is this lamp dangerous?

[poppyseed]

I'm hoping someone can tell me if I have a potentially lethal table lamp (or that I was simply daft when changing a bulb).

I went to change the bulb on this lamp and forgot to switch off the socket at the wall. I took the old bulb out but when I went to put the new one in I tilted the lamp to the side and the switch under the bulb slipped to 'on'. I touched the lamp near where the new bulb was about to be inserted and got a huge shock with a right blue arc. Daft forgetting to switch off at wall and unlucky that the lamp switch slipped but would this (the shock) have happened with any lamp in this situation or is it a dodgy lamp?

advice please

 

[PrenticeBoyofDerry]

It is possible that this will happen on a lot of lamps, some do offer protection against this happening, but unplugging it would have been the logical thing to do, before changing and exposing electrical parts.

 

[Jackrae]

Bayonet bulb or screw-in type ?

If the latter then the centre pin should be the live terminal. However if the wiring is reversed so that the body of the screw is live then you will get a shock if you touch it during the fitting when switched on.

 

[poppyseed]

thanks. it is actually a bayonet type - so is the lamp OK to continue to use?

 

[Jackrae]

With a bayonet socket, unless you stuck your finger into the socket, there is no way you should have got a shock whilst replacing the bulb - switched on or not (assuming the bulb wasn't faulty and there wasn't any metal contamination such as wire strands, foil etc)

 

[Porque223]

Not so bad if the current only went through your hand, worse if it went through your chest.

 

[RF Lighting]

It's not acceptable to have any current at all flowing in to any part of your body over here!

The blue flash mentioned sounds to me like something shorted near you and made you jump rather than actually shocking you.

 

[Porque223]

It's not acceptable to have any current at all flowing in to any part of your body over here!

"The electrostatic field and the difference of potential of the earth field according to investigations, is in summer about 60 to 100 volts and in winter 300 to 500 volts per meter of difference in height"

but I've never figured out why we all don't feel this.

Since we don't the current must be less than 0.5 mA or so or maybe we don't notice it because it was always there.

 

[RF Lighting]

What???

 

[Jackrae]

They've got buffalo over the pond so lots of bovine left overs to throw around

 

[ricicle]

"The electrostatic field and the difference of potential of the earth field according to investigations, is in summer about 60 to 100 volts and in winter 300 to 500 volts per meter of difference in height"

but I've never figured out why we all don't feel this.

Since we don't the current must be less than 0.5 mA or so or maybe we don't notice it because it was always there.

Absolute rubbish !

 

[IJWS15]

"The electrostatic field and the difference of potential of the earth field according to investigations, is in summer about 60 to 100 volts and in winter 300 to 500 volts per meter of difference in height"

but I've never figured out why we all don't feel this.

Since we don't the current must be less than 0.5 mA or so or maybe we don't notice it because it was always there.

Absolute rubbish !

Not rubbish, you don't feel it, and can't measure it easily because it applies everywhere, in free air, in the human body and in the test lead which would all have the same vertical displacement and hence the same PD along them.

 

[bernardgreen]

Absolutely Wikipedia

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atmospheric_electricity

There is a very variable static electrica field around the earth. But the energy levels are extremely smalland the conductivity of air is very low.

Any vaguely conductive item will discharge the potential differences in the air around it ( includes human bodies ). The high resistance of air prevents any significant or noticable current flowing to " recharge " the air around the conductive item.

I would assume that the higher voltage readings in winter and damp air are due to the air being more conductive and thus able to carry more current to replace the charge removed by the measuring device.

 

[RF Lighting]

What has any of this got to do with someone possibly getting a shock from a light fitiing?

 

[bernardgreen]

What has any of this got to do with someone possibly getting a shock from a light fitiing?

Education for a colonial cousin in the hope he may see the light.