On Tue, 29 Oct 2013 09:20:09 -0400, Stormin Mormon
wrote:

On 10/28/2013 7:22 PM, wrote:
Stop and think about it Stormy - even if that WERE the case, the
water system is SUPPOSED to be grounded - and if it is properly
rounded there is no potential difference between the water system and
ground - and therefore no tingle or shock.


Stop and think about it, Clare. If the OP wishes not to be
shocked, s/he ought to FIND the problem. As such, looking for
PROBLEMS like a bad NEUTRAL would help FIND and SOLVE the
problem. Improving the ground will NOT do much about the
SOURCE of the electricity.
Please explain how a bad neutral is going to make the ground
float. I'm real curious how you are going to explain that. Not saying
it's impossible - but please enlighten us. Or are you saying an open
neutral between the panel and the street??

Goal post move, noted. Is that the best you can do?
Didn't move the post. IF the water pipe is grounded properly, even an
OPEN neutral at the pole will not make the pipe live. Impossible.
Not bonding the neutral to ground can make the NEUTRAL higher than
ground, which can give you a shock when touching the "grounded"
chassis of an appliance and a "real" ground at the same time. That's
the essence of "phantom voltage" problems that plagued rural america a
few decades ago - where they used "ground return" (single wire
distribution 135 volt AC IIRC)