Gigging in the rain

[Count Bassy]

2 hours ago, tauzero said:

 

Water isn't that great a conductor of electricity. Large bags of water with lots of electrolytes in are much better at conducting electricity, and that's what humans are. So we provide a preferential conductivity path for electricity (which is why dropping an electrical appliance into the bath will do unpleasant things to any occupant).

 

Indeed, deionised water can be used as an insulator; But,  if you were to touch something tht was "Live", would you rather do it with a dry bit of skin, or a wet bit of skin?

 

[tauzero]

24 minutes ago, Count Bassy said:

 

Indeed, deionised water can be used as an insulator; But,  if you were to touch something tht was "Live", would you rather do it with a dry bit of skin, or a wet bit of skin?

 

 

I'd rather do it with someone else's skin.

[TimR]

On 18/05/2010 at 10:04, tauzero said:

If it pisses down, don't play. It's not just the 240V wandering round looking for a handy route to ground, it's also the slippery stage/ground that provides a hazard. If it's just drizzle, make an informed decision.

 

These are wise word. 

 

We have had issues where the guitarist went down quite hard when he shifted weight to reach his pedals. 

 

If you have a vocalist who moves around a lot or jumps up and down, that's another potential disaster.

 

If it's a raised stage you have potential to fall quite a long way.

 

Plus playing to reduced size crowd because they all stayed at home,  huddled under trees in the corners of the feild or are hiding under umbrellas, isn't fun. 

[NickA]

The issue with long leads and wet ground is that your body is at one voltage (that of the ground you are standing on) and the earth of your kit is at another voltage (either an earth spike in the place the power comes from or more likely via the neutral wire to a local substation many meters of cable away).  The resistance between those two earth points is likely quite high so the current that flows through you is too small to trip an RCD .... BUT you will still feel it.

 

My house is very poorly grounded and you can easily get a tingle if using power tools in the garden in bare feet (!!) or off the stainless toaster or microwavestanding on the damp kitchen floor.

 

TBH there isn't a lot you can do.  Using one of these portable battery generators (eg a Jackery Power Station) is one way to get around it.  Another way is to use an isolation transformer and an earth spike near where you are standing (getting a bit techie at this point).  In any case if an extension lead is the only option, do use an RCD - you may still get a tingle but it would trip before you got electrocuted.  Try not to play in bare feet on wet grass 🙂 

 

(PS: I'm an electrical engineer, I'm not making it up)

[Crusoe]

On 26/06/2025 at 09:10, Paddy Morris said:

I don't know if this topic is still live, but I'm hoping to pick up some advice.
 

Pun intended?

[tauzero]

2 hours ago, Crusoe said:

Pun intended?

 

Well, it is still a current topic.

 

Sorry, couldn't resist.

[Paul S]

3 hours ago, NickA said:

The issue with long leads and wet ground is that your body is at one voltage (that of the ground you are standing on) and the earth of your kit is at another voltage (either an earth spike in the place the power comes from or more likely via the neutral wire to a local substation many meters of cable away).  The resistance between those two earth points is likely quite high so the current that flows through you is too small to trip an RCD .... BUT you will still feel it.

 

My house is very poorly grounded and you can easily get a tingle if using power tools in the garden in bare feet (!!) or off the stainless toaster or microwavestanding on the damp kitchen floor.

 

TBH there isn't a lot you can do.  Using one of these portable battery generators (eg a Jackery Power Station) is one way to get around it.  Another way is to use an isolation transformer and an earth spike near where you are standing (getting a bit techie at this point).  In any case if an extension lead is the only option, do use an RCD - you may still get a tingle but it would trip before you got electrocuted.  Try not to play in bare feet on wet grass 🙂 

 

(PS: I'm an electrical engineer, I'm not making it up)

 

Elementary question but does using a wireless kit remove the risk?

[Suburban Man]

6 hours ago, NickA said:

The issue with long leads and wet ground is that your body is at one voltage (that of the ground you are standing on) and the earth of your kit is at another voltage (either an earth spike in the place the power comes from or more likely via the neutral wire to a local substation many meters of cable away).  The resistance between those two earth points is likely quite high so the current that flows through you is too small to trip an RCD .... BUT you will still feel it.

 

My house is very poorly grounded and you can easily get a tingle if using power tools in the garden in bare feet (!!) or off the stainless toaster or microwavestanding on the damp kitchen floor.

 

TBH there isn't a lot you can do.  Using one of these portable battery generators (eg a Jackery Power Station) is one way to get around it.  Another way is to use an isolation transformer and an earth spike near where you are standing (getting a bit techie at this point).  In any case if an extension lead is the only option, do use an RCD - you may still get a tingle but it would trip before you got electrocuted.  Try not to play in bare feet on wet grass 🙂 

 

(PS: I'm an electrical engineer, I'm not making it up)

I used to build equipment for BBC Outside Broadcast vans and a standard piece of kit to have onboard was an earth spike (just a piece of nice solid copper or steel with a tag to attach an earth cable).  You used it if you were (typically) powered from a generator or mains source a long way away and you just knocked it into the ground local to the van and connected it to the mains earth terminal of your electrical distribution - which could just be a simple set of sockets.  Easy to do when you had an earth terminal specially provided for this purpose, but not impossible with a standard 13A board. It does need to be a solid piece of mains cable however; 2.5mm minimum, 4mm better.

 

As noted by many others, wireless connections give an element of safety as do RCD's on the power outlets. The problem with a wireless connection is that you might want to adjust a control on your amp/combo and only then would you discover if you and the equipment were both connected to the same earth.

[Beedster]

1 hour ago, Suburban Man said:

As noted by many others, wireless connections give an element of safety as do RCD's on the power outlets. The problem with a wireless connection is that you might want to adjust a control on your amp/combo and only then would you discover if you and the equipment were both connected to the same earth.

 

This 100%