Timeline for Are toasters really electrified inside of the "slots"?
Current License: CC BY-SA 4.0
8 events
| when toggle format | what | by | license | comment | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oct 24, 2023 at 13:49 | comment | added | SurpriseDog | Why don't toasters have a transformer to step down the voltage to 12v and just rearrange the nichrome wire to produce the same heat? It would be much safer. | |
| Jul 8, 2020 at 20:00 | comment | added | chepner | @Nelson You shouldn't assume it's safe even if it is unplugged. Some devices may have capacitors or the like that can retain a dangerous amount of charge for hours after being disconnected from any source of electricity. | |
| Jul 8, 2020 at 1:37 | comment | added | Nelson | @GuyG You got lucky and shorted the element with the chassis that was properly grounded. You could've died if the current went from one hand to the other, because it would shock your heart and you could die from that. I would advise against adding anecdotal experience where it was "safe" without understanding why. You got really lucky. | |
| Jul 7, 2020 at 16:11 | comment | added | Guy G | When I was a child (early 90s. in the UK), I stuck a knife in the toaster because I wanted to see if the end would get red hot if I held it against the heating element. It did not. Instead, lots of sparks came out and the heating element broke. However, I was fine and received no shock whatsoever. I would still recommend not doing it, because you'll need a new toaster. | |
| Jul 7, 2020 at 15:35 | comment | added | Nelson | @I'mwithMonica In general, you simply do not poke around the insides of anything electrical unless it is unplugged. I poked a screw driver inside a computer power supply unit when it is off, completely unplugged from the main board and all devices but still connected to the outlet. I must've touched the live wire inside and melted part of the screw driver and part of the case... | |
| Jul 7, 2020 at 8:47 | comment | added | Graham | +1 for using personal experience to stop other people doing the same dumb thing. :) For the record, I also have personal experience of why you keep one hand in your pocket when there's mains around, having touched the wrong wire in a washing machine whilst leaning on the metal frame with the other hand. Knocked me clean across the room, but my heart just stumbled and kept going. Very ouch, much lucky. | |
| Jul 7, 2020 at 0:37 | review | First posts | |||
| Jul 7, 2020 at 2:35 | |||||
| Jul 7, 2020 at 0:34 | history | answered | Sean | CC BY-SA 4.0 |