Shocking sensation only on broken skin

[Lunchbucket]

Just was messing w/ the tank but I ALWAYS wear gloves. I ended up touching the water w/out my gloves on and had a cut on my finger and instantly noticed a shocking sensation. I've never experienced this before. I don't get this sensation on non broken or cut skin but only on cuts or hangnail spots.

Is this electricity or the salt into the wound?

Lunchbucket

[gkarshens]

I have heard that a low grade electrical leak will only be felt on a wound.

[Lunchbucket]

Hmm...interesting.

Anyone else

I guess I need to borrow a volt meter

Lunchbucket

[jsf668]

Sound like you have stray voltage in your tank. Unplug your equipment one thing at a time and figure out what is causing it. I would also put a grounding probe in the tank.

[eros]

You can buy a cheap volt meter for $4 from harbor freight tools if you have one near you. I had the same sensation and come to find out my skimmer pump is leaking 22 volts into my tank. I wasnt able to feel it until I touched my tank with bare feet(my body was grounded). Wearing shoes I cannot feel anything.

[Lunchbucket]

I have some electrician buddys. I'll borrow one.

Bet that might explain some SPS color loss or not growing as well too. Darn it.

I have no grounding probe....never have ??

Lunchbucke

[Chihuahua6]

Wow I learn something every day. The same exact thing happened to me. I only felt it on an extremely tiny cut on my finger. I thought it was just the salt. I don't wear shoes in the house so I'm not grounded. Wow. I am just stunned.

It must be the heater or one of the Maxi Jets. I suspect the heater though. I just don't trust them.

Will most electricians have a volt meter? I know a guy at the gym who works for an electrician. Can I buy one at Home Depot or Lowes?

[njdevilsfan]

erm i was getting that on my hangnails
went out bought a volt meter and showed nothing
next time i got it i pulled my finger out of the water rubbed the hangnail real hard and put it back in the water..i felt nothing
i think you are feeling saltwater in your cut and it feels like electricity
just sayin

[pherbert]

I have a grounding probe that would trip the GFI if there was voltage, and I always get that feeling if there is a cut or hangnail. Gotta believe it's the salt.

[cutegecko3]

That occured in my tank last week.

It turned out a little bit of salt creep found it's way to the plug and after i cleaned and dried the plug it stopped.

[micoral]

stray voltage can really bother corals and clams. Most fish have enough of a slime coat to fend off infection when they are healthy, but if at all stressed the current in the water will cause major issues. I would definetly suggest hunting down the problem child. I just had to remove my skimmer pump from my turbofloater skimmer due to leaking voltage.... it was one of the original aquabee pumps, they don't make them anymore and they are one of the true greats among skimmer pumps for energy efficiency. (unless it is leaking into your tank) Grounding probes do help some, but taking out the problem pump/heater is the only way to go IMO. Good luck

[edwing206]

I always get that when I am doing something with the tank and I have a cut. I think it's the electricity because when I have water drip off my fingers and it's a steady stream the connects to the water in the sump I feel the shock. Also when I touch something wet, like the side of the sump if it has water on it and it touches the the actual sump water I can feel it. Hope it's not too bad for my tank. What can fix it?

[eros]

You should be getting some reading if you are using the volt meter correctly, even if its just 1 or 2 volts. That will be given off from your lighting or powerheads and whatnot. It's not enough to damage anything but it will be there, even if all the components are sealed up tight. Once you get higher voltage is when it starts to bother things. Your volt meter should have one probe in the water and the other connected to ground, I just stick mine in the ground of the electrical outlet.
Once you get the volt meter, unplug each device until you can figure out whats causing it. If it's really small you can probably just get a grounding probe and be fine but if it's 22 volts like my Sedra 5000 then you will have to replace it. I'm trying to fix my pump by sealing it I just cant seem to locate where the leak is coming from. Good luck. BTW, for $4 a volt meter is nice to have incase something like this ever happens again. Good luck.

[flamron]

Turn everything off and then stick your hand in again....Quick and cheap way to find out if it is the salt or if it is the electricity.

GL

[bboshart]

As Eros said, you should be reading some voltage unless you have a grounding probe. Put one lead in the water and the other lead in the ground hole of an electrical outlet. Set the meter to AC volts, it may be designated as "ACV" or "V~". Record the reading and unplug one device at a time. Each device will contribute to some stray voltage so look for any large changes. With my ground probe disconnected I measured a total of 5v with each device contributing about 1v or so. I assume this is normal. With the ground probe connected, I measure only 0.1v. Of course everything is on GFCI also.

[p4ck37p1mp]

I used to get that when barefooted and working on the tank, wearing shoes or using a ladder I never noticed it. Turned out to be my Mag return pump.

[Lunchbucket]

I got 35-38volts. Unplugged everything one at a time (plugged them back in after we checked) so only that one piece was unplugged at one time.

I unplugged one of my halides and it dropped about 5volts but I'm assuming that is normal.

So is 38volts anything big? I'm guessing not

I used myself as a ground. Licked my fingers and held the ground in between them. Got the same reading on a baseline when doing it in the ground of an outlet.

Lunchbucket

Lunchbucket

[DamnPepShrimp]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=13236199#post13236199 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by pherbert
I have a grounding probe that would trip the GFI if there was voltage, and I always get that feeling if there is a cut or hangnail. Gotta believe it's the salt.

Can you elaborate on how to do this? My tank isn't hooked up to a GFI outlet, nor is there one on the circuit. Just dont know how that'd work then?

Or is it beat to just have a grounding probe? I'm mainly worried about if I drop a light in my tank while my hands are in the tank.

[reefergeorge]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=13237027#post13237027 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by bboshart
With my ground probe disconnected I measured a total of 5v with each device contributing about 1v or so. I assume this is normal. With the ground probe connected, I measure only 0.1v. Of course everything is on GFCI also.

You can't measure voltage like that with a GP. When you are using a GP, and measure from the tank to ground it is like you are measuring the voltage across a 0 ohm resistor. You will always get 0 even though the voltage is still there.
IMO ground probes are a waste of money. GFCIs are necessary.

[reefergeorge]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=13242371#post13242371 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by DamnPepShrimp
Can you elaborate on how to do this? My tank isn't hooked up to a GFI outlet, nor is there one on the circuit. Just dont know how that'd work then?

Or is it beat to just have a grounding probe? I'm mainly worried about if I drop a light in my tank while my hands are in the tank.

Using a GP without a gfci is dangerous, and a fire hazard. If you use a GP make sure to have it plugged into a gfci protected outlet.

[DamnPepShrimp]

Why are GP a waste of money? So you should just hook everything up to a GFI or? I'm not very well educated on the safety electrical issues, please bare with me, thanks.

[reefergeorge]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=13242478#post13242478 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by DamnPepShrimp
Why are GP a waste of money? So you should just hook everything up to a GFI or? I'm not very well educated on the safety electrical issues, please bare with me, thanks.

It's just my opinion. I have done the research, and made the decision to exclude them from my tank. You should look up the benefits, and negatives. Then make a decision. Here are some articles if you want to start reading.
http://article.dphnet.com/cat-02/strayvoltages.shtml

http://avdil.gtri.gatech.edu/RCM/RCM/Aquarium/GroundingProbes.html

[DamnPepShrimp]

So what do you suggest? Just running everything thru a gfi? What's the ideal setup? I trust your judgement being your an electrician. I will definitely look into those articles as well, thank you.

[Rysam]

Every time i have been zapped through a wound it has always been a powerhead. it's happened a couple times over the years. Im in my tank regularly and my hands are usually beat up pretty bad and I never feel anything. When i get zapped i just unplug everything and take one more for the team as i plug each piece of equipment in by itself. you'll find out quickly what was bad.

[ruiny]

Same for me, every time it is a power head.
I just un plug the oldest one and see if that does it.
If not, try another one.

[Lunchbucket]

So is 38volts bad? I unplugged everything one at a time and nothing dropped it much

Lunchbucket

[chrismunn]

its electricity. this used to happen to me in my old tank. i couldnt figure it out so i did a test. i stood on a thick piece of plastic and then stuck my cut hands back into the tank, no shock.

[cveverly]

I would try to find the source of the stray 38 volts. It will just get worse in time and if you fix it your corals will love you again. :lol:

I also agree a ground probe may not be the best solution. You may be draining off the voltage but you are creating current.

[Lunchbucket]

Is 38volts that bad? I unplugged everything and nothing dropped it significantly.

Lunchbucket

[reefergeorge]

I just measured mine, and with the lights off it reads 35 volts. With the light on it will be slightly higher. That number doesn't bother me at all.
I have never felt any shock, and I am always working in my tank barefoot.

[Tommy]

Wow,i've felt the same thing,just figured it was caused from cuts.I will be testing soon!Wonder if there is a big difference in volt meters too.Something else to worry about..

[eros]

Even cheap volt meters are accurate. If you aren't sure just stick each prong into your electrical socket. Should read about 120 volts. Also you have to make sure the meter is set to AC not DC. If it's set to DC you wont get a reading.

[bboshart]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=13242605#post13242605 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by reefergeorge
It's just my opinion. I have done the research, and made the decision to exclude them from my tank. You should look up the benefits, and negatives. Then make a decision. Here are some articles if you want to start reading.
http://article.dphnet.com/cat-02/strayvoltages.shtml

http://avdil.gtri.gatech.edu/RCM/RCM/Aquarium/GroundingProbes.html

Thanks for the links. Interesting.. So if there is no ground, stray voltage does not exist? I'm going to keep my ground probe for now. I've determined that most of my stray voltage is in the sump coming from my heater and main return pump. The ground probe is also in the sump, so I assume the current flow would only be in the sump (taking the path of less resistance) not the display tank. With the probe in the sump then, I have less chance of there ever been current flow in the display tank (unless the culprit device is in the dt)??

[gkyle]

I find the article a bit confusing. It states that the grounding probe will actually cause the current flow in the tank, but also suggests that you need a ground probe in conjunction with a GFCI to be safe. If you have a 15A GFCI, then you could theoretically flow 14A and never trip the circuit. That would certainly kill, many things, including us. The ground probe is insurance against a live voltage (like when I dropped my powered ozone unit in the sump), but probably not much help with stray voltage. A live device of any type should flow plenty of current to cause the circuit to trip, even with a normal breaker, right? In my case, the ground probe in the DT did nothing to protect me when I stupidly reached in to save the ozone unit, as I should expect I guess. One problem with a GFCI is that many will trip even with a momentary power outage and stay in the off position, needlessly starving the tank of circulation, etc. They're a good thing for sure, but this aspect needs to be considered also.

[eros]

I know what you mean about being confused. It seems no one can make up their mind on whether grouding probes are good or not. Some say it's worse on your livestock than the stray voltage was in the first place, others say it's better to have a GP than stray voltage. I ordered one anyway because I was tired of getting shocked. I have my grouding probe in my sump right next to my Sedra pump that leaks voltage, by completing the circut right next to the voltage leak I'm hoping to minimize any damage done to my livestock. If I see my livestock go downhill I will remove it. That's the best idea I can think of.

[Radioheadx14]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=13249620#post13249620 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by cveverly
I would try to find the source of the stray 38 volts. It will just get worse in time and if you fix it your corals will love you again. :lol:

I also agree a ground probe may not be the best solution. You may be draining off the voltage but you are creating current.

exactly.... I measure around 4-5 volts in my tank and feel nothing. when i plug in the grounding probe, i feel a shock... so i dont use it anymore.

[reefergeorge]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=13251067#post13251067 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by gkyle
I find the article a bit confusing. It states that the grounding probe will actually cause the current flow in the tank, but also suggests that you need a ground probe in conjunction with a GFCI to be safe. If you have a 15A GFCI, then you could theoretically flow 14A and never trip the circuit. That would certainly kill, many things, including us.

Most gfci outlets trip at 5 milliamps to ground.

[gkyle]

Thanks - I didn't know that about GFCI. My problem with them is that they stay in the off position even after a brief power fluctuation.

I'm curious though - if the ground probe is what completes the circuit, why would we want one - GFCI or not?