Thanks a lot for all of the feedback! My coil is an NST powered, rotary
spark gap coil putting off around 5' arcs.
Talking about a chicken wire counterpoise, would the chicken wire wrap
around to the bottom side that would touch the carpet or is it just on the
top surface? What I have right now as a counterpoise is a 2'x6' sheet of
steel. Not very big but would that isolate it enough from the carpet or do
I need something bigger?
Thank you all again for the responses!
Jeremy
On Tuesday, September 9, 2014, Jim Lux <jimlux@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
> On 9/9/14, 7:14 AM, Jeremy Gassmann wrote:
>
>> Hello all,
>> I was asked to demo my coil for our local Cub Scout troop and had a
>> question about safety and solicit any other feedback on the topic. I will
>> be running the coil inside a large sanctuary at a church with high
>> ceilings
>> but also with carpet. The carpet is my concern as I will be running the
>> coil on a counterpoise directly over the carpet. Is this a potential fire
>> hazard or is it only a problem if the coil strikes the ground (my coil
>> can't arc that far)?
>>
>
> A counterpoise is a great way to provide a local "ground" for your TC.
>
> If you structure it right, it can also provide a visual indication of a
> "keep out" zone for your demo.
>
> For instance, say the top of your coil is 4 feet off the ground. The
> counterpoise could be about 8 feet in diameter.
>
> If you build your counterpoise as something like chicken wire on thin
> plywood (lauan door skins, for instance) "tiles" then you have the double
> protection of a piece of wood and the chicken wire on top. Something like
> 3x3 or 2x2 foot squares would work great, although you'd need to figure out
> a good way to interconnect them. Or "fold it" with a zig zag pattern.
>
> I've built counterpoises out of inexpensive industrial carpet and fake
> grass as well. I lay the chicken wire on top, and attach it with nylon zip
> ties. Then you can roll the whole thing up.
>
> You might want to test it somewhere first.. Do it in the dark, on
> something like concrete driveway, and look for any sparks from counterppise
> to ground. I doubt you'll see any, because all the RF power should be
> going to the coil and the counterpoise.
>
>
>
>
>> My next major concern is ozone build up, but I think I will open the
>> windows up to help vent it out and be cognizant of any build up of
>> ozone. Are there any other safety issues (besides the obvious of getting
>> shocked) that I may be overlooking?
>>
>
> How big is your coil?
> Some coils are pretty noisy.
>
>
>
>> Also, what are some things that you might do besides just turning it on to
>> get the kids interested and involved? I thought about lighting up
>> fluorescent bulbs from a distance but that is about all I can think of.
>> And
>> how do you explain on a very basic level how a tesla coil works to a group
>> of 6 to 10 year olds?
>>
>
> There's two things to talk about..
> "transformer action" which takes a low voltage and makes it a high voltage
> (a jacob's ladder with a NST is a great example).
>
> And then resonant coupling.
> That's really well illustrated by a couple pendulums hanging from a
> broomstick. You start one swinging, and the other one stationary.. then
> both will swing, and then only the one that started stationary, and back..
>
>
>
>
>
>> Thank you all in advance for any help you can give!
>>
>> Jeremy Gassmann
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>> http://www.pupman.com/mailman/listinfo/tesla
>>
>>
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