SERIOUS electrical emergancy guys... GET IN HERE!!!

[pontiac]

Ok so I was working on my new grow cab, which is 90% complete. While working, I was shocked by my Variac (Fan Speed Controller), which is connected to my inline-fan. After cutting off power from the surge protector, I went to analyze what went wrong. Even with power cut off, I was shocked once more when I touched the Variac, which means there's a live capacitor somewhere; either in the fan or the Variac; obviously fully charged at mains potential. Now I'm scared to even go near my setup, WTF am i supposed to do now??? Is it the fan that's fucked or the Variac? Fuk, why do stupid shit always happen to me?

 

[trouble]

Pontiac, I personally don't play with electricity. It's one of the few things in life that scares the shit out of me, however, send a PM to "sparkjumper" and ask if he could help you, he knows electricity well and is always willing to help other members.

Good luck!



....

 

[pontiac]

Alright I'm going in for round II... If I don't come back, look after the link-o-rama for me, will ya?

 

[pontiac]

FUUUUUCK That piece of shit sparks all over the place WITH NO POWER connected. I can't go near it without it dangerously sparking. Any immediate advice guys?

 

[BubsNugs]

get a fire extinguisher handy???
sounds fucked up buddy...electricity is definatly a trip so be careful man n good luck .

Peace

ps do those capacitors lose their charge after a few hours? maybe just wait a bit?
be careful sorry i couldnt be of more help

 

[jammie]

cut the power at the breaker box. make sure everthing is off for a few minutes before you touch anything, then unplug everything till you figure out which piece is shorting.

 

[christen23]

heres an idea.. get a new speed controler!! lol mine only costed 23$

 

[pontiac]

I was first shocked maybe 3-4 hours ago, that little bugger is still live. I'm afraid if I wait, that possessed demon will unexpectedly arc and start a fire when my guard is down. Most importantly, I just want that shit the hell away from my setup so I can grow some damn weed already. Thanks for support everyone.

 

[pontiac]

heres an idea.. get a new speed controler!! lol mine only costed 23$

It's a Variac, it costs slightly more than a normal speed controller. I'd love to get a new one or an RMA replacement, but I can't go anywhere near the damn thing!

 

[Haps]

OK, get some heavy gloves on, and insulated boots, cut off all power into the building, kiss your ass goodbye, just in case. Next take a sledge hammer or maul, and beat the fucking thing till it stops biting. No half ass attemps, the most committed wins.
H

 

[madpenguin]

Funny. ^^^ ;-) That's one way to do it.

Which variac? Got a link?

If it was properly grounded, this shouldn't be happening. Did you have to do any wiring yourself or did you just plug it in?

 

[pontiac]

OK, get some heavy gloves on, and insulated boots, cut off all power into the building, kiss your ass goodbye, just in case. Next take a sledge hammer or maul, and beat the fucking thing till it stops biting. No half ass attemps, the most committed wins.
H

Lol I did exactly that except on a much more subtle scale ROFL. I am pleased to announce that I defeated the beast, and it's promptly on its way back to where ever the fvck I initially purchased it from.

LAST TIME I BUY ANYTHING THAT'S "MADE IN CHINA", "ASSEMBLED IN CHINA"; "____________ IN CHINA". PLEASE BUY USA, CANADA, OR EURO!!! LEARN FROM MY MISTAKE!

 

[Observer Tom]

Are you absolutely sure nothing else is plugged in? Where exactly is it sparking and what were you touching when you got zapped? Is your power line grounded and as madpenguin asked, did you do any wiring yourself or have a friend do some wiring?

A picture would be worth a lot, you may be surprised how often someone thinks it's one thing only to send a picture and have it pointed out that, "Hey, in the background do you realize your power cord is sitting in the res?"

The fan should not have a capacitor in it so it's most likely in your variac or some other hardware we haven't heard of yet. I have also seen power strips go bad, so I would unplug the power strip from the wall then carefully unplug the variac from the power strip. Give it some time or put some rubber gloves on and remove the variac for inspection.

 

[Observer Tom]

Guess I wrote too slow! Glad you got it out OK, was it the variac after all?

 

[pontiac]

Funny. ^^^ ;-) That's one way to do it.

Which variac? Got a link?

If it was properly grounded, this shouldn't be happening. Did you have to do any wiring yourself or did you just plug it in?

Sadly, many people on IC use this exact model.

There's no wiring involved, and the piece of crap probably wasn't internally grounded at all to begin with; most likely a factory defect... Otherwise I wouldn't have gotten shocked! Thankfully my trusty portable GFCI probably saved my life.

 

[smurfin'herb]

You need to neutralize both sides of the capacitor by using the correctly rated bleeder resister. This may help....
http://www.repairfaq.org/sam/captest.htm#ctsdc

On another note, let em know what u think bout this...
http://icmag.com/ic/showthread.php?p=2258475#post2258475

 

[madpenguin]

Thankfully my trusty portable GFCI probably saved my life.

Yes. Good idea any where near water. I'm ashamed to admit I haven't GFCI protected any of my grow room circuits.

Well, I was going to suggest buying a $7 receptacle tester but if your GFCI tripped then you most definitely have a ground. That or you were grounded yourself when touching the variac.... I'd probably go buy one anyway. Everyone should have one handy.

 

[Moldy Dreads]

GFI and the speed controllers for fans suck in my experience..I don't use em anymore..

 

[pontiac]

Guess I wrote too slow! Glad you got it out OK, was it the variac after all?

Yes sir, it was indeed the Variac. Thanks for your concern.

Yes. Good idea any where near water. I'm ashamed to admit I haven't GFCI protected any of my grow room circuits.

Well, I was going to suggest buying a $7 receptacle tester but if your GFCI tripped then you most definitely have a ground. That or you were grounded yourself when touching the variac.... I'd probably go buy one anyway. Everyone should have one handy.

Theoretically a GFCI doesn't need ground, it checks for even the slightest imbalances between HOT and COLD, and immediately trips if there is an imbalance. In this case my Variac was obviously not properly grounded by the ass-hole chinese factory; otherwise, any one of the inline circuit breakers would've tripped from overload shortly after power-on.

The GFCI thankfully detected that some current was was not returning to COLD (which was actually going through my body), and literally tripped in seconds.

I recommend everyone to have a GFCI in their grow. You obviously all witnessed what it has done for me... it may have just saved my life.

 

[pontiac]

On another note, let em know what u think bout this...
http://icmag.com/ic/showthread.php?p=2258475#post2258475

Yea I think it's great, I added it to the link-o-rama a few days back after lil wayne sent me a request. good job!