The Things You Need To Know

Power lines are insulated

Power lines are not insulated so never touch a power line. You may see birds sitting on powerlines, but they don’t get electrocuted because they don’t complete the path to the ground. It's worth remembering that some children love to climb trees and this is especially dangerous if there are power lines nearby.

The line is safe because it’s not high voltage

This is one of the biggest myths going around, and it’s not the voltage that will kill you. It’s the amperage that will take your life. It only takes one amp to cause life-threatening heart irregularities. 

A fallen wire will shut off

No, it won’t. If it falls on a poor conductor, like asphalt, the wire will not short circuit. Always stay at least 6 metres away from a downed line. It could still be live, even if it doesn’t produce sparks.

A live wire will make sparks when it falls

This is not always true. The fallen or damaged power line will spark if it doesn’t make complete contact. It will not spark or make noise, potentially making it even more dangerous to anyone who believes otherwise.

Rubber gloves and rubber shoes insulate

Rubber is not a conductor of electricity, but only when it is 100% rubber. Often rubber shoes and gloves are mixed with other materials and additives to make them cheaper to produce, and these materials will likely conduct electricity.

Household currents aren’t strong enough to kill

As much as we’d like to think that the electricity in our homes isn’t dangerous, it is. Household electricity has killed people before, and of course, is especially dangerous with water.

Wood is not a conductor

False. Wood is just a poor conductor, but wet wood is much better, so be careful around any wood that could have been energised.

Electricity travels at the speed of light

This seems to make sense, as electricity provides light, and therefore, we associate the two as the same thing. Electricity travels at around 270,000 km/s through copper or silver (which are the best conductors), whereas light travels at around 300,000 km/s. However, electricity will travel slower if the material it travels through is a poor conductor.

The electrical current depends on the size of the cable

Some people believe that thinner cables will carry more electricity as it must be concentrated to fit through such a thin cable. Others will believe that big thick cables have more electricity flowing through them because there is more space for it to travel. In actual fact, the size of a cable often depends on how much resistance is needed for the electricity to flow. Therefore, touching a live small cable could provide just as much shock as touching a thick one.