So I had a bad shock tonight
- Thread starter mr.reef24
- Start date
This was NOT written BY ME...
Really fish do get fried if they happen to be in the area of the strike, but because the ocean is vast and lightning is dispersed into the water for only a very short distance, most fish are only stunned. If lightning was able to travel in water and not be dispersed would you want to go to the beach?
Salt water is a very poor conductor of electricity. Therefore the charge does not go far at all.
Who keeps thinking salt water is a poor conductor of electricity?! Salt water is a GOOD conductor of electricity! Pure water (meaning ONLY hydrogen and oxygen molecules) is a poor conductor. The reason salt water is a good conductor is due to the charged ions from the salt (Na+ and Cl- ions). You may be thinking "then why can I be electrocuted at home if we don't have salt water?" Well it's because your home water isn't exactly pure - there are several other ions and minerals in it.
They do. Every year around 7000-10000 lightnings strike the sea around the world (This number is low since salt water is a poor conductor and attractor of electricity) and and when this happens most of Earth's marine life dies. Luckily fish are are fond of sexual intercourse and the sea life grows to its peak numbers around summertime.
Ask anyone who has been shocked and they will tell you that salt water is a very good conductor since our bodies are mostly salt water; poor attractor, great conductor. Salt water fish/wildlife do not just make up for thier loss by having a reproductive free for all, it takes years to replace damage to any part of a reef system. Most lightining strikes happen in open water where there is almost no damage the the ecosystem and whatever fish is hit is not fried but boiled.
There are conductors, semi-conductors and insulators in this world. While fresh water is a good conductor due to the impurities in it, salt water is only a semi-conductor and the lightning dissipates faster than it does in fresh water. But even in fresh water the lightning only travels so far before it too will dissipate.
Most people think that water is a conductor and that that is why it causes people to die from electrical shock when exposed to it. This is untrue.
My answer is two fold. First of all pure water is an insulator. When it is mixed with impurities those impurities are actually the conductors, not the water. Second electricity always takes the path of least resistance (It will travel through the material that is most conductive).
If your in a pool of water and the lightning strikes most of the charge won't travel through the water, because it is an insulater. It will travel through you the conductor. You are the path of least resistance (especially if your touching the bottom of the pool or the side of it). That is why people are killed in a pool from lightning strikes. Most of the people that survive such strikes were probably floating in the water, not touching anything else but the water (thus not completing a circuit).
I would suggest that most fish in the ocean do not get killed for this reason. Salt water is a very good conductor and as such the salt water pulls the path of the electricity from the lightning bolt around the fish, not through it. I would add this as another reason amoung the others above.
When someone is in a bath tub and an electrical item is drop in and that someone is electicuted, this is because the the path of least resistance is throught the person touching the bottom and sides of the tub. The water is mostly insulated from the current so it travels almost entirely through the human body.
Really fish do get fried if they happen to be in the area of the strike, but because the ocean is vast and lightning is dispersed into the water for only a very short distance, most fish are only stunned. If lightning was able to travel in water and not be dispersed would you want to go to the beach?
Salt water is a very poor conductor of electricity. Therefore the charge does not go far at all.
Who keeps thinking salt water is a poor conductor of electricity?! Salt water is a GOOD conductor of electricity! Pure water (meaning ONLY hydrogen and oxygen molecules) is a poor conductor. The reason salt water is a good conductor is due to the charged ions from the salt (Na+ and Cl- ions). You may be thinking "then why can I be electrocuted at home if we don't have salt water?" Well it's because your home water isn't exactly pure - there are several other ions and minerals in it.
They do. Every year around 7000-10000 lightnings strike the sea around the world (This number is low since salt water is a poor conductor and attractor of electricity) and and when this happens most of Earth's marine life dies. Luckily fish are are fond of sexual intercourse and the sea life grows to its peak numbers around summertime.
Ask anyone who has been shocked and they will tell you that salt water is a very good conductor since our bodies are mostly salt water; poor attractor, great conductor. Salt water fish/wildlife do not just make up for thier loss by having a reproductive free for all, it takes years to replace damage to any part of a reef system. Most lightining strikes happen in open water where there is almost no damage the the ecosystem and whatever fish is hit is not fried but boiled.
There are conductors, semi-conductors and insulators in this world. While fresh water is a good conductor due to the impurities in it, salt water is only a semi-conductor and the lightning dissipates faster than it does in fresh water. But even in fresh water the lightning only travels so far before it too will dissipate.
Most people think that water is a conductor and that that is why it causes people to die from electrical shock when exposed to it. This is untrue.
My answer is two fold. First of all pure water is an insulator. When it is mixed with impurities those impurities are actually the conductors, not the water. Second electricity always takes the path of least resistance (It will travel through the material that is most conductive).
If your in a pool of water and the lightning strikes most of the charge won't travel through the water, because it is an insulater. It will travel through you the conductor. You are the path of least resistance (especially if your touching the bottom of the pool or the side of it). That is why people are killed in a pool from lightning strikes. Most of the people that survive such strikes were probably floating in the water, not touching anything else but the water (thus not completing a circuit).
I would suggest that most fish in the ocean do not get killed for this reason. Salt water is a very good conductor and as such the salt water pulls the path of the electricity from the lightning bolt around the fish, not through it. I would add this as another reason amoung the others above.
When someone is in a bath tub and an electrical item is drop in and that someone is electicuted, this is because the the path of least resistance is throught the person touching the bottom and sides of the tub. The water is mostly insulated from the current so it travels almost entirely through the human body.
snyder810;3058424; said:
that happened at the fish store i work at too but I wasn't there on that fun filled day. lol
mr.reef24
here is a great article I found through drsfosterandsmith.com
http://saltaquarium.about.com/od/aquariummaintenancecare/a/aastrayvoltage.htm
Has anyone tried this?
mr.reef24
http://saltaquarium.about.com/od/aquariummaintenancecare/a/aastrayvoltage.htm
Has anyone tried this?
mr.reef24
Riv D;3058442; said:
no offense to whoever wrote that (and i'm by no means anywhere near an expert on this topic) but it is very jumbled, jumps around a lot, and very poorly written which leads me to believe that it did not come from an educated expert on the topic.
Yeah. That long post was crap. It only contradicted itself about 35 times. Saltwater=good conductor, Freshwater=poor conductor. None of us have true freshwater because we add chemicals & the fish produce waste material. That puts us somewher in between.
Fish do die in lightning strikes, but this is PROBABLY due to the instant boiling of the water around them. It could be from the current, but not likely because they arent grounded. That said, Lightning doesnt really follow the rules of electrical theory, so grounding may not matter with a couple million amps of lightning...
Stray current will harm your fish if they touch anything in the tank thats grounded. Even if they are not harmed, they can sense/feel the electrical field & will likely hide.
Again, as I say in all electrical posts, water & electricity is a big fire hazard! Call a licensed Electrician if you cant find the problem. Remember...its called electrical THEORY for a reason... We dont really understand it completely & it doesnt always behave consistently. Better safe than sorry!
Fish do die in lightning strikes, but this is PROBABLY due to the instant boiling of the water around them. It could be from the current, but not likely because they arent grounded. That said, Lightning doesnt really follow the rules of electrical theory, so grounding may not matter with a couple million amps of lightning...
Stray current will harm your fish if they touch anything in the tank thats grounded. Even if they are not harmed, they can sense/feel the electrical field & will likely hide.
Again, as I say in all electrical posts, water & electricity is a big fire hazard! Call a licensed Electrician if you cant find the problem. Remember...its called electrical THEORY for a reason... We dont really understand it completely & it doesnt always behave consistently. Better safe than sorry!
Well...Nicola Tesla probably understood it. But he turned himself into pure energy & now just watches & laughs as the smartest people in the world try to interpret his notes!
i am definitely going to use GFCI's in the future on my tanks. i am in school to be an electrician right now so i will most likely switch them out as soon as i learn how.
