wrote in message
oups.com...
Rich,

Not that I would do this (AND I RECOMMEND NO ONE ELSE DO THIS EITHER),
but does that mean that when replacing a switch or an outlet, that I
could turn the power back on and touch the NEUTRAL (white) wire and not
receive a shock?

Heck, my wife (and millions of others) does it several times a day. The
chassis of our stove and dryer are connected to the neutral. Unless the
neutral connection has come loose, it is an almost infinitely better ground
than the person touching it; so the toucher gets close to 0v.

In the situation you describe is even safer; a (presumably open) switch or a
unused outlet, you could lick the neutral and get nothing; unless the ground
bus has come loose, it is absolutely 0v.