Timeline for Why does wet skin offer less resistance?
Current License: CC BY-SA 3.0
7 events
| when toggle format | what | by | license | comment | |
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| Dec 29, 2020 at 6:59 | comment | added | sato | ' If it is wet, you add water in parallel and thus lower resistance of arm. So shoulder has higher potential than it would had in case of dry arm. This means that larger current flows through your heart.' But what if the whole body was wet, for example you just got out of a swimming pool or a shower? And don't the clothes have an additional effect on this? | |
| Oct 30, 2017 at 14:43 | comment | added | daniel | skeptics.stackexchange.com/a/9715/11686 has a better answer, most of the time you are replacing an air gap with salty water between the body and the wire, not running a parallel circuit of water. | |
| May 15, 2015 at 3:35 | comment | added | Tony Arkles | This is an old question, but I have one thing to add. The reason for "one hand in the pocket" is that it prevents you from directly touching a ground with one hand and a live wire with the other. If you're wearing rubber-soled shoes, there's a pretty good chance that you're not going to electrocute yourself nearly as badly as you would by touching a 120V live with one hand and the neutral with the other (which will flow straight across your heart) | |
| Jul 1, 2013 at 5:40 | vote | accept | CommunityBot | ||
| Jun 28, 2013 at 12:35 | comment | added | Voitcus | Well, yes, some osmotic changes within salt of skin can occur, but I don't know the impact of this. | |
| Jun 28, 2013 at 11:13 | comment | added | Selene Routley | This answer sounds reasonable (i.e. that the area of connexion with the wire is raised). However (speculation on my part here), I wouldn't be surprised if part of the effect is that water dissolves ions and electrolytes in the skin, thus reinforcing what Voitcus is saying. | |
| Jun 28, 2013 at 7:42 | history | answered | Voitcus | CC BY-SA 3.0 |