[Elecraft] ground static elec

[dlajr at bellsouth.net]

Quite a few years ago, I bought (I think from Jameco) one of those yellow, plastic plugs with the three lights that tells you if an outlet is wired correctly and safely.  However, this one had a female receptacle for the banana plug on the end of the wire from an  anti-static mat/wrist strap.  It connects to ground.  I can plug the plug into an outlet, check the lights to make sure that it is wired correctly and grounded, plug my  anti-static mat/wrist strap into the yellow plug, and feel (somewhat) safer.

I think they still sell it.

Dan Allen
KB4ZVM
K-2 S/N 1757
 
> 
> From: Rick Hampton <rickhampton at comcast.net>
> Date: 2006/06/08 Thu PM 04:38:07 EDT
> To: w3fpr at arrl.net
> CC: Jesse & Nicky <nicky_jesse at verizon.net>,  elecraft at mailman.qth.net
> Subject: Re: [Elecraft] ground static elec
> 
> To reinforce Don's comments, I've lived in several houses, none of which 
> I wired, and found broken ground wires, broken neutral wires, broken hot 
> wires, outlets with the hot and neutral wires reversed, and outlets with 
> the ground and neutral wires reversed.  I strongly suspect that if 
> reverse wiring the hot and ground weren't a self-limiting entry for the 
> Darwin Award, I'd have seen this one too.
> 
> Rick's Rule of Electrical Work:  Double-check EVERYTHING.  NOTHING is 
> safe until proved safe.
> 
> Rick Hampton, WD8KEL
> 
> Don Wilhelm wrote:
> > Jesse,
> >
> > If your 'table mat' is really an anti-static mat, it should have a 1 megohm
> > resistor built into the attachment cord - check it with your ohmmeter.
> >
> > It is OK to attach it to a utility grounding point - I remove the plate
> > mounting screw on a standard receptacle and attach the wire there (but make
> > certain it is actually grounded first by checking continuity to the ground
> > pin on a 3 prong socket - in the US, the center rounded pin should be
> > ground, but if you are not certain about it, check with an electrician or
> > someone who does know 'which pin is what' on the receptacles - there is
> > dangerous AC voltage on the pins - BE SAFE!  There are testers that simply
> > plug into a receptacle and show if the ground is connected and if the
> > receptacle is wired properly, I suggest that you obtain one and check before
> > sticking any probe into the rectangular holes in the receptacle.  If your
> > household wiring conforms to code, any metal parts associated with the
> > wiring should be grounded, but never trust it until you verify (by testing).
> > I wired my house myself and have a lot of confidence in the wiring, but I
> > still check to be certain - stuff can happen over time and ground
> > connections can loosen on occasion.
> >
> > 73,
> > Don W3FPR
> >   
> _______________________________________________
> Elecraft mailing list
> Post to: Elecraft at mailman.qth.net
> You must be a subscriber to post to the list.
> Subscriber Info (Addr. Change, sub, unsub etc.):
>  http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft    
> 
> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/subscribers.htm
> Elecraft web page: http://www.elecraft.com
>