Old timer at the shop taught me a lesson about capacitor safety

Back about 5 years ago I was working on an old CRT monitor and a guy named Frank who must have been 70 stopped by. He watched me reach in without discharging the tube first and just said "son, that cap holds enough to knock you off your stool." I brushed it off but a week later I got zapped by a 400V filter cap and my arm went numb for an hour. Has anyone else had a close call that made them change how they work?

3 comments

3 Comments

riley4316d agoMost Upvoted

Got hit by a 220V cap once, threw my wrench across the room. Never forgot Frank's advice after that.

the_richard16d ago

Doubt it was that bad @riley43, probably just got your attention more than anything. People exaggerate those little zaps all the time.

uma_taylor4716d agoMost Upvoted

220V caps dont "get your attention" they rearrange your whole day lmao. The_richard clearly never caught a real one or hed know the difference between a static zap and getting introduced to uncle frank's flying wrench trick. Caps that size will make you question every life choice that led you to that moment. Bet his advice was something like "always discharge before you touch" or "respect the juice" because lessons like that stick with you