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shocking! (or not)

 
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I've been mending electric fences for the last year or so. It's hard to describe what it feels like when you get shocked by one of these fences - lots of voltage no current to speak of. I guess it's kind of like the biggest static electricity shock you've ever had times 10 or 100 ?

Anyway, sometimes when I'm too far away from the on/off switch and I need to test the fence, I'll go ahead and shock myself - it sucks for a second or two but other than that it's much more convenient than walking back and forth across the field turning it on and off...

Would you shock yourself or walk across the field?

(Oh, and for you wise acres out there - I carried around a tester for a while - sometimes they work, sometimes they don't, and sometimes you find yourself out in the field without it.)
 
lowercase baba
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make sure when you test, you aren't making a 'grab' motion. the electricity can make your muscles tense, and if you are grabbing, it can be hard to let go.
 
fred rosenberger
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oh, and if i did it enough times, i'd invest in a GOOD tester, and learn to alway have it with me.
 
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I'd keep a box of rabbits on hand for testing purposes.
 
Bert Bates
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10-4 on the "no grabbing" - I use the back of my arm

but Fred - you're dodging the question
 
fred rosenberger
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what, exactly, am I testing? If i simply want to see if it's on or off, i'll just assume it's on, and continue from there.

if i want to know if it's WORKING, what good does going to the switch do? I need for the switch to be on AND to be at the spot i need to test, so, test it where I am (by hand or otherwise). if it's on, great. if not, then I need to go check the switch anyway.
 
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If you had posted this years ago Bert, I would have said it explains quite a bit.

I would be scared to death to try it the first time, but if it was ok, I'd just test by touching instead of walking to the on/off switch. But a good tester would be the first thing I would get too.

Although I get shocked all the time with physical therapy and the chiropractors office all the time, and it isn't too bad.

On another hijack line, I love the show Brainiac, in which they have a little section called, "What can or can't you do while being shocked". It is so funny, hilarious. Like Can you throw darts. They had a real dart throwing pro, got him wired up, and everytime he tried to throw a dart they would shock him. You have to see it.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JejiJ-RgLVc
Not the shocking video, but something from that show. I can not find one of those on the net.

Mark
 
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My first thought was that in Jurassic Park they throw a stick at the electric fence to test it. I assume that doesn't work in real life since we wouldn't be having this discussion. So I googled it and found

Secondly, a better way of checking is to touch it with a blade of grass. There's enough resistance in it to drop the jolt down to about a tingle, and if you hand does clench, the motion would be enough to jerk the blade away from the fence.



If the grass test didn't work, I'd do what Fred said and buy a good tester. If not, I'd probably walk across the field. Or maybe I'd do some more research. If this was something I had to do on a regular basis, I can't imagine going the shock my hand route.
 
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Originally posted by Bert Bates:

Would you shock yourself or walk across the field?



I can say this from experience: Shock myself. I'm such a lazy SOB.

My technique is to "swat" at the wire so that just my fingers touch it. That way, if the juice is on and the muscle contractions (which I've never noticed) kick in, the momentum will carry my hand back away from the wire.
 
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pardon my ignorance but why would one create an electrically-charged fence?
 
Jim Yingst
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Keeping out neighborhood kids, of course.
 
dennis zined
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Originally posted by Bert Bates:

Would you shock yourself or walk across the field?



I guess most of us would prefer to walk across the field!


At my university , one of the professors of Electrical Engineering department could guess the voltage by touching live wires.
 
fred rosenberger
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Originally posted by dennis zined:
pardon my ignorance but why would one create an electrically-charged fence?


They are often used by farmers/ranchers. you have a normal fence, and then along the top, you string a charged wire. If a large animal, such as a horse, tries to lean over the fence to eat the tasty grass/grain/whatever, it is reminded to stay on it's own side of the fence.

I believe Bert has several horses he raises.
 
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Too bad � It could have gone either way�.

Fences are considered harmful.... (from : python way)

I wonder if it happens�. What will happen to the next edition of Head First Java, Head First EJB/Servlet�.

a.)The book will still carry his name written by a Ghost author
(Could be you/me!!!).

b.)May be they will put his photo on dedication page�..
c.)I wonder�. Will it contain the same sense of humour�.
e.)I have a deja uv of david Kruglinski�.

Oh slimmer down I was just typing a Business continuity plan when I happen to read this article - no harm-ment.
 
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Originally posted by Bert Bates:
(Oh, and for you wise acres out there - I carried around a tester for a while - sometimes they work, sometimes they don't, and sometimes you find yourself out in the field without it.)



. When I was a child I often caught up in those fences. My revenge was to p... at them.
 
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Originally posted by Darya Akbari:


. When I was a child I often caught up in those fences. My revenge was to p... at them.



How did your p... feel?
 
Darya Akbari
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It didn't hit me twice
 
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