<(E-Mail Removed)> wrote in message
news:(E-Mail Removed) oups.com...
> Hello everyone,
>
> I was wondering if anyone could help me out with a problem I am having.
> We have one of those portable hot tubs (the kind that you can assemble
> and reassemble easily). I recently put it up outside (it is about 2
> years old)and filled it up. I plugged it in, and when I put my hand in
> the hot tub to feel the water, I was electrocuted! There weren't any
> burns or anything. Thankfully, it was just my hand and I was able to
> pull it right out.
>
> How could this have happened? There were no live wires touching the
> tub or anything. I can understand there being a risk of something
> going faulty with where it was plugged in, but this was the actual
> water inside the tub.
>
> Any thoughts?
>
First of all, unplug the unit immediately so no one else is at risk. If it
were me, I'd cut the plug off the end of the cord so no one else plugged it
in until the unit is repaired.
Okay, now that we've 'safed' the unit, we can talk about possible problems.
First question, where were you standing, and what else were you
holding/touching when you stuck your hand in? To receive a shock, you have
to complete a circuit with your body.
If a metal fitting that is in contact with the water somehow becomes
energized from a 'hot' wire, the water (a poor conductor) will also be
energized. The water between the metal fitting and your hand acts like a
poor conductor and is part of the circuit (your body, the earth and whatever
else you were touching forms another part of the circuit back to the ground
connection in your electrical service panel). It could be an obvious metal
fitting such as the drain plug or light fixture, or something not so obvious
like a broken heater element. Or if there is a short in the pump motor (or
the thing is mis-wired) and it has a metal casing that is no longer
connected to the equipment grounding conductor (green wire).
I'd give you one chance to fix it, and that is to go over all the
installation instructions again (you do still have them don't you?) and
double check that you've made up every connection correctly. If you find
nothing wrong, then give in and call a repairman.
It is probably quite reparable. But it really does need an expert. This is
not the sort of thing a 'handyman' should attempt (is you or a family
member's life worth a few bucks?). I'd call a licensed electrician, I would
*not* trust any store salesman or 'installation guy'.
daestrom
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