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Safety



At 12:25 PM 7/7/96 -0600, you wrote:

<really big snip>

>>Yeah, I don't think we can mandate other people's safety, but I do think it
>>would be a very good idea if Chip would regularly post a standard "cautions
>>and warning message" describing just how very dangerous coiling can be,
>>i.e., exploding caps, cap oil as a fire hazard, pole pigs burning off
arms, etc.
>>
>>Somehow, I get the feeling that many of the newcomers to Tesla coil building
>>do not appreciate the danger of building the bigger coils.  Pole pigs are
>>dangerous!  If anyone has any doubts, talk to a power lineman.
>>
>>Bert
>
>   That reminds me - the electrical utility in Edmonton, Alberta used
>   to have instructional films for public exhibits and kids in school
>   about how dangerous electricity is.  I would imagine they have
>   similar films / videos for training their linemen.  Maybe your
>   local power authority down there in Richmond might be willing to
>   help with videos or information sheets on transformer and capacitor
>   safety ??  How about the local technical college or university
>   electrical engineering dept. ?  They might have a safety sheet for
>   each device.
>
> Fred W. Bach ,    Operations Group        | Internet: music-at-triumf.ca

Over here in Michigan, Consumers Power Co. has a really nice electrical
safety demo that they do. 

They use a pole pig hooked up backwards with a big line cap to limit the
current through it. 

Standard demos include setting dry wood on fire (showing it's not much
of an insulator at those voltages), and showing how an arc can reach 
through a pinhole in linesman's gloves and cook a hotdog into a cinder
in a few seconds, etc.

They also show a really good non-hokey video showing a whole
subdivision where all the houses are catching on fire and spitting
sparks around all the windows, doors and sideing, due to a 38 KV
line dropping into a 120 V feeder system. (someone forgot to set
the proper breaker strapping at the substation).

Give your local power co. a call, they might have something like
this.

Daryl