How safe is a wooden cabinet?

[boater sam]

I don't for a moment think that the conduction of the cabinet would be sufficient to cause a noticeable electric shock, in fact if that was the case the RCD would have tripped on touching the woodwork, I was not on the isolation transformer at the time.

The chassis both sit on the unvarnished bottom of the case, so its not varnish that is conducting from chassis to case. Its possible that the smoke caused the conduction but I find it surprising. There was not a layer of soot anywhere but it did take days to clear the smell in the shop.

Inside we used a CO2 extinguisher, not water, foam or powder. The fire was not well advanced, in fact I carried the still smoking and slightly flaming remains outside where we dispensed a bucket of water.

Sam.

[ppppenguin]

You can get a tingle on microamps, way below RCD trip current. I get a slight tingle if I touch my earthed beside light when the electric blanket is on. Just from the capacitance between me and the blnaket element. If we take the capacitance as 10n, which seems high, that would be a 350uA current through me. This assumes an average voltage over the blanket of half mains.

I must take a DMM to bed with me one day. Then Ruth will be certain that I'm a complete nutcase

[Murphyv310]

The men in white coats may pay you a visit Jeffery

[boater sam]

I don't for a moment think that the conduction of the cabinet would be sufficient to cause a noticeable electric shock, in fact if that was the case the RCD would have tripped on touching the woodwork, I was not on the isolation transformer at the time.

The chassis both sit on the unvarnished bottom of the case, so its not varnish that is conducting from chassis to case. Its possible that the smoke caused the conduction but I find it surprising. There was not a layer of soot anywhere but it did take days to clear the smell in the shop.

Inside we used a CO2 extinguisher, not water, foam or powder. The fire was not well advanced, in fact I carried the still smoking and slightly flaming remains outside where we dispensed a bucket of water.

Sam.

 We stopped using sleeping blankets when my wife realised that we could feel a tingle off the blanket, might have been the last tingle we felt.