Electric current in water!

[Anonymous]

I was checking the water in my new 50 gallon to see if it was done cycling. I have a lot of salt creep.I mean a lot on top....my light...and the glass. when I touched the water I got a little tingle. How can I find out the cause without gettin "bit" again. I cleaned and everything and repositioned everything. I need to find the cause. I think the splash from my biowheels is causing the problem.

 

[Anonymous]

Probably the salt creep is a conductor that connects your light socket in the hood to your tank water.

Shut off the electric item one-by-one, and see when the shock goes away... using a multimeter, not your hand, that is.

 

[liquid]

I agree w/ LOULE. That's how I'd tackle it.

Shane

 

[NewMan]

It is always good to have a ground probing wire in your tank

 

[MattM]

There doesn't have to be anything wrong or broken to have electrical current in your tank.

Salt water is very conductive, if it is not grounded, the water will "float" at some random voltage relative to ground. Moving water around through non-conductive pipes (PVC) will also generate an electrical current. It is not uncommon for the water to be 60 or 70 volts above ground with nothing malfunctioning. We've verified this with a multimeter.

Get a grounding probe and the difference will drop to zero. If there is something malfunctioning and shorting through the water, it is now tied to ground and will probably blow a breaker, but much more likely, nothing will happen. The voltage of the water is no longer floating and is now tied to zero potential (ground).

 

[Anonymous]

Unless something's changed about powerheads, and you have any in your tank, I'd say that's your source. Feels kinda good, doesn't it? :twisted:

 

[Anonymous]

:lol: I do wonder why I keep sticking my fingers nervously into the tank and touching the salt creep that seems to "sizzle" a bit. :lol: I cleaned everything and moved some things to keep the salt creep to a miniumum. I wish I had not used the biowheels.......however my water is super clear and everything is perfect. Have some neat looking "algae". It is rust colored and rises from the bottom like an upside down droplet with a long stem.........kind of like an explanation point. Going to pick up my Undulate trigger today today.

 

[MarkO1]

I detected stray voltage in my tank about 2 months ago. Turned out to be a Rio pump.
Unplugged the pump, stray voltage gone!

I also added a titanium probe... just in case.
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Rare Diseases Forum

 

[Anonymous]

It is always good to have a ground probing wire in your tank

Please explain the safety aspects of a grounding probe. Nobody else can.

 

[MarkO1]

Here's one:

When you stick your hand in the tank you don't get zapped.
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recession?

 

[Anonymous]

Heh.. MarkO.

cwa, the thing with the grounding probe is that you want IT to become ground, NOT you. When you are ground, you're the path electricity wants to take to the GROUND (hence, the whole "ground" and "grounding" thing, has nothing to do with meat). Therefore, the probe, like a lightning rod, makes itself available as an easier path (difficult to do since we're mostly bags of water, an incredible electric conductor) for the electricity to take to GROUND.

Howzat?

Hee.. and I'm a GOIL.

 

[Anonymous]

Heh.. MarkO.

cwa, the thing with the grounding probe is that you want IT to become ground, NOT you. When you are ground, you're the path electricity wants to take to the GROUND (hence, the whole "ground" and "grounding" thing, has nothing to do with meat). Therefore, the probe, like a lightning rod, makes itself available as an easier path (difficult to do since we're mostly bags of water, an incredible electric conductor) for the electricity to take to GROUND.

Howzat?

Hee.. and I'm a GOIL.

I have argued the lack of ground probe safety benifits for 3 years. A GFCI is a safety device and you should have one or more on your tanks. You won't get a tingling if you have one installed and use only grounded equipment.
Now tell me what happens if you touch your lights (they have a short) and put your hand in the water with a grounding probe. You become part of the circuit and you need a GFCI to save you. If you didn't have a ground probe there would be no circuit.

GFCI's are required by code because they are a safety device. Ground probes for safety is a reef myth. A ground probe may help lateral line disease.

 

[Anonymous]

Good job Sea-Mommy! But why do we need it?

I get zapped everytime I brush against my light reflector while my hand is in the water...feels kind of good, but not when it gets a BIG zap going.

I asked an elecrital engineer friend of mine how important it is to ground my tank and how bad it was that I was getting zapped....He said grounding the equipment would save my life if there was a serious problem, but that just getting zapped was no big deal. Although he DID recommend grounding everything.

My solution is to turn off the lights when I work in the tank. :wink:

What better way to die than with my hands in the aquarium? I always picture my wife finding my body hanging off the side of the tank with my crispy toasted arms hooked over the rim!

 

[Anonymous]

:lol: :lol: :lol: I have a feeling that this may be my ticket to the Great Aquarium In The Sky! I have not had a problem since I cleaned all the salt creep off and moved some stuff away from the tank. I also removed some glass that was causing a bit of splash. Going to test it tonight with my hands. Wish me luck. I can't use up my beer money to get a probe or a voltmeter. :lol:

 

[Anonymous]

Bangbang, I've never heard of anyone describing cyanobacteria as neat-looking algae before. :lol:

Well hey, if you like it...

 

[Mace Windu]

In my experience the most likely culprit are the lights - or possibly a heater if you are using any. Had problems with voltage several times over the years and it usually turns out to be lights or heaters.