Trying to figure out why I was electrocuted

[JayEm96]

Hi. Hope I'm allowed to post here. Something terrifying just happened and I'm trying to figure out why. I have no clue about anything to do with electrical.

I was playing my electric guitar, pretty loud and couldn't hear that it was thunderstorming outside and I was electrocuted through my guitar. It wasn't super serious but it was enough that the guitar flew out of my hands and landed upside down on my coffee table cause it scared the heck out of me that bad and I definitely got a good jolt. Had I known it was storming, I would have shut my amp off immediately but it was loud and I had no idea that a storm had rolled in.

I have an outlet tester and according to the tester, my outlet is properly grounded. My amp is plugged into a surge protector. I do have quite a few things plugged into it though. I have a lot of things plugged in down in my playing area in general due to a lack of outlets. Is it possible maybe I just have too much plugged into that outlet? Should the surge protector not have tripped when that big of a surge came through? Should it have even came through due to the outlet being properly grounded?

I have a TV plugged into that same surge protector and it was on while it happened as I have a laptop hooked up to it and had music playing that I was playing along with as well as a sound system that is also plugged into the same surge protector. The TV and sound system are fine. I don't know about the amp, it's still storming and I'm scared to turn it on right now. It was a pretty intense jolt that I got. Like I said, I dropped my expensive guitar onto my coffee table and could feel it in my finger pretty good. But I am fine. Just looking for some insight from people who know a lot more about electrical than I do.

Thanks.

 

[telectrix]

a close lightning strike could explain it. you would have had a large charge onto your grounding for a few milliseconds.

 

[pc1966]

As just said, could be momentary current flowing through you due to the lightning. What sort of floor do you have in that room? Concrete, suspected wood, etc?

Certainly I would get all of your outlets and power leads checked just in case. Most folk killed by electricity in the music business have been due to faulty earth connections followed by a 2nd fault and touching to objects (e.g. guitar & mic). The use of RCD / GFCI in recent years (along with radio mics / guitar pickups) has helped a lot for safety, but you should still check out the basic electrical safety aspects.

 

[magnoliafan89]

Whenever someone tells me they were "electrocuted" I cant help but think of this:

 

[Lucien Nunes]

The problem with electrical storms is that they can induce voltages in all sorts of different ways, so unless anything scores a direct hit and burns up, it can be hard to identify the route that a spike took, after the event.

Is your power line overhead or underground? Overhead lines are obviously more likely to be affected. Even when correctly grounded, voltage surges induced in them can propagate through the wiring of the building. Surge protectors might help prevent catastrophic damage to the equipment, but might not completely eliminate some aspects of the surge so you can still be shocked.

The amount of equipment plugged in won't really have any effect other than to trip the breaker if it is too much for the circuit, or the GFCI if there's too much ground leakage in total. Most electronic devices are small loads anyway.

Get the wiring and equipment checked as a precaution; make sure your main ground rod is to installed to code and intact. And don't play so loud

 

[Wilko]

Sorry to hear you’ve had a shock!
Did any breakers trip?
Your surge protector maybe a little crispy inside, just saying.

 

[Edtwozeronine]

Whenever someone tells me they were "electrocuted" I cant help but think of this:

Now now all trades have their vocabulary, I doubt I'd know what a plumber was on about if he started using trade speak, or speaking in general...

 

[magnoliafan89]

Now now all trades have their vocabulary, I doubt I'd know what a plumber was on about if he started using trade speak, or speaking in general...

True but its not trade speak as such. Electrocuted came from the words electric and executed.

 

[Megawatt]

Hi. Hope I'm allowed to post here. Something terrifying just happened and I'm trying to figure out why. I have no clue about anything to do with electrical.

I was playing my electric guitar, pretty loud and couldn't hear that it was thunderstorming outside and I was electrocuted through my guitar. It wasn't super serious but it was enough that the guitar flew out of my hands and landed upside down on my coffee table cause it scared the heck out of me that bad and I definitely got a good jolt. Had I known it was storming, I would have shut my amp off immediately but it was loud and I had no idea that a storm had rolled in.

I have an outlet tester and according to the tester, my outlet is properly grounded. My amp is plugged into a surge protector. I do have quite a few things plugged into it though. I have a lot of things plugged in down in my playing area in general due to a lack of outlets. Is it possible maybe I just have too much plugged into that outlet? Should the surge protector not have tripped when that big of a surge came through? Should it have even came through due to the outlet being properly grounded?

I have a TV plugged into that same surge protector and it was on while it happened as I have a laptop hooked up to it and had music playing that I was playing along with as well as a sound system that is also plugged into the same surge protector. The TV and sound system are fine. I don't know about the amp, it's still storming and I'm scared to turn it on right now. It was a pretty intense jolt that I got. Like I said, I dropped my expensive guitar onto my coffee table and could feel it in my finger pretty good. But I am fine. Just looking for some insight from people who know a lot more about electrical than I do.

Thanks.

@Jayden You got lucky this time I’ve seen receptacles blown out of the wall. Your in luck since Canada works out of the Same code book that America does and in the 2020 NEC edition you have to have a SPD or (surge protection device). It must be installed in or on your outside panel

 

[Edtwozeronine]

True but its not trade speak as such. Electrocuted came from the words electric and executed.

Yeah, but even an electric shock can be deadly innit...

 

[magnoliafan89]

Yeah, but even an electric shock can be deadly innit...

If you get what the OP says thats called a shock.
Electrocuted means you get a shock and die.
Getting shocked and surviving is different and is not Electrocuted

 

[telectrix]

i think a better terminology would be "ElectroTerminated". "Fried" may be non-PC.

 

[Vortigern]

From what you describe logically there can be two sources of shock. One is from the lightning, the other is from faulty equipment. If it was lightning then maybe get someone around to look into a system that will protect you and the cost. In any event, I don't know if you do public events?, but if you do then currently there is a growing requirement to have you equipment PAT tested to appear on stage. I suggest you get your equipment PAT tested in any event to rule out faulty equipment. I have heard of many occasions of shock with musical instruments due to faulty equipment. I have heard of while holding the guitar and touching the mic. has caused shock. So it can occur between equipment such as a wah-wah and your guitar.

 

[JayEm96]

Wow, lots of replies! Thank you to everybody who replied. There is to many to quote individually so I'll just answer a few things.

The room is concrete but I have area carpets all over the room. But the spot I was sitting is right on the edge of carpet and concrete. Quite literally, my feet are half on and half off of the carpet.The power line is an overhead line. No breakers tripped.

I have inspected the surge protector and it appears to be fine, mind you I haven't opened it and looked inside but I did replace it with a new surge protector anyways. The wall outlet also looks fine. Both my guitar and amp are fine as well along with everything plugged into that outlet. And yes, poor wording on my part. I was definitely shocked and not electrocuted lol.


I have no idea where the lightning may have hit but I do know it was striking directly above my house or pretty close to it. The loud sound of thunder was basically instantaneous as my guitar left my hands and landed upside down on my table and glancing towards the window it was extremely bright every time it would flash. I just wish I heard it sooner lol.

I do plan to have an electrician come out here as soon as possible and give everything a look over and find a solution so hopefully that doesn't happen again.

 

[James]

As you say the bang and the flash were both at the same time, that would put the lightning strike at less than 200m away.
Any further than that and your mind will note the delay between the flash (first) and the bang, (later)

At that sort of distance, it is possible to get a shock (electric) from many paths, including
Ground (actual terra firma)
electrical supplies , overhead and underground
Telephone cables , overhead and underground
Pipework, both gas and water

It is also possible to have a perception of an electric shock due to the instant bang and flash nearby and the minds ability to create a split second reason about what the hazard is when the body is instantly pumped full of adrenaline.
One of the few things that even as a newborn baby the human mind is programmed with, is a reaction to a sudden loud noise.

 

[pc1966]

The reason for asking about the floor is concrete is often slightly conductive and quite dependent on moisture/humidity levels - not as conductive as a metal obviously - but enough that if you have a few hundred volts in one hand and a foot on it you won't be a happy bunny.

Nearby lightning strikes will produce very large voltage gradients across the Earth's surface and differences between something like the ground/earth conductors of your house and the underlying soil.

 

[static zap]

I going with guitar is properly grounded ,and some current flowed through you from the building that a voltage was induced in .
Any aching / sprained muscles afterwards ?
(Or conact burns on fingers )
(Less people die from landline phones now most have mobiles.-USA)

 

[TJ Anderson]

Must have been playing this!

ATTACH=full]59591[/ATTACH

 

[JayEm96]

The lightning was most definitely close by. Even after I got the shock, the proceeding strikes were followed pretty much instantaneously by thunder. It was quite the storm, there was a lot of lightning going on.

And that is good to know about the concrete floor! I've been meaning to order some more area carpet to finish covering the rest of the concrete so I suppose now is as good a time as any lol.

And yes my guitar is definitely properly grounded. I had no contact burns but my fingers and fretting hand were pretty stiff feeling after. It was my fretting hand that really felt the jolt as I was in contact with the strings when it happened.

That high voltage picture is great. I actually said to a friend of mine the next day that "I was quite literally thunderstruck last night" lol! Thank you again everybody for all the input.

 

[Lucien Nunes]

...if you do then currently there is a growing requirement to have you equipment PAT tested to appear on stage. I suggest you get your equipment PAT tested in any event to rule out faulty equipment.

The OP is in Canada, where, AFAIK and please correct me if wrong, PAT (or ISITEE as we should really be calling it) is not routinely carried out on ordinary appliances other than in the maintenance shop after repair. It seems funny after 31 years of it being part of daily life here, but most of the world doesn't do it at all.