Joseph Herbert on mon 12 jun 00
Chris wrote complaining about shocks from a wheel. One correspondent =
suggested a bad ground. That is probably true and there are other =
possibilities besides the plug being bad: the outlet you are using may =
have not been connected to an adequate ground when it was installed. If =
the wiring meets Electrical Code standards, this should not be true.
There is a larger issue, I think. I am somewhat electrically challanged =
but I think the grounding of appliances is really intended to remove =
any induced voltage that accumulates from the interaction of the =
electrical fields with the metal parts of the appliance. The continued =
shocking described by Chris seems like more than that. There is =
probably an internal electrical fault where the worn insulation on a =
wire is contacting the frame of the wheel. Visual inspection of the =
wires may reveal the problem which could be temporarly fixed with =
electrical tape pending the worn wire replacement by competent =
electrical persons. =20
If you are going to do any inspection of the electrical parts of your =
wheel, unplug it! Turning off switches is an inadequate safety measure. =
=20
If you are turning your wheel over to look at the bottom workings, =
remember it is possible to bend the wheelhead if too much weight is =
placed on the edge of the head. This is also the reason you should not =
stand on the wheel head either. I know it is more fun that Six Flags =
but you still shouldn't do that.=20
Joseph Herbert
Gary Elfring on tue 13 jun 00
>Chris wrote complaining about shocks from a wheel. One correspondent
>suggested a bad ground. That is probably true and there are other
>possibilities besides the plug being bad: the outlet you are using may
>have not been connected to an adequate ground when it was installed. If
>the wiring meets Electrical Code standards, this should not be true.
>
>There is a larger issue, I think. I am somewhat electrically
>challanged but I think the grounding of appliances is really intended to
>remove any induced voltage that accumulates from the interaction of the
>electrical fields with the metal parts of the appliance. The continued
>shocking described by Chris seems like more than that. There is probably
>an internal electrical fault where the worn insulation on a wire is
>contacting the frame of the wheel. Visual inspection of the wires may
>reveal the problem which could be temporarly fixed with electrical tape
>pending the worn wire replacement by competent electrical persons.
I'm not electrically challenged- when I was in college I worked summers as
an electrician. The "shockin wheel" is *very* bad and needs to be addressed
right away.
There is a remote possibility that the outlet the wheel is plugged into is
wired incorrectly. Every hardware store sells little "outlet testers" for
about $2 - $3. Every home owner should have one of these. These testers
have a series of 3 lights on them, and the pattern of lights tells you
whether or not the outlet is correctly wired. You just plug the device into
each outlet in your house. (My house came with 2 incorrectly wired outlets,
which have the potential to kill you!)
If the outlet checks out ok, the wheel has a short in it, or the motor has
gone bad. In general, the ground wire on the outlet is supposed to prevent
the shock from happening. A properly grounded wheel should blow the circuit
breaker (or fuse) rather than shock you. (That's why you check the outlet
before fooling with the wheel.) As someone else mentioned, a GFI outlet
(Ground Fault Interrupter) should really be used for a wheel. They cost
about $10 - $15, and a reasonably handy person can install one him/her self
(assuming the house is wired with conduit or romex with a ground wire).
If it turns out the problem is in the wheel, it may be simple. You unplug
the wheel and use an ohm meter to check for shorts. There may be an obvious
wiring problem that can be located that way. If it's a problem in the motor
or the motor controller, there is nothing the amateur can do. You need an
expert.
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