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FrozenGate by Avery

My HeNe!






That had to be the perfect storm of conditions to cause a reaction like that. Still, he survived, and please correct me if I'm wrong but I don't think anyone has ever died from the stored charge in a HeNe tube. People have died of the stored charge in DC bulk capacitors of switching power supplies.

Obviously either one should be avoided though, there is no magical threshold of death below which you will be fine. It's possible to electrocute yourself with a 12V car battery under just the right conditions. Not likely, but it can be done.
 
james1095 said:
That had to be the perfect storm of conditions to cause a reaction like that. Still, he survived, and please correct me if I'm wrong but I don't think anyone has ever died from the stored charge in a HeNe tube. People have died of the stored charge in DC bulk capacitors of switching power supplies.

Obviously either one should be avoided though, there is no magical threshold of death below which you will be fine. It's possible to electrocute yourself with a 12V car battery under just the right conditions. Not likely, but it can be done.
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Dude, trim the ego down. No one has ever said it could kill you, just that it can hurt very much. Ice showed what is possible, and reinforced the fact that you should be careful. Safety is always first, and you shouldn't be arguing with him because he presented proof its possible. I've also read that it can hit you hard. So stop telling people its nothing, because it obviously has effected a few people in a highly negative way.
 
??...

I never said it was nothing. I said it was less hazardous than the bulk DC caps in a switching power supply, my point being more that one should greatly respect the danger there despite the much lower voltage, rather than to imply that the HV from a HeNe is harmless.

I specifically said "Obviously either one should be avoided though, there is no magical threshold of death below which you will be fine. It's possible to electrocute yourself with a 12V car battery under just the right conditions. Not likely, but it can be done."

Not sure where you get that I was arguing with him, what ego you're talking about, or why you feel it necessary to be rude about it. I don't have a lot of free time but I still try to be helpful and contribute here. If you guys don't want my contributions I can take my efforts elsewhere.
 
No problem here. I'm just very very careful with high voltage. I was reading on these because of my pacemaker and it surprised me that it could hit someone that hard.

But yes, with my pacemaker it probably could kill me, under the right conditions. Problem is I've gotten into a little obsessed with hene tubes for the moment, HV or not. Its also fun seeing what others are doing.

james1095 said:
??...

I never said it was nothing. I said it was less hazardous than the bulk DC caps in a switching power supply, my point being more that one should greatly respect the danger there despite the much lower voltage, rather than to imply that the HV from a HeNe is harmless.

I specifically said "Obviously either one should be avoided though, there is no magical threshold of death below which you will be fine. It's possible to electrocute yourself with a 12V car battery under just the right conditions. Not likely, but it can be done."

Not sure where you get that I was arguing with him, what ego you're talking about, or why you feel it necessary to be rude about it. I don't have a lot of free time but I still try to be helpful and contribute here. If you guys don't want my contributions I can take my efforts elsewhere.
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That's kinda dangerous, icecruncher :P You should probably deal with that mentally.
 
Well I 've fired up my little tube several times and have lived to tell about it. So far what I've done is powered down the tube and let it cool for a few minutes, disconnected the alden connectors then shorted the pins. So far no zap painful or otherwise. I'm not sure if the charge dissipated during cool down or when I shorted the pins on the male alden (or maybe a combo of both?) but the last time even though the brain said "Bad idea!" i touched the tube right after shorting the pins and nothing happened.

I think the danger is overblown a little but as Ice's post shows there can be serious consequences in some situations.

james-

I for one appreciate your knowledge here and have been grateful for the replies you've made to several of my posts recently.
 
Well there are exceptions to most things, people have died doing some of the most mundane activities, freak accidents occur but for the most part if you take reasonable precautions you will be fine.

Shorting the pins is a perfectly valid way to discharge the tube. The charge will be dissipated pretty much instantly at which point it's safe to touch. Occasionally some electrostatic charge will build back up so if you want to be really sure to avoid surprise zaps, clip a jumper lead between the two terminals while you work on it. I frequently do that on the bench to protect me in the event that I accidentally plug in the wrong cord inadvertently energizing the thing I'm working on. Mistakes happen and better to blow a fuse or fry something than to fry me.
 
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