ELECTRICAL,STRAY CURRENT please help

B

briangg57

New member
Today I had a very small cut on my finger,it caused my finger to be extra sensative and when my finger touched the water and my light at the same time, I felt a very small current. Now my light rests on my tank against the plastic supports. I figured the electricity was coming from light and due to dampness of aquarium, was conducting it's way to the water. So I shut off light and touched water and light, it still did it. So I figured it had to either be one of my 2 powerheads or heater. So I unplugged 1 powerhead and it stopped. I plugged it back in and I felt it. I thought case solved but I then unpluged 2nd powerhead and it stopped.I plugged it back in and it started. I then left those plugged in and unplugged the heater and again it stopped. It seems as if it didn't matter which one I unplugged ,as long as I unplugged something. Is it that I have too many things plugged in the powerstrip? I don't think so, but I can'texplain it any other way and I'm far from being an electrcian. PLEASE HELP.
 
As far as I know, all powerheads and heaters introduce a small amount of current in the tank. Your cut has made you hyper sensitive to this. If it were me, I would get an outlet tester (its cheap)
98_2.JPG


and make sure the outlet is wired correctly.

Now for the contraversial answer.....

Ready.....

Use a ground probe. You will never feel it again.

There I said it. :)
 
I'm not sure, maybe he/she means that you should fix the equipment that is causing it instead of just covering it up with a ground probe, but I am not sure why, either way, probably a good idea to have a ground probe even if you don't have any current in there just in case equipment decides to leak while you are gone or something. Couldn't tell you for sure though
 
you might research the ground probe idea

dont know how controversial it is
but there has been a lot of info come out about why these should not be used.

before you get one recom reading up on it.

good luck

regards
 
The controversy is that if the current isn't grounded it has no place to "flow". Then if you add a grounding probe it makes a circuit and will flow through the tank.
 
I've been researching ground probes and it sure is confusing. I've read that any equipment introduced into water will cause some voltage. I wish I could say I have a piece of faulty equipment and just replace it. But as I have stated, it seems it doesn't matter what I unplug, as long as I unplug something the voltage goes down. I don't believe all my equip. is faulty. I'm thinking GROUND PLUG with GFCI. What do you guys think?
 
You can try a small voltage meter to test. Put each item one at a time in a salt bucket of water and check for current. I'd def. get a gfci on the wall outlet. I had some old mj1000's go out w/in a month of each other but after 10 years, not bad!
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=11973187#post11973187 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by DrBDC
The controversy is that if the current isn't grounded it has no place to "flow". Then if you add a grounding probe it makes a circuit and will flow through the tank.
Click to expand...
So are you saying that without the probe the fish aren't grounded and therefore don't feel the current ? And if I add one and the fish swim through were the current is directed,then they WILL feel it?
 
From what I've been reading, Is it true that every tank ,even without malfunctioning equip. will register some voltage. Like I said ,it doesn't matter what I unplug,as long as I unplug something the voltage goes down.
 
Essentially, a GP may help prevent you from being shocked if a catastrophic equipment failure occurs, but will make things worse for the tank inhabitants. So, it's sort of a trade off.... Saltwater is an ionic soup, full of charges ions. If you provide a ground, there will be a voltage reading. However, there is a catch, if you stop testing, the voltage reading would go away anyway, because the current no longer has anywhere to go...

So, when you add a ground probe, you are ensuring that the current is flowing 24x7 and this is probably bad for anything living in your tank. However, if you do not have a GP, and an electrical wire was somehow exposed(rubber torn off or something), then there is a possibility that the GP could prevent you from being shocked, under some circumstances...

Personally, my tank is on Hardwood floors, on a carpet, I have GFCI's on every piece of equipment and I check my equipment constantly... so I believe that a GP would do more harm than good, but this is somewhat of a personal opinion.
 
I can see that this is a personal preferance issue. What is the popular vote of you experianced reefers with at least 5 years experiance?
 
I have one but have had it since "everyone" got one. I haven't really sat down and researched enough to make a change. At the time I installed it, I didn't have gfci plugs either and now I do. Maybe it's time to take it out but I want to do a LOT of reading up first.
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=11973276#post11973276 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by briangg57
I've been researching ground probes and it sure is confusing. I've read that any equipment introduced into water will cause some voltage. I wish I could say I have a piece of faulty equipment and just replace it. But as I have stated, it seems it doesn't matter what I unplug, as long as I unplug something the voltage goes down. I don't believe all my equip. is faulty. I'm thinking GROUND PLUG with GFCI. What do you guys think?
Click to expand...

GFI want cure a problem but if there is a problem it might trip and shut everything down. I`ve had a few bad experiences with glass heaters breaking under water. It will put the water at 120v just waiting for you to touch and give a path to ground!!! The fish dont seem to care that the water is charged. I dont use GFI`s because I see them trip alot with things that are in water. A GFI looks for a difference in current between the hot wire and the nuetral, and if there is one it will trip because it assumes the difference is going to ground.
 
listen, there is always a small small amount of current in a tank especially with powerheads. your feeling mostly the ''tingle'' of salt burning your cut. if there was truly a current leakage you'd feel it alot more than in your cut!!
also. you should NEVER put your hand in the tak with an open sore/cut!! your really asking for trouble [bacterial]
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=11974249#post11974249 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by sjames
here is an informative web page you may want to read.

http://avdil.gtri.gatech.edu/RCM/RCM/Aquarium/GroundingProbes.html
Click to expand...

I've read that, it's a good article but it's just another oppinion on the ground probe use

here is my 2 cents

use GFI where it makes sense, regardless of a ground probe

now my oppinon on the probe based on this experiance of mine

about a month after I installed internal pumps in my tank for circulation my regal tang looks like its getting HLLE. After some research I find that stray voltage is one of the suspected causes. The HLLE continues to get worse until I installed a ground probe.

I don't believe I have any shorts, I tested the water with and without the probe and nothing registered. So, it may be coincedence but I believe the probe helps with micro currents generated by the internal wave devices, IMO. So I use one, plus as a backup, I don't want to get shocked. Been there done that, not fun.
 
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