Just got zapped hard!
 

So im holding some good live rock for my new build. Lots of life etc. 2 tanks with a powerhead, a heater and a small HOB filter.

Today I went to touch the water (as I always do to make sure that my thermometers are accurate). And it felt like someone punched me in the chest! Got it bad enough to knock me on my a$$.

So im thinking heaters, as these are the common culperits. Im kind of scared to test my theory though. Dont really want to replace the heater and try it again lol. How do I test for voltage without killing myself?

And the big question...now that I know this is happening....is everything dead in the rock now? Or would the current not harm bacteria etc?. I havent gone back out to look for pods etc.

I use a Fluke pen to test for A/C voltage on wires. It looks like an a fat plastic pen that just needs to be close to the current and then lights up if there is power there. I haven't tried it in water though and without purposely adding electricity to my tank I can't say for sure if it works. They are cheap and other companies besides Fluke make them. They come in handy for wall receptacles, testing extension cords, etc. If you know any electricians they would be likely to have one to try.

I would get a grounding probe. They are fairly cheap.
I had a similar problem turns out it was my skimmer pump cord. It was wearing.

using a gfi?

Get a cheap multi meter, stick the black end into the earth pole on a three prong plug, put the other end in the tank. Get a helper to unplug things one at a time, when the voltage drops to zero the last item unplugged is the culprit. Good luck.

Edit:
When a heater went bad in my display I had the same shocking experience, I didn't notice any damage to the livestock in the tank. The fish were a bit skittish, but no harm done. The fish that were in there are still in there after about 2 years.

holy frak! Glad to hear you're ok! Would hate for you to have yet another excuse not to finish your build.

All kidding aside, keeps us updated on what you find! You've got me scared to put my hand in my tank now!

remember that fish in the tank are not grounded.....

when you reach in, you probably are grounded and the current travels through you.... & thats what hurts.....

I've often wondered why Neptune hasn't made some kind of voltage detector for the Apex. Or any other controller manufacturer...

Hmm.. maybe I should make something.

It really is as simple as having a voltage meter in the water and then the other end to ground. It could monitor the voltage in your tank.

FWIW you'll always get some stray voltage in the water. It is when it gets high that it is a problem. And yes - I know.. it is the current that kills you not the voltage... Either way - some way to indicate that it is safe for me to put my hand in the water.

Glad you survived. The most I ever got was an uncomfortable tingling. Found the heater that was the culprit.

I have a multi-meter. Would that work if I dipped the ends in the water?

LOL!!!! No excuse...YET. I'm still kickin! haha.

After work today I'm going to take the heaters out, and inspect all the powerheads as well. See if I can find anything obvious.

No GFCI on this one, as it's in my garage. I'm just using a powerbar, which if I remember correctly has a GFCI-like device in it, becuase it has popped on me before. However.... it didn't pop this time lol.


Would a grounding probe saved me from getting zapped?

Just saw this post. I will definitely try this, as I do have a multi-meter at home.

One question though, should I ground it on the socket end of the power bar in the ground prong position?

Sure, that will work. Anything that completes the circuit will work.

Like scherzo said, the voltage won't drop to zero, but it will drop significantly. Give me a few minutes and I'll grab my multimeter from the shop and post hat my tanks voltage is.

For anyone that isn't sure the earth (ground) prong on a power outlet is the round hole, not one of the flat blade holes.

Yes, this one here:

http://i24.photobucket.com/albums/c3...ps3c4a01cf.png

Thank you.

One tank has 43v and the other 56v, neither give a tingle or zapppppp!

When I was getting zapped it was over 100v, the culprit was a heater.

I just remembered I had a pump in a small skimmer go bad on my kids nano tank, also a shocking experience. I don't recall testing the tank with a multi meter.

I'll check what my live one is today and let you know. I'll bet it will be much higher!

I would not recommend a grounding probe. A grounding probe might seem like a good idea to draw out voltage from the aquarium but it tends to draw more voltage into the aquarium that can lead HLLE and doesn't solve the issue of stray voltage in the aquarium. It is best to find out which piece of equipment is leaking voltage and replace. Just my 2 cents :)

I use one of these NOMA GFCI powerbars. It says not for use with aquariums but I use it anyways.

http://www.canadiantire.ca/en/pdp/no...l#.U9fXfa3n-Hs

After saying the voltage won't ever say zero.. I tested my tank today and I got zero...

I just got a new skimmer so I think my old skimmer pump was putting out 10v in the water. New skimmer apparently drops nothing.

I also don't have any power heads in the tank because I have vortechs. The only thing in the water is my heater and skimmer pump.

Glad you found the culprit safely.

Wow - that is a hazard of the hobby I had never considered! I am glad you are okay. I stick my hands in my water all the time without a second thought. while doing a water change on the weekend, I accidentally dumped a bunch of water on my power bar and it started hissing and spurting. If the toxins don't get us the electricity will!

LOL, yeah thats the last thing I was expecting when I dumped my hand in the water!! Now im totally scared to do that again without using a multi-meter first! haha

Well.... sure enough.......thats what I got zapped with!

http://i24.photobucket.com/albums/c3...psarif6fco.jpg

Did the whole pull all the plugs one at a time, and found an obvious culperit....not a heater!! Slight cut in the return pump cord. Also melted my power bar a little bit. Glad this didnt turn into a fire.

http://i24.photobucket.com/albums/c3...psfgevlrpk.jpg

http://i24.photobucket.com/albums/c3...pslzgwtn9u.jpg

So the return pump is submerged? I'm in the "the fewer electrical cords in the water, the better" camp. I don't have a return pump on my sumpless set up, but once I upgrade to something with a sump, it will have an external pump. Haven't measured tank voltage in a long while, I have VorTechs as well, so no powerheads with cords in the tank. Heaters & skimmer feed powerhead are the only electrical components physically in the water & I make sure the cords on those items are above the surface.

Yup. Submerged pump. I prefer submerged over external myself, as most do (due to space under stands).

But this one was just an old small biocube one I always used as my ATO pump. It just circulates the water to keep it moving while I store the live rock. Lucky for me I have 5 more just like it lying around, so it was easy to rig up a replacement.

I checked the new pumps cord thoroughly lol

Damn that looks like a significant current! Glad you are alright. Always wear flip flops (the insulated ones) while working with water. Every hobbyist should have few pairs (one for the hobbyist and rest for the visitors) beside the tank; you never know when there's gonna be stray currents :)