Water and Electricity (1 Viewer)

[Jim Daniels]

The other night I noticed a pool of water gathered in the light shade in my apartment kitchen. Water was dripping through the ceiling from the apartment above. It seems they were defrosting chickens in the sink and it overflowed all over the gaff

There are now little streaks on the ceiling and the wiring is probably fecked. I'm afraid to turn on the light switch in case I blow up Inchicore.

Do Electrical things dry out? Will it be safe in a couple of days?

Apartment life.... sigh

 

[smallbrownbear]

we had major leak in our house coupla years back from upstairs to downstairs. if the water isn't dripping freely from above it means it's all collected bewteen the floorboards and ceiling board. in which case it tries to flow through your light fittings. we made a small hole in our ceiling [with a nail] to drain water safely away from light fitting. we got electrics checked afterwards justin casey, and they were grand. but we did have to get floor boards replaced and walls resurfaced so that'll tell you the extent of damage [which incidently was caused by a workman who on realising he'd flooded the gaff, legged it]...so eh, maybe get it checked out for peace of mind

 

[Jim Daniels]

we had major leak in our house coupla years back from upstairs to downstairs. if the water isn't dripping freely from above it means it's all collected bewteen the floorboards and ceiling board. in which case it tries to flow through your light fittings. we made a small hole in our ceiling [with a nail] to drain water safely away from light fitting. we got electrics checked afterwards justin casey, and they were grand. but we did have to get floor boards replaced and walls resurfaced so that'll tell you the extent of damage [which incidently was caused by a workman who on realising he'd flooded the gaff, legged it]...so eh, maybe get it checked out for peace of mind

God, what a nightmare for you

Mine doesn't seem so bad. Might call me Da.
They know about these things

 

[Dr Winston Umbogo]

switch it on you girl!

 

[c0De_n1NjA]

i work for the ESB home safety dept. and my advice is to remove the bulb and feel the pins for dampness.

 

[Jim Daniels]

Thanks for the ecouragement and advise A.H and C.N..

But I dreamt once that I was electrocuted (while listening to Pychocandy in an old tape recorder). I was thrown across the room to a grizzly death.

 

[Dr Winston Umbogo]

we are here to help.

 

[TenRabbits]

Most electrical equipment is fairly resistant to water, as long as it's not on when the water is present. I've worked on pretty complex cameras that have been dunked in fresh water, and all we do is strip them apart and dry them with a hairdryer, before repowering them. 9 times out 10 - they're fine.

Electrical cable should be fine too, as it's fairly well insulated, the only problem points will be where it terminates - i.e. sockets and the like. If there is water around the bulb or switch, then that's a problem. If it's just random areas in the roof, then it's not likely to be an issue, as the wiring is all wrapped in plastic. Smallbrownbear is quite right, water will try to flow out through the light fittings if it's collected up there.

You should note that even if you are standing in a puddle of water and a live wire is touching it - you're not going to get fried unless you touch something else that has an earth, so if you touch a metal housed bit of electircal equipment (kettle or something) you'll get lit up.

 

[Jim Daniels]

Most electrical equipment is fairly resistant to water, as long as it's not on when the water is present. I've worked on pretty complex cameras that have been dunked in fresh water, and all we do is strip them apart and dry them with a hairdryer, before repowering them. 9 times out 10 - they're fine.

Electrical cable should be fine too, as it's fairly well insulated, the only problem points will be where it terminates - i.e. sockets and the like. If there is water around the bulb or switch, then that's a problem. If it's just random areas in the roof, then it's not likely to be an issue, as the wiring is all wrapped in plastic. Smallbrownbear is quite right, water will try to flow out through the light fittings if it's collected up there.

You should note that even if you are standing in a puddle of water and a live wire is touching it - you're not going to get fried unless you touch something else that has an earth, so if you touch a metal housed bit of electircal equipment (kettle or something) you'll get lit up.

Wow, nice reply!

Trouble was, it was when I turned on the light in the kitchen that I noticed the problem, i.e water collected in the light shade. So it had passed through the bulb (two bars) and electrical gadgetry. The light flickered for a second so I turned it off pronto, took off the shade thing and poured out the water. It continued to drip (slowly) through for about 15-20 more mins. Didn't go near any sockets of switches though.

I just remember using a knife to separate the shade from the holder. Feck!