Re: Solid State Tesla Coil - Mysterious Electrical Shocks

["Tesla list" <tesla-at-pupman-dot-com>]

Original poster: "davep by way of Terry Fritz <twftesla-at-qwest-dot-net>" <davep-at-quik-dot-com>

> I was operating my larger Solid State Tesla Coil last

> night and as I had one hand on my control box turning

> the unit on and off, I experienced a rather nasty tingling

> shock on my fingers.  I made checks on the control box and
> everything is grounded and terminated correctly.  

	Checked by inspection or by _measurement_?

 
> Could this be a result of the large EM fields affecting the

> metallic nature

	'metallic nature'?

> of the control box???

	The coils is surrounded by an EM field.
	Everything in that field (operator, control box) will
	be 'floated up' by the e-field.
	Assuming the control box IS grounded, then IT can't
	float up.  The operator, however, is probably NOT
	grounded.  HE (?) floats up, to a voltage limited,
	typically, by the shoes.  THEN the operator shocks
	the control panel.  (The operator can't tell who
	is shocking whom...).

	Possible Test:
	Connect one lead of a voltmeter to the metalwork
	of the control panel.  Power up the system.  Grab
	the OTHER lead to the voltmeter...

	Also:
	With coil operating is there a voltage from a Real
	Ground to the control panel?

	(I am NOT being rude about the control panel
	grounding, but could spin LOTS of stories about:
		...the grounds that weren't...)

	Might be a range of other effects, some of them
	hazardous: eg leakage from HV side of things.

	Ferinstance: If there is a loose 'ground' AND an
	EMI filter connected to that 'ground', the two caps
	in the filter will push 'ground' up to roughly half
	the line voltage.  (been there, done that....  8)>>)

-- 
	best
	dwp

...the net of a million lies...
	Vernor Vinge
There are Many Web Sites which Say Many Things.
	-me