Ground-fault interrupters in the bathroom. Lifesavers
So true. I wish more people were aware of this fact.
I didn’t think you could get high enough amperage out of 5 volt phone charger. I just had a look at my Apple cube charger and it says Output 5V 1A, so yeah, I guess that IS enough. I think only have an amp or less is lethal, no? I just assumed these were low enough voltage (and disregarded amperage altogether) that an accident like that wouldn’t happen with a phone.
I was thinking the same thing and wondering if the outlet was protected.
Being electromechanical devises they are not perfect. And most homeowners never test them to ensure that they are in good working order.
Regardless of if your outlets are protected or not they should not be trusted to save your life. Do not use electric devises in close proximity to open water. And at no time use electrical devises when IN the water.
But aren’t those for things that have plugs to the wall? Cell phone, no plugs.
My new electric shaver will not turn on if’s on the charger, and the charger is plugged in.
Ground-fault interrupters in the bathroom. Lifesavers
Yup. They’ve been available for decades. GFCIs will even work on older wiring systems which lack a dedicated ground.
Even though the phone charger transformer isolates the 120 VAC from the charging output, there can be malfunctions and higher than necessary output currents that are dangerous in wet situations. Cheap knock-off third-party counterfeit phone chargers can be shock hazards. The iPhone charger, which has a current of 1 amp and also a voltage of 5 volts, will not electrocute a person. However, it has been found that water will lower a person’s body resistance enough so that even 7 milliamps for three seconds is a lethal dose. A counterfeit phone charger might have a higher 2 amps output at 5 volts. The higher current increases the danger even more. Of course, a bathroom equipped with modern ground-fault circuit interrupter outlets would have prevented the shock in the first place.
Having trouble believing it happened as stated - unless the wall socket voltage was somehow applied there was not enough juice/amperage involved.
“Ground-fault interrupters in the bathroom. Lifesavers”
Must have been and old house.
Even without a GFI, the plug in AC adapter puts out low voltage/low current DC to the phone. If the phone was immersed while plugged in, how could it NOT short out the converter or even blow the fuse/trip the breaker for the outlet? And how could it deliver a fatal AC charge?
There’s more to this than what is being reported. The 5V output from a cell phone charger is “floating”, in other words, not referenced to ground. No current would flow from either the positive or negative side of the 5V circuit to her or the water in the tub.
Either the charger was defective or she came into contact with the AC line.