The human body is very susceptible to a variety of strokes, especially to those that it receives unexpectedly. Unpleasant moments can be delivered not only by people, but also objects from which this is not typical to expect. Household appliances are usually designed to create comfort and coziness in the house, and even if all the standards that require the safety of household appliances are met, they in some circumstances begin to “fight”. The walls of home appliances used in the kitchen or in the bathtub suddenly begin to leak current, for some reason, because of which the owners of these devices may begin to feel a slight tingling.
The technique began to beat. Although not very strong, but still unpleasant. A similar malfunction can occur in machines that are installed in rooms with high humidity, in older models, and even in new ones installed in a dry room. It is at such moments that the question arises: “Why is the machine shocking?”
Where is the fault hiding?
One of the main reasons for the appearance of such a situation is the illiterate installation of devices or their improper grounding. If these measures were carried out incorrectly, this can lead to a violation of the electrical safety of the equipment in operation and to penetration of its surface. It should be noted that according to the technical standards currently in force, the use of pipes connected to the water supply system in the form of grounding elements is prohibited.
If everything is in order with the equipment
Even serviceable household appliances are capable of delivering an unexpected blow to their owner when turned on in a two-wire line. The reason for this behavior and the answer to the question why the machine is shocking is the built-in surge protector, which is located at the input of electrical power.
This design is two capacitors having a common point on the walls of the equipment:
- the first connects the phase wire and the housing;
- the second is the neutral wire and the housing.
Modern manufacturers believe that their users use exclusively three-wire electrical networks with a separate protective conductor when turned on. In this case, nothing bad can happen, and the resulting 110 volts without any problems go to the protective neutral wire. But in reality, two-wire lines are mainly used. It is because of them that from any household appliance with an unsuccessful touch you can get a short-term, but very painful discharge.
The strength of the impact is growing
A similar problem is not solved by the fact that the common wire of the input filter can be disconnected from the housing. Of course, this will reduce the possibility of a strike, but, unfortunately, not by much. This is due to the fact that the insulation of any wires that are located inside the equipment wear out over time, which leads to the fact that the "phase" will be on the wall of the unit. In the first stages, such shocks will not bother you too much, but over time they will gain strength, and as a result, you can get a blow of 220 volts. Owners of “home helpers” installed in bathrooms fall into a special danger zone.
Replace old wiring
Worn insulation can pose a direct threat to human life. That is why, when deciding how to connect a washing machine, it must be borne in mind that it should be included in an additional equalization system of bathroom potentials. Pipelines with hot and cold water, a metal bath, a washing machine, a ventilation duct - all these items need to have a reliable electrical connection between themselves. If these conditions have been met, then touching two structures that are conductive will not pose a threat to your life.
What else to do
But for complete safety, it is also necessary to take into account the fact that there is one more chain: a half-person – equipment body. There are two ways to prevent this from happening: grounding the washing machine or installing an RCD in the power circuit . You can combine both methods.
What should not be done
When grounding, some difficulties sometimes arise. Do not use water pipes as grounding conductors. It is also forbidden without a grounding device to connect the zero protective and zero working conductors. If you have a two-wire network, there is still hope that the case at the access electrical panel will be grounded. If this is not the case, then grounding is not possible. Information on the status of switchboards located in the entrances can be obtained from the Housing Office, Homeowners Association or other organization providing operational services to your home.
General recommendations
To eliminate the reasons why the washing machine is electrocuted, you must:
- When operating a three-wire line, check the continuity of the protective earth used. To do this, you need to check with a multimeter whether there is voltage between the phase and the walls of the unit.
- When using a two-wire line, it is possible to organize a potential equalization system and grounding for the device.
- If it is not possible to make grounding, it is nevertheless necessary to organize a potential equalization system, and include an RCD in the circuit of the device, designed for no more than 30 mA.
Before using these methods, make sure that the unit is operational, because if the insulation has been erased in it and the phase has hit the wall, these methods will be ineffective, and the installed RCD will simply not allow the machine to work. Therefore, in the event of a sudden appearance of shock from household appliances, first of all, conduct a thorough inspection of it for malfunctions.
Do not forget to check the operation of other components
Also, this unit begins to beat in the event that one of the devices grounded to the product’s body breaks. And if you suddenly felt that your machine began to “fight”, you will need to check the following devices:
- heater (TEN);
- engine;
- pump (rarely);
- network filter;
- command apparatus (rarely)
Trying to figure out why the car is shocking, you can try to interchange the phase and zero, for which you need to put the power plug in the socket in a different way. Often, this option gives a result, especially in cases where the insulation of one of the wires with respect to the load was violated (if the wire is zero, then you will not feel anything, but if the phase, then you risk getting hit).
The same measures are recommended to be carried out in the case when it is noticed that your dishwasher is beating an electric shock.
It must be remembered that it is impossible to use heating pipes when grounding the washing machine. It is also strictly forbidden to take a bath at a time when the washing process is in progress - this is life threatening.
If it is discovered that during the operation of the unit it began to “fight”, turn off the power to the device and check for damage to the ground wire. If you find a defect or a break, then the question of why the car is beating current disappears by itself, and you can fix this problem yourself. If you do not have the necessary knowledge in the field of electrics, then it is not recommended to carry out repairs yourself, since this can lead to a critical breakdown of equipment and harm your health.