# And Zapp!



## Fishfirst (Jan 24, 2005)

Well I was in the process of getting my brittle star out of my 20 gallon to go into the 125 and suddenly the light fixture fell into the water... I tried to grab it before it got completely submerged and WHAMO... I got buzzed by the stupid thing... then two more tries before I was smart enough to unplug it and take it out... luckily all the fish survived the "shock" theropy and I did too. Sometimes I am just so clutsy! :roll: This hobby will be the end of me....


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## cameraman_2 (Mar 28, 2005)

lol.... glad no one was hurt.


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## Shaggy (Apr 29, 2005)

LOL

Glad to see that you and your fish are ok.

I love it how you did it 2 more times, before unpluging it. :lol: but glad you are alright.


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## shev (Jan 18, 2005)

the fish may not have gotten zapped at all if they werent grounded. wood is a bad conductor, if thats what the stand was made of, and the filter would be plastic. maybe.


I got zapped by a light once, dont know how or why exactly I was touching the metal part of the plugin, i was just a kid I guess.


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## cameraman_2 (Mar 28, 2005)

that is what I was wondering if the bottom of the tank was plastic or wood stand then they might not have been grounded. good point Shev


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## Fishfirst (Jan 24, 2005)

yeah I thought of that... the things I do for my fish I tell yah! It was more of a reaction thing than a concern. But it was a jolt... still feeling a bit jittery hahah


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## TheOldSalt (Jan 28, 2005)

Similar things have happened to me in the past, and as a result I have learned three habits:

1-- I very often have some tiny little cut on my fingers somewhere or other, and in case you haven't noticed, cuts are extraordinarily sensitive to electricity. I always purposefully stick my hand into tanks on occasion to check for stray voltage, ( HLLE in the tank? Test for voltage quick and easy with this method ) and it's a handy way to make sure the grounding probe is working. It also lets me test the water before sticking my whole arm in the tank. 

2-- I otherwise always stand on a piece of styrofoam. I have found that insulating myself by standing on a fish box lid eliminates most of the problems.

3-- I always unplug the lights before taking the lid off of any tank, or at least take the lights off and set them to the side. Having a halide bulb explode in your face is a good way to learn this lesson for life, believe me.

Oh well, be glad that you got a relatively easy lesson this time. People have DIED that way, you know.


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## shev (Jan 18, 2005)

I dont unplug anything when I reach into the tank. I guess I should start to. especially since my light doesnt fit properly over the tank, and a 350W heater would hurt quite a bit. 

does the light still work?

I got zapped by my television. I knew something in there was going to zap me, but I wasnt quite sure what would. so I was curious and went poking around.

back in elementary school there was a cow pasture on my way home that had an electric fence. me and like 4 others all held hands and one would grab the fence.


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## Fishfirst (Jan 24, 2005)

After a lot of drying out before even attempting to turn it on... the light still works... tried it late last night!


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