# Electrical safety



## 120/208 (Nov 18, 2012)

I was contacted by a 8th grade class to donate some items for a classroom presentation they will be doing on electrical safety. What would be some good items to donate? Suggestions?

Here's some ideas I've come up with:

Tamper resistant receptacle
GFCI receptacle
Smoke detector


----------



## Hawkrod (Mar 19, 2012)

Do you have a wall of shame? I have a few "what not to do's" that I keep on hand to enlighten people.


----------



## Pete m. (Nov 19, 2011)

If you will get the items back maybe you could lend them some PPE. Maybe a suit, gloves and a face shield?

Secondly, who is going to explain the safety benefits? Are you donating that as well?

Pete


----------



## Zog (Apr 15, 2009)

I showed up to my daughters class years ago to do a presentation for electrical safety month wearing my 40 cal suit and said to her "I am your father" in my best Darth Vader voice, they loved it.


----------



## just the cowboy (Sep 4, 2013)

*Burnt or blown up stuff*

I used to have some burnt fuses, melted extention cord wire, had a cover plate for a 1900 box with a hole in it from a short.
I found that they want to see the stuff that went wrong more than the new stuff. 
My line was " Everyone makes mistakes just hope it's not bad, and when you do you'll say OH CRAP then look around to see if anyone saw it"


----------



## Hawkrod (Mar 19, 2012)

My favorite one is an RTU wireless controller that the tech put 480 through. I have to explain to people both what it was and why it was so bad. Most people think I am over reacting! LOL I have some backstabbed receptacles that fried, a GFI that actually had flames coming out of it when a neutral got loose and it found 208 and my favorite is a piece of wire that was in a conduit when a carpenter found the conduit in a brick wall using a masonry screw! There are always failures and kids seem to love them. I show my collection to the Boy Scouts every year!


----------



## chicken steve (Mar 22, 2011)

We did a _'wires down' _stint years ago ,simply discrediting hollywierds idiocy portraying things energized as crackling , etc as misleading

Not sure if that fits the 8th grade bill

~CS~


----------



## wildleg (Apr 12, 2009)

show up to the class with a trailer mounted genny, drag some cables in, and just blow up a bunch of random stuff for them. guaranteed to please.


----------



## xpertpc (Oct 11, 2012)

I have a very succinct memory of the poco coming to our plant in 89' at the behest of the safety coordinator to do a presentation that included an oscar meyer weiner and a high voltage transformer.

The wiener represented the chemical makeup of a human body and he blew the bejesus out of it saying "that is you touching a hot electrical line".

I have repeated that scenario several times over the years with my boys, they loved the show and crispy wieners every time.


----------



## chicken steve (Mar 22, 2011)

~C:thumbup:S~


----------



## GrayHair (Jan 14, 2013)

*Put on a show*

What about lighting a pickle? It's been 50 years since I saw it but I think he just used a variac. You could try a plain cucumber first and then the pickle to demonstrate the effect sodium can have. Then remind them that their body contains sodium and use lots of simple PPE during the demo to reinforce "don't try this at home".

You might want to clear the demonstration with the school beforehand. A bunch of hungry lawyers out there.

Regards!


The teacher used forks as "electrodes". Do it at home first! You don't want the demo to flop in front of your audience.


----------



## 99cents (Aug 20, 2012)

Just show them an arc fault breaker and tell them the world is safe from death and destruction.


----------



## Batfink (Jul 9, 2014)

99cents said:


> Just show them an arc fault breaker and tell them the world is safe from death and destruction.


Noticing quite the trend in your posts, tell us how you really feel about arc fault breakers . Me thinks you won't be contacted to be the first arc fault poster boy or we won't be seeing a "99cents approved device" sticker on the side of them any time soon :laughing:


----------

