S
Squid
He screwed up.Re: Johnduffell #17: Thank you. What you have written I do not disagree with. I started my theory with 'I wonder if...' to indicate I was not certain. My theory rests on the minimum current proving dead test equipment requires to indicate something as being live - a figure I do not know and could not find out - and a circuit path for it flow through.
Being pedantic, an isolation transformer provides galvanic isolation (ie: no conductive path for electrons) between primary and secondary but does not normally prevent 'displacement currents' caused by electrodynamic induction ie: capacitance between primary and secondary windings. And cabling has capacitance to things around it. Similarly, the body has an inherent capacitance and capacitance to objects around it. I was musing whether the belt the lad experienced was the result of a displacement current flow which was lower in magnitude than the minimum the tester required to say something is live to avoid indicating something is energised when it is not.
I was trying to come up with an explanation which tied in with:
a. all track mcbs being off including for the circuit he was working on.
b. that he did indeed prove dead correctly.
c. his tester was functioning correctly.
so he did what would be expected and yet he still got a shock.
We will never know because all involved we be on the defensive.
Simples......