Cubit Posted June 2, 2013 Share Posted June 2, 2013 Don't disagree. with that. The bit that puzzles me in this is some having serious doubts to the reliability of their meter but putting implicit trust in the correct working of a volt stick and worse, a neon. What happened to the bit about regular testing and inspection of test equipment? Without the meter i wouldn't have noticed the neutral sitting at 30v relative to earth on Friday. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
magpye Posted June 2, 2013 Share Posted June 2, 2013 Forgive this post please, from someone who does not own a volt stick of any kind. If they are as dangerous as, nearly, everyone here, says, how come no one has pointed to a person who has been killed or seriously injured from using one of these. Has it happened? How come they are sold in every DiY premises in the country and also many other outlets that sell electrical equipment. Surely Trading Standards would have been 'all over' the sellers/manufacturers by now to get these things removed from the shelves? Someone told me I was ignorant and apathetic, I don't know what that means, nor do I care. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MrHappy Posted June 2, 2013 Share Posted June 2, 2013 Forgive this post please, from someone who does not own a volt stick of any kind. this type... If they are as dangerous as, nearly, everyone here, says, how come no one has pointed to a person who has been killed or seriously injured from using one of these. Has it happened? Using the magic of google, but note the dot au & its on page 5 Case 3 The deceased, who was a building and maintenance manager, received a fatal electrical injury whilst working on an air conditioning unit in their workplace. It appears that the deceased utilised a proximity volt- tester at the time of death since this device was discovered near the deceased’s head. “1. The Department of Fair Trading should review the adequacy of the precautions attached to the sale of proximity voltage testers (“volt sticks”) in light of their inherent unreliability and potentially fatal consequences. http://www.ncis.org.au/web_pages/Feb%202012%20FACT-SHEET%20-%20Electrocution%20related%20deaths.pdf How come they are sold in every DiY premises in the country and also many other outlets that sell electrical equipment. Same reason you can buy red plastic clips for FP, people want to buy 'em Mr Veritas God Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cubit Posted June 2, 2013 Share Posted June 2, 2013 Forgive this post please, from someone who does not own a volt stick of any kind. If they are as dangerous as, nearly, everyone here, says, how come no one has pointed to a person who has been killed or seriously injured from using one of these. Has it happened? How come they are sold in every DiY premises in the country and also many other outlets that sell electrical equipment. Surely Trading Standards would have been 'all over' the sellers/manufacturers by now to get these things removed from the shelves? Use them as a basic indicator. Is it live? yes? No? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bee_man Posted June 2, 2013 Share Posted June 2, 2013 > Use them as a basic indicator. Is it live? yes? No? Exactly. That is the one and only use they should ever be put to, and even then some of them only tell you if a voltage greater than the neon's striking voltage is present. The graduated multi LED ones are a bit better, but still wholly inadequate for measuring and kind of voltage, whether safety is involved or not. Damned things should be collected up and buried, en masse. bee Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sixwheeledbeast Posted June 2, 2013 Share Posted June 2, 2013 Forgive this post please, from someone who does not own a volt stick of any kind. If they are as dangerous as, nearly, everyone here, says, how come no one has pointed to a person who has been killed or seriously injured from using one of these. Has it happened? How come they are sold in every DiY premises in the country and also many other outlets that sell electrical equipment. Surely Trading Standards would have been 'all over' the sellers/manufacturers by now to get these things removed from the shelves? I have one built into my Fluke multimeter. I'd only use it as a general indication. I'd never think of touching live conductors without testing them "properly" first. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scotmod Posted June 2, 2013 Share Posted June 2, 2013 you can never be too cautious when testing fir live mains, either of the above options your relying on test leads having good continuity, but after a period of time there is high risk of them breaking within the sleeving, especially in the highly flexed portion of the leads. intermittent leads could give false results ending up with a risk of severe shock for the user (even after having used a testing block). personally my first test is using Fluke Volt Light 4L, this has. very bright LED but alsi a handy clip when yiu need ti free a hand. if no indication (because it has an off/on switch and batteries), i use a Fluke 15B DVM, still no indication i then check using 2 different neon drivers. even after all that, i never grab a 'known dead' lead, but always perform a test with a swipe using the back of my finger so i can't grip if it is live. So Safe Isolation is pants compared to your LED sticks? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alarm Protection Posted June 2, 2013 Share Posted June 2, 2013 The metre has never let me down tbh. Of it ever does then I will post on here. ! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
arfur mo Posted June 2, 2013 Share Posted June 2, 2013 > Use them as a basic indicator. Is it live? yes? No? Exactly. That is the one and only use they should ever be put to, and even then some of them only tell you if a voltage greater than the neon's striking voltage is present. The graduated multi LED ones are a bit better, but still wholly inadequate for measuring and kind of voltage, whether safety is involved or not. Damned things should be collected up and buried, en masse. bee neon striking voltage is far lower the very dangerous 240 vac, even building sites use 110 vac and on glass bulbs, which when broken exposes bare electrodes. 110 will still give you a fair jolt but less likely to kill. The metre has never let me down tbh. Of it ever does then I will post on here. how about the hundred yards dash .So Safe Isolation is pants compared to your LED sticks?Sorry, i'm not being evasive but i'm not sure of your question, where did i say or intimate safe isolation was pants?Safe Isolation while is always advisable is not usually practical in a busy environment, do you agree or not? If you think education is difficult, try being stupid!!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bee_man Posted June 2, 2013 Share Posted June 2, 2013 Yes, about 90V, that was my point. bee Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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