According to Snopes, lightning kills, on average, one person talking on phone each year.
Details here
Can Lightning Electrocute You In The Bathtub?
- Thread starter Mr Light
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According to Snopes, lightning kills, on average, one person talking on phone each year.
Details here
One a year? I'll take those odds.
I didn't know those used to be illegal. I've been driving in CA for 12 years, and I've never seen a gas station without them.
I hear it's illegal to pump your own gas in Oregon, though.
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True. Both there, and New Jersey.
Huh. Maybe I'm just not explaining it very well, or maybe it's a local or regional ordinance instead of a statewide one. Because last time I was home (I'm originally from California), which was only a year or so ago, none of the pumps I used had the things I'm talking about. But then again, I was only home a week and didn't have to use very many pumps.
Well, they all have them in San Diego... so uhh...
I don't know about getting killed by lightning, but it is pretty awesome at destroying your electronics when it takes out the power
This is true. Back in the day, our 2-week old house got struck by lightning, and it blew out all of the brand new appliances. My parents were thrilled.I don't know about getting killed by lightning, but it is pretty awesome at destroying your electronics when it takes out the power
I would think that it could be possible in an older house.
Older houses had cast iron drain pipes. Part of the drainage system of a house is the vent stack that goes all the way to the roof. So imagine yourself taking your bubble bath in a cast iron tube full of soapy water. While pure water is an excellent insulator, that soap and your grime have changed the conductivity properties.
As for getting zapped while on the phone, just think about how a landline phone is constructed. It is a pair of copper wires running between your hand and the central office. While there are devices to open up in the event of a large voltage surge, just think about how much juice is in a lightening bold...
Older houses had cast iron drain pipes. Part of the drainage system of a house is the vent stack that goes all the way to the roof. So imagine yourself taking your bubble bath in a cast iron tube full of soapy water. While pure water is an excellent insulator, that soap and your grime have changed the conductivity properties.
As for getting zapped while on the phone, just think about how a landline phone is constructed. It is a pair of copper wires running between your hand and the central office. While there are devices to open up in the event of a large voltage surge, just think about how much juice is in a lightening bold...
Landline, corded, phones run on something like nine-volts. I'm not sure the wiring in them is robust enough to carry the energy in a lightning bolt. It may melt pretty quickly.
Besides, just talk on a cordless phone.
Besides, just talk on a cordless phone.
Indeed. We have gas station attendants to do it for us.
Yep, it rocks!
I would find that really annoying, actually.
Really? Why?
I dunno. Just seems unnecessary.
It doesn't cost any extra and I don't have to get out of the car or worry about smelling like gas.
I just like to do things myself. And I have never once left a gas station smelling like gas.
Man, anytime anyone links to Snopes, I lose about two hours of my life reading worthless trivia.
Ahem.
My mom was under the impression the electricity would travel through the pipes in the ground to the drain to the bath water. She also harped about using the phone in a lightning storm... even after we got cordless phones!!! She's not exactly a credible source
Metal pipes in the ground would offer lower electrical resistance than the ground itself, making the current from a lightning strike more likely to flow through the pipes, actually.
An electrical "earth" or "ground" works merely because it is a huge sink for current flowing into it from elsewhere. There's a whole science to making good "grounds" for buildings, labs, and the like.
My parents always cautioned me against being in the shower or bathtub during a lightning storm, but I think they might have been misinformed as to the reasons why. They told me not to do it because "lightning is attracted to water". 
I'll admit, I'm not very scientifically knowledgeable, but that never made much sense to me. Besides, water is freakin' everywhere, what are the odds it'll hit the water in our bathtub?
Anyone here actually know anybody who's been hit by lightning? I don't know anyone personally, but a friend of mine told me a few years ago that when she was a little girl, her father died after being struck by lightning. Freaky.
I'll admit, I'm not very scientifically knowledgeable, but that never made much sense to me. Besides, water is freakin' everywhere, what are the odds it'll hit the water in our bathtub? Anyone here actually know anybody who's been hit by lightning? I don't know anyone personally, but a friend of mine told me a few years ago that when she was a little girl, her father died after being struck by lightning. Freaky.
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