View Single Post
Old 01-30-2012, 09:20 AM   #10
oldflounder
Senior Member
 
oldflounder's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jan 2012
Posts: 99
Blog Entries: 2
Thanks: 5
Thanked 34 Times in 9 Posts
Default you're right

Quote:
Originally Posted by jrc View Post
electric shock would be my worry, swimmers get killed from stray currents in marinas all the time. most circulators have jury rigged wiring, check it out thoroughly, before you go in.

the stories i read say fresh water is more dangerous than salt. the human body is a better conductor than fresh water so the current goes through you instead of the water. salt water is more conductive than a human, so the risk is lower.

be safe!
I did a little research and found out that this can definately be a hazard. Land-based electrical appliances are covered by building codes that say the circuits must have GFIC: but not so for boats. So if you have your yacht tied up to the marina and you are plugged into their power outlets you can have a dangerous electric field around your craft. There have been several deaths when a swimmer has grabbed ahold of the ladder to get up onto the boat.

See this site http://www.huffingtonpost.com/ At the top of the newpaper page do a Huffington Post search under "esd' and read the article by Terry Gardner.

This is interesting to divers, swimmers and boaters though many of you probably already know about it.

Last edited by oldflounder; 01-30-2012 at 01:31 PM.
oldflounder is offline   Reply With Quote