mentioned single phase, gotta weed out all the guys that have been hit by 480 3 phase for this topic


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## Cletis (Aug 20, 2010)

*?*



Aegis said:


> Good thing you mentioned single phase, gotta weed out all the guys that have been hit by 480 3 phase for this topic


I didn't because I figured what are the odds of 3 points of your body hitting all three phases at same time??? gotta be low ?


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## Chris1971 (Dec 27, 2010)

The Cletis effect.....:whistling2:


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## Cletis (Aug 20, 2010)

*basic's*

Electric shock occurs upon contact of a (human) body with any source of electricity that causes a sufficient current through the skin, muscles or hair. Typically, the expression is used to denote an unwanted exposure to electricity, hence the effects are considered undesirable.[1]
The minimum current a human can feel depends on the current type (AC or DC) and frequency. A person can feel at least *1 mA (rms) of AC at 60 Hz,* while at least *5 mA for DC*. The current may, if it is high enough, cause tissue damage or fibrillation which leads to cardiac arrest. *60 mA of AC (rms, 60 Hz) or 300–500 mA of DC* can cause fibrillation.[2][3] A sustained electric shock from *AC at 120 V, 60 Hz is an especially dangerous source of ventricular fibrillation because it usually exceeds the let-go threshold, while not delivering enough initial energy to propel the person away from the source.* However, the potential seriousness of the shock depends on paths through the body that the currents take.[2] Death caused by an electric shock is called electrocution.
If the* voltage is less than 200 V*, then the human skin, more precisely the *stratum corneum*, is the *main contributor to the impedance *of the body in the case of a macroshock—the passing of current between *two contact points on the skin. The characteristics of the skin are non-linear however*. If the *voltage is above 450–600 V*, then dielectric breakdown of the skin occurs.[4] The protection offered by the skin is lowered by perspiration, and this is accelerated if electricity causes muscles to contract above the let-go threshold for a sustained period of time.[2]
If an electrical circuit is established by electrodes introduced in the body, bypassing the skin, then the potential for lethality is much higher if a circuit through the heart is established. This is known as a microshock. Currents of only 10 µA can be sufficient to cause fibrillation in this case.[citation needed] This is a concern in modern hospital settings when the patient is connected to multiple devices.


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## Chris1971 (Dec 27, 2010)

Warning! This thread contains material posted by Cletis.


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## RePhase277 (Feb 5, 2008)

Speedy Petey said:


> 480 is the same as 240 in that you'd have to touch TWO 277 lines in order to get hit with 480. This is pretty unlikely.
> 
> Most people who say they got hit with 240 really only got 120v first and never made it to 240v.


I got hit with 240 DC off a batter bank. It was awesome. I recommend to everyone.:thumbup:


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## RePhase277 (Feb 5, 2008)

Chris1971 said:


> The Cletis effect.....:whistling2:


Wait... I thought that was when you put food up your butt and crapped out your mouth??


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## Aegis (Mar 18, 2011)

Cletis said:


> I didn't because I figured what are the odds of 3 points of your body hitting all three phases at same time??? gotta be low ?


I was being sarcastic, like why even say 'single phase'.

I personally have never been hit by anything above 120v. My last (little) shock to the hand was over 3 1/2 years ago. Hand to hand (because I was being stupid), over 8 years.

I was standing next to a buddy that got 347v on a ladder once. He was able to let go right away, he's ok but it's scary stuff.


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## Vintage Sounds (Oct 23, 2009)

If you get hit by 3 phase, do you start spinning?

Sent from my iPhone using ET Forum


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## Aegis (Mar 18, 2011)

Vintage Sounds said:


> If you get hit by 3 phase, do you start spinning?
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using ET Forum


Yes, and if you can't let go of all three phases then reverse two of the leads


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## mattsilkwood (Sep 21, 2008)

I have got 120 more times than I can count. There was one time I was in a switch box in a new house making up pigtails. I thought I kept getting poked until the hot happened to touch the ground and it popped. Thick calouses and good boots I guess. 

The worst 277 hit was on a lighting panel changeout. I got the panel swapped out and heated back up and I noticed that I had gotten a couple circuits switched around, no big deal. I turned off the breakers and proceded to change them around. The last one had a stray strand so I reached up and twisted it and WHAMO! It was a MWBC and they had lost a neutral somewhere, that thing actually drew a 3/4" long arc off the end of my finger.
I don't think it was actually any worse than any other shock but it was unexpected as hell. What makes it even worse is I had my meter hanging right there.


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## millelec (Nov 20, 2010)

I got hit w/~250Vac while doing a phase rotation check. 450 Vac shore power, got zapped by one phase.was old style meter w/rotating needle. unplugged 2 of the leads, went to unplug the third and the first 2 leads lit me up.

worst shock I ever took was trouble shooting a high voltage power supply for an electrostatic precipitator. did LOTO, then discharged a huge capacitor. trouble shot panel, which included meggering the cap at 500V. forgot to discharge it again, put leads back on at same time and the cap discharged thru me arm to arm. put me on my knees, and my field of vision narrowed and everything was turning gray. thought I was dead. scared the sh*t out of me.


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## wildleg (Apr 12, 2009)

I've only been lightly tagged a few times. I know several guys with one gimpy arm cause they got hung bad on 277. A friend of mine got hung on 480 in a clg not too long ago and it blew his shoulder socket apart, he hasn't finished having it rebuilt (they did 1/2, apparantly later they do the other half). But one thing I learned from that which I didn't know before is that you have to go to the hospital if you get hit, because stuff forms in your blood that can destroy your kidneys. They put you on dialysis and get the stuff out of your blood. If you get hit bad, remember that and don't put it off - you gotta go right away.

BTW, I think this is really a bad idea for a thread, Cletis. I don't think it serves any good purpose. Shame on you.


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## Aegis (Mar 18, 2011)

wildleg said:


> I've only been lightly tagged a few times. I know several guys with one gimpy arm cause they got hung bad on 277. A friend of mine got hung on 480 in a clg not too long ago and it blew his shoulder socket apart, he hasn't finished having it rebuilt (they did 1/2, apparantly later they do the other half). But one thing I learned from that which I didn't know before is that you have to go to the hospital if you get hit, because stuff forms in your blood that can destroy your kidneys. They put you on dialysis and get the stuff out of your blood. If you get hit bad, remember that and don't put it off - you gotta go right away.
> 
> BTW, I think this is really a bad idea for a thread, Cletis. I don't think it serves any good purpose. Shame on you.


I didnt know that about the blood, good to know. There's guys I know who have gotten hung up and just walked it of and never got themselves checked out.


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## Big John (May 23, 2010)

wildleg said:


> ...But one thing I learned from that which I didn't know before is that you have to go to the hospital if you get hit, because stuff forms in your blood that can destroy your kidneys. They put you on dialysis and get the stuff out of your blood....


 I've heard a lot of variations on that story. They even told us a similar version in EMS training, but the instructor used such a ridiculous explanation that I dismissed it as BS: He said something about having to go to the hospital to "get the electricity out of you." 

I do know that you can get subcutaneous burns from a very severe shock, and that can cause swelling for many hours afterwords, so even someone who looks fine immediately after the fact can definitely get progressively worse.

I'll have to look up the part about blood chemistry.

-John


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## BBQ (Nov 16, 2010)

So can we agree it is probably best not to get hit with either 277 or 480?

Inquiring students of Cletis want to know.


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## JRaef (Mar 23, 2009)

Vintage Sounds said:


> If you get hit by 3 phase, do you start spinning?
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using ET Forum


Sure, ever hear of the Left Hand Rule? That means if you have A-B-C phasing, your body will spin to the left.


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## Big John (May 23, 2010)

BBQ said:


> So can we agree it is probably best not to get hit with either 277 or 480?
> 
> Inquiring students of Cletis want to know.


 I've found if I ignore the original post, and just focus on the few serious replies, these threads can actually be informative. :whistling2:

-John


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## niteshift (Nov 21, 2007)

*wwwwow*

208 



and i disavow any knowledge of the aforementioned claim.


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## mattsilkwood (Sep 21, 2008)

BBQ said:


> So can we agree it is probably best not to get hit with either 277 or 480?
> 
> Inquiring students of Cletis want to know.


 That's still up in the air as of right now.:thumbup:


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## Going_Commando (Oct 1, 2011)

I've only ever been slapped by 120. The worst was when I was checking connections on a terminal block at a car wash. I was in the equipment room, the floor was covered in water, and it was about 120 degrees. I was sweating like a stuck pig, using ones of those free tiny screwdrivers like you get a trade shows. My finger slipped back on the thing, and I got belted HARD. I am a lot more careful than I used to be, but the last time I got slapped was tearing out an old fuse panel in a house. I was shocked twice from that fricken thing. The first happened when I was taking the feed out of the main panel (they had turned the fuse panel into a sub panel). I shut the breaker off, removed one conductor from the breaker (120v fuse panel), and then got slapped bad when I was trying to take the other conductor off the neutral bar. I was some confused, and thought it might have just been nerves, so like a dummy I grabbed it again. Then I figured out what was going on, and carefully removed it. So, I go to the fuse panel to figure out where it was backfed from. I find one incoming circuit that was backfed, so I pop the fuses out, and lo and behold, there is still voltage! Then I find another circuit that was backfed, so I pop the fuses feeding that circuit. I test voltage across the busbars and get nothing. So, I grab an adjustable wrench to remove the feeders from the fuse panel thinking I am all set. I was in a tiny closet with a bathroom next to it, and there was a ventilation fan on the wall to the left of me. My elbow touches the (grounded) case of the fan, and when I go to adjust the wrench, I get slapped hard, from my right hand to my left elbow. This has me angry and really confused. So then I check from the grounded fan case, to the bus bars on the fuse panel, and I had popped out the fuse for the backfed neutral, but had taken out the wrong fuse for the hot! That was where I learned to ALWAYS test to ground. Sucked big time. So I pop out all of the fuses in the panel and lo check all of the wires coming in to the fuse panel to ground, and it had turned out that the panel had been back fed 3 fricken times! How they ended up all being on the same leg, I will never know. 

Thankfully, I haven't been shocked since, and am now exceedingly careful when I have to go anywhere near live parts, and tend to double and triple check whether voltage is present. Hard way to learn a lesson, but sometimes you just have to learn by pissing on the electric fence.


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## wildleg (Apr 12, 2009)

http://www.electrocutioninjuries.com/


*Rhabdomyolysis:*
http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/000473.htm


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