Grimly Curmudgeon wrote:
We were somewhere around Barstow, on the edge of the desert, when the
drugs began to take hold. I remember "Phil L"
saying something like:

Just after leaving school, the CB radio craze was just starting off.
I had to have one and I got one for my 16th birthday, a binatone,
which ran off a 12V powerpack, which I couldn't afford so I had it
attatched to a car battery in the corner of my bedroom, which I used
to charge up periodically. One day i read that car batteries gave
off hydrogen gas whilst being charged....'hydrogen' I thought,
'burns with a squeaky pop' as I remembered my chemistry lessons.
Except the chemistry lessons only used a test-tube full of hydrogen.
I landed on the other side of the room, which needed re-decorating,
given that the doors, skirtings and all other glossed surfaces had
thousands of bubbles in them where the acid had burnt into the paint.

Not to me, but the foreman of a neighbouring engineering works...
They had a dreadful old propane powered lift truck which never started
on a cold morning - the batteries were shagged and the tight buggers
wouldn't spend any money on it, so every morning the foreman jump
started it with a welding set. See where this is going?

One morning I needed to borrow it and it wouldn't start, as usual, so
I nipped back to our workshop to gather up a jump battery and some
leads. While I was gone, the foreman came out and did his usual party
piece, but this time the battery went 'POP' and showered him and
bystanders with acid and bits of battery casing. Amazingly, not a
drop of acid or any debris went in his face. His clothes were ruined,
though.

Stupid *******; I told him that would happen.

Being 16, I pulled off an amazing coup, I acted daft and simply said I'd
connected the black an red wires from the CB as normal after charging, there
was a spark and the next thing I new it went 'boom', when in reality I'd
used a lighter.

I did get battery acid in my face, but apart from the revolting taste, no
injuries or other damage, although my ears weren't in the best of health for
a few days, the ******* went with a hell of a bang.

Unsurprisingly, I haven't tried it since.

--
Phil L
RSRL Tipster Of The Year 2008

Huge wrote:
On 2010-08-11, Phil L wrote:

I'll never forget going to bed that night thinking, 'squeaky pop? - my
arse'

My next-door neighbour inspected the acid level in a car battery by the
light of a cigarette lighter on one occasion. He kept his sight ...

See, I always knew smoking was dangerous...

David

Phil L wrote:

Too numerous too mention them all given that I've worked nearly all my life
in the construction industry, in various roles.

snip
I've spent about 20 years working off ladders in one job or another and have
fell off too many times to remember, you sort of build up a 'knowledge' of
either how to land or how to fall or something because some of those falls
should have seen me off but none of them did and remarkably, I've never had
a broken bone nor a dislocated anything, but I've got scars everywhere.


As a pure amateur I've had odd shocks burns and cuts over the years -
but that lot makes me feel thankful my profession involves a mouse and
keyboard.

Mind, the back specialist did tell me that problems like mine are
endemic in the software industry...

Andy

I
I've spent about 20 years working off ladders in one job or another and have
fell off too many times to remember, you sort of build up a 'knowledge' of
either how to land or how to fall or something because some of those falls
should have seen me off but none of them did and remarkably, I've never had
a broken bone nor a dislocated anything, but I've got scars everywhere.


Well I Used to work off ladders up the three story's high rigging telly
aerials when younger, and I thought I'd survived the odd slip off a roof
ladder rather well sliding down a slippery slate roof etc, and had to
use a pair of cutters to "stab" the roof to make a hand held brake;!..

But last year a simple fall of a latter up a power pole from 8 metres
saw me in hospital for a month in a coma and not expected to make it


However despite the skull fractures and hematoma's, subarachnoid
haemorrhage, a fractured femur which came right through the skin and a
lacerated elbow we're back at work not that much worse for wear 'tho a
bit more risk adverse than before..


However one thing that will be good advice to all concerned on here and
elsewhere is if anyone has had much of a bump on the head even if they
appear OK afterwards, is -- STRONGLY-- advised to go to the accident
and emergency unit of a hospital to have it looked at. Even minor head
injury can cause internal bleeding which can have devastating
consequences if left untreated!....


--
Tony Sayer

In article ,
says...

Phil L
wibbled on Wednesday 11 August 2010 20:32


Too numerous too mention them all given that I've worked nearly all my
life in the construction industry, in various roles.

Fell off double ladders into a rose bush, got back up and carried on
working, despite bleeding profusely and having a very sore arm.

Fell through the remains of a wooden carport roof, followed by a Hilti
TE72 with 14in masonary bit, missed my head by an inch or two.

Got a 'Y' shaped scar in the back of my head where it met the corner of a
skip as I fell backwards off a flat roof.

Two inch gash in arm following an incident with a 'Stanley' hook blade
whilst trying to cut the bottom out of a plastic bucket.

Cast iron manhole cover fell on fingernails at the tender age of 15 (at
work)

Set fire to trousers whilst cutting steel girders with angle grinder.

Fell through opening to staircase in fully boarded out upstairs in
partially built house, again followed by Hilti.

Put legs through various ceilings all over the NW of England, luckily the
joists and my scrotum prevented further fallage.

Hand crushed by steel flue grating whilst operating vibrating roller.

Along with multiple instances of whizzing bits of skin, fingernails etc
with angle grinders, drill related problems, especially when they're 25mm
bits and they tangle in your trouser leg whilst still rotating - chinese
burns unlimited. I've been burnt, electrocuted, hammered in various body
parts, screwdriver through the finger etc, nails through both feet (at
different times thankfully) partially buried (up to neck) when cutting for
extension caved-in.

I've spent about 20 years working off ladders in one job or another and
have fell off too many times to remember, you sort of build up a
'knowledge' of either how to land or how to fall or something because some
of those falls should have seen me off but none of them did and
remarkably, I've never had a broken bone nor a dislocated anything, but
I've got scars everywhere.


Bolly hell Phil, you're like a government saftey film!

More like this:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_p_mdGtY26Y

--
Halmyre

In message ,
Halmyre writes
In article ,
says...

Phil L
wibbled on Wednesday 11 August 2010 20:32


Too numerous too mention them all given that I've worked nearly all my
life in the construction industry, in various roles.

Fell off double ladders into a rose bush, got back up and carried on
working, despite bleeding profusely and having a very sore arm.

Fell through the remains of a wooden carport roof, followed by a Hilti
TE72 with 14in masonary bit, missed my head by an inch or two.

Got a 'Y' shaped scar in the back of my head where it met the corner of a
skip as I fell backwards off a flat roof.

Two inch gash in arm following an incident with a 'Stanley' hook blade
whilst trying to cut the bottom out of a plastic bucket.

Cast iron manhole cover fell on fingernails at the tender age of 15 (at
work)

Set fire to trousers whilst cutting steel girders with angle grinder.

Fell through opening to staircase in fully boarded out upstairs in
partially built house, again followed by Hilti.

Put legs through various ceilings all over the NW of England, luckily the
joists and my scrotum prevented further fallage.

Hand crushed by steel flue grating whilst operating vibrating roller.

Along with multiple instances of whizzing bits of skin, fingernails etc
with angle grinders, drill related problems, especially when they're 25mm
bits and they tangle in your trouser leg whilst still rotating - chinese
burns unlimited. I've been burnt, electrocuted, hammered in various body
parts, screwdriver through the finger etc, nails through both feet (at
different times thankfully) partially buried (up to neck) when cutting for
extension caved-in.

I've spent about 20 years working off ladders in one job or another and
have fell off too many times to remember, you sort of build up a
'knowledge' of either how to land or how to fall or something because some
of those falls should have seen me off but none of them did and
remarkably, I've never had a broken bone nor a dislocated anything, but
I've got scars everywhere.


Bolly hell Phil, you're like a government saftey film!

More like this:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_p_mdGtY26Y


Don't you mean this

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oPpwLCvPAME


--
geoff

Tim Watts wrote:



Bolly hell Phil, you're like a government saftey film!

I've got to say though, this is over a span of thirty years, I'm 45 now and
i first started in the year before i left school, weekends, holidays etc

--
Phil L
RSRL Tipster Of The Year 2008

We were somewhere around Barstow, on the edge of the desert, when the
drugs began to take hold. I remember fred saying
something like:

The story of my own (multiple) adolescent electrocutions can wait until
later.

I was about fifteen and replacing a socket in the understairs cupboard,
having switched off the mains, of course. Unfortunately, I hadn't pulled
the fuse.
My younger brother was ****ed off at losing power in his bedroom,
stormed down the stairs and flicked the fusebox switch back on, just as
I was touching a red wire.

The utter ******.

On Wed, 11 Aug 2010 20:32:36 +0100, Grimly Curmudgeon wrote:

We were somewhere around Barstow, on the edge of the desert, when the
drugs began to take hold. I remember fred saying
something like:

The story of my own (multiple) adolescent electrocutions can wait until
later.

I was about fifteen and replacing a socket in the understairs cupboard,
having switched off the mains, of course. Unfortunately, I hadn't pulled
the fuse.
My younger brother was ****ed off at losing power in his bedroom,
stormed down the stairs and flicked the fusebox switch back on, just as
I was touching a red wire.

Not DIY, but when I was about seven (or younger) I liked playing with
electrics (!). I decided to pull the plug of the electric fire out of the
big round pin socket - while it was on.

Yes - DC mains. Big arc. Set fire to newspaper and armchair nearby. Sat
outside on someone's lap and marvelled at the fire engine...luckily.




--
Use the BIG mirror service in the UK:
http://www.mirrorservice.org

*lightning protection* - a w_tom conductor

In article , Grimly
Curmudgeon scribeth thus
We were somewhere around Barstow, on the edge of the desert, when the
drugs began to take hold. I remember fred saying
something like:

The story of my own (multiple) adolescent electrocutions can wait until
later.

I was about fifteen and replacing a socket in the understairs cupboard,
having switched off the mains, of course. Unfortunately, I hadn't pulled
the fuse.
My younger brother was ****ed off at losing power in his bedroom,
stormed down the stairs and flicked the fusebox switch back on, just as
I was touching a red wire.

The utter ******.

Had that problem before. Take the fuses with u, doesn't stop a
determined idiot from trying but makes it more difficult for them;!...
--
Tony Sayer

We were somewhere around Barstow, on the edge of the desert, when the
drugs began to take hold. I remember tony sayer
saying something like:

I was about fifteen and replacing a socket in the understairs cupboard,
having switched off the mains, of course. Unfortunately, I hadn't pulled
the fuse.
My younger brother was ****ed off at losing power in his bedroom,
stormed down the stairs and flicked the fusebox switch back on, just as
I was touching a red wire.

The utter ******.

Had that problem before. Take the fuses with u, doesn't stop a
determined idiot from trying but makes it more difficult for them;!...

Now that I recall the incident more clearly, I realise I *had* pulled
the fuse, but left it at the FB.
These days it's even easier for a numpty - domestic MCBs aren't commonly
lock-offable.

Grimly Curmudgeon wrote:
We were somewhere around Barstow, on the edge of the desert, when the
drugs began to take hold. I remember tony sayer
saying something like:

I was about fifteen and replacing a socket in the understairs cupboard,
having switched off the mains, of course. Unfortunately, I hadn't pulled
the fuse.
My younger brother was ****ed off at losing power in his bedroom,
stormed down the stairs and flicked the fusebox switch back on, just as
I was touching a red wire.

The utter ******.

Had that problem before. Take the fuses with u, doesn't stop a
determined idiot from trying but makes it more difficult for them;!...

Now that I recall the incident more clearly, I realise I *had* pulled
the fuse, but left it at the FB.
These days it's even easier for a numpty - domestic MCBs aren't commonly
lock-offable.

That's a Very Good Point.

On 12 Aug, 16:02, Sidney Endon-Lee wrote:
Grimly Curmudgeon wrote:
We were somewhere around Barstow, on the edge of the desert, when the
drugs began to take hold. I remember tony sayer
saying something like:

I was about fifteen and replacing a socket in the understairs cupboard,
having switched off the mains, of course. Unfortunately, I hadn't pulled
the fuse.
My younger brother was ****ed off at losing power in his bedroom,
stormed down the stairs and flicked the fusebox switch back on, just as
I was touching a red wire.

The utter ******.

Had that problem before. Take the fuses with u, doesn't stop a
determined idiot from trying but makes it more difficult for them;!...

Now that I recall the incident more clearly, I realise I *had* pulled
the fuse, but left it at the FB.
These days it's even easier for a numpty - domestic MCBs aren't commonly
lock-offable.

That's a Very Good Point.

Probably worth making a lock for the CU box itself, or fitting a
lockable box around the whole thing. Then you can take THAT key with
you ;-)
Simon.

In article ,
Grimly Curmudgeon writes:

Now that I recall the incident more clearly, I realise I *had* pulled
the fuse, but left it at the FB.
These days it's even easier for a numpty - domestic MCBs aren't commonly
lock-offable.

Just checked all the odd spare MCBs I have in the garage.
The only ones which aren't lockable are some 20 year old Square-D.

Having an MCB lock to hand is another issue though.

--
Andrew Gabriel
[email address is not usable -- followup in the newsgroup]

Andrew Gabriel wrote:
In article ,
Grimly Curmudgeon writes:

Now that I recall the incident more clearly, I realise I *had* pulled
the fuse, but left it at the FB.
These days it's even easier for a numpty - domestic MCBs aren't commonly
lock-offable.

Just checked all the odd spare MCBs I have in the garage.
The only ones which aren't lockable are some 20 year old Square-D.

Having an MCB lock to hand is another issue though.

--
Andrew Gabriel
[email address is not usable -- followup in the newsgroup]

I didn't realise such things existed, although a quick Google finds
them. An example is:

http://www.reecesafety.co.uk/Circuit%20breaker%20lockouts.htm

I didn't realise MCBs were that standard. Well worth having in a
toolbox - could be a lifesaver.

My thinking before was that the MCB had to be specially manufactured
to be lockable.

Thanks for teaching me,

Sid.

We were somewhere around Barstow, on the edge of the desert, when the
drugs began to take hold. I remember (Andrew
Gabriel) saying something like:

These days it's even easier for a numpty - domestic MCBs aren't commonly
lock-offable.

Just checked all the odd spare MCBs I have in the garage.
The only ones which aren't lockable are some 20 year old Square-D.

Having an MCB lock to hand is another issue though.

Which is really what I meant.
The ones Sydney found are very useful to have in a toolbox, I must get a
few.

In article , says...

As a follow up to Geoff's post regarding his uncle I hope he doesn't
mind me starting a thread encouraging contributors to recount near
misses they have experienced that could have had serious consequences, a
sort of tribute and reminder.

Here's mine:

As a teenage lad I was helping my dad re-roof a stone walled barn when
he put his weight on a tile batten and promptly went straight through
it, falling through the sarking felt and rafters to the floor below.

The family rushed to his rescue to find him sitting on the floor of the
barn unharmed apart from a concussion and a gash on his forehead. On
looking up we noticed that he had bounced off a dividing wall used to
store a row of scythes hung on rusty iron spikes driven into the wall.

I have no idea how he avoided the bagatelle on the way down.

Over to you . . .

The story of my own (multiple) adolescent electrocutions can wait until
later.

Best I can offer is doing woodwork in school. I stuck a chisel into the
end of my finger while using it as a nail remover (having ignored the
teacher's instruction of NEVER using a chisel as a nail remover).

When looking at Swiss army knives prior to purchase I tugged open the
large blade and promptly sliced open the end of a finger. I bought it
anyway. Some time later I lent it to a chap who was using it to cut
plastic tie-wraps holding advertising panels to a wire fence. "Careful,
it's really sharp!", I warned him. Next thing I knew he was off to
hospital to have his blood-soaked hand stitched up...

--
Halmyre

On Wed, 11 Aug 2010 01:35:48 +0100, fred wrote:


Over to you . . .

The story of my own (multiple) adolescent electrocutions can wait until
later.

Many moons ago, I was adding a ring to an old Revo box, where the negative rail
was almost hidden down the back. Whilst struggling to fiddle the wires into the
hole, I inadvertently switched the mains back on !*!*!*!

As I learnt how it felt to be an electric fire, my reaction was amazingly calm
thinking, '**** me, I've really done it this time !' Fortunately, the only
damage I was left with was a bleeding hand, where it got grazed on the way out.
In fact I was quite proud of myself, because having nailed a bit of wood into
the floor to lock the switch off, I immediately got on with finishing the job.

Certainly made me more safety conscious though.

Andy C

In article , fred writes

The story of my own (multiple) adolescent electrocutions can wait until
later.

Ok, it's later:

1. Aged 6 (or so)
Grandad is fixing the vacuum cleaner which it turns out has blown the
fuse. While he nips to the kitchen for a new fuse I 'help' by pushing
the bare terminaled plug into the socket.

2. Aged 12ish
Old set of fairy lights are acting up, a ****ty old set of series
connected 6V lamps running directly off the mains. Loads of dodgy bulbs
and a few wires hanging off. With my incomplete adolescent knowledge of
electricity I think, "Hey, 6V, who can that hurt". In attempting to hold
loose wires onto bulb holders in both hands, the chain goes open circuit
and I get 240V hand to hand across the chest. Apparently I then danced
about a bit before falling backwards, disconnecting the terminals that
had stuck to my fingers.

Anyone remember Hill Street Blues? Let's be careful out there :-)
--
fred
FIVE TV's superbright logo - not the DOG's, it's ********

In article ,
fred writes:
In article , fred writes

The story of my own (multiple) adolescent electrocutions can wait until
later.

Ok, it's later:

1. Aged 6 (or so)
Grandad is fixing the vacuum cleaner which it turns out has blown the
fuse. While he nips to the kitchen for a new fuse I 'help' by pushing
the bare terminaled plug into the socket.

At around age 2 or 3 (I barely remember the incident), I pushed
a plug partly into a socket and then touched the pins and got a
shock. That's many years before the semi-insulated pins.

I was well into electricty by age 8 or 9, and thinking back I'm
very pleased my dad encouraged this, but slightly amazed he let
me play with mains at that time. One of my pocket money purchases
was a 4 way socket block, which was about the time they first
appeared. It came from "Shop on the Bridge" (Milne) in Reading,
and it was crap quality. I had got used to aligning the plug pins
with the socket, and then thumping the plug a few times to make
it go in. On one occasion, the back fell off a plug between the
second and third thumps, and my first smashed down on the live
parts. I had a mark from that for years, but I can't see it now.

Another incident I recall was playing with neon indicator lamps,
probably about same age as above (and I recall using the 4-way
socket block). A couple running off mains through dropper resistors.
I leant on the wiring and accidently shorted out one of the
resistors. The neon exploded, and most of the glass embedded
itself in the wall, which taught me what an unballasted discharge
lamp could do.

--
Andrew Gabriel
[email address is not usable -- followup in the newsgroup]

"Andrew Gabriel" wrote in message
...
In article ,
fred writes:
In article , fred writes

The story of my own (multiple) adolescent electrocutions can wait until
later.

Ok, it's later:

1. Aged 6 (or so)
Grandad is fixing the vacuum cleaner which it turns out has blown the
fuse. While he nips to the kitchen for a new fuse I 'help' by pushing
the bare terminaled plug into the socket.

At around age 2 or 3 (I barely remember the incident), I pushed
a plug partly into a socket and then touched the pins and got a
shock. That's many years before the semi-insulated pins.

I was well into electricty by age 8 or 9, and thinking back I'm
very pleased my dad encouraged this, but slightly amazed he let
me play with mains at that time.

Did he also wrap your sandwiches in a road map?


One of my pocket money purchases
was a 4 way socket block, which was about the time they first
appeared. It came from "Shop on the Bridge" (Milne) in Reading,
and it was crap quality. I had got used to aligning the plug pins
with the socket, and then thumping the plug a few times to make
it go in. On one occasion, the back fell off a plug between the
second and third thumps, and my first smashed down on the live
parts. I had a mark from that for years, but I can't see it now.

Another incident I recall was playing with neon indicator lamps,
probably about same age as above (and I recall using the 4-way
socket block). A couple running off mains through dropper resistors.
I leant on the wiring and accidently shorted out one of the
resistors. The neon exploded, and most of the glass embedded
itself in the wall, which taught me what an unballasted discharge
lamp could do.

--
Andrew Gabriel
[email address is not usable -- followup in the newsgroup]

In article ,
fred writes:

The story of my own (multiple) adolescent electrocutions can wait until
later.

BTW, you can only be electrocuted once, and you can't talk
about it afterwards....

--
Andrew Gabriel
[email address is not usable -- followup in the newsgroup]

"Andrew Gabriel" wrote in message
...
In article ,
fred writes:

The story of my own (multiple) adolescent electrocutions can wait until
later.

BTW, you can only be electrocuted once, and you can't talk
about it afterwards....

Not actually true, you can die and be resuscitated.

In article , dennis@home
scribeth thus


"Andrew Gabriel" wrote in message
...
In article ,
fred writes:

The story of my own (multiple) adolescent electrocutions can wait until
later.

BTW, you can only be electrocuted once, and you can't talk
about it afterwards....

Not actually true, you can die and be resuscitated.




Raising the dead now Dennis added to your list of Skills?.

Better hurry up and tell the Pope, I'm sure he'd like to know about that
you might put him out of a job, so perhaps best not eh;?...
--
Tony Sayer

tony sayer wrote:
In article , dennis@home
scribeth thus


"Andrew Gabriel" wrote in message
...
In article ,
fred writes:

The story of my own (multiple) adolescent electrocutions can wait
until later.

BTW, you can only be electrocuted once, and you can't talk
about it afterwards....

Not actually true, you can die and be resuscitated.




Raising the dead now Dennis added to your list of Skills?.

I always found it odd when my (paramedic) daughter used the phrase "I got
him back" when refering to saving a cardiac arrest patient. They are
apparently trained to consider the patient 'dead'. Its a way of coping I
guess. If someone is 'dead' you can't blame yourself if you can't save him,
if you do 'get him back' its a bonus.

Somewhat gruesome, but they are also trained to ignore damage to ribs whilst
doing CPR, on the grounds that if they "get him back" the ribs can be sorted
afterwards. She has mentioned hearing & feeling bones breaking on elderly
patients.

--
Dave - The Medway Handyman
www.medwayhandyman.co.uk

The Medway Handyman wrote:

I always found it odd when my (paramedic) daughter used the phrase "I got
him back" when refering to saving a cardiac arrest patient. They are
apparently trained to consider the patient 'dead'. Its a way of coping I
guess. If someone is 'dead' you can't blame yourself if you can't save him,
if you do 'get him back' its a bonus.

And no doubt she is as irritated as my medic-SWMBO is by TV dramas where
it's almost guaranteed that application of paddles to chest will result
in a successful resussitation in 99% of attempts, whereas the reality is
that in the majority of cases it doesn't work...

Somewhat gruesome, but they are also trained to ignore damage to ribs whilst
doing CPR, on the grounds that if they "get him back" the ribs can be sorted
afterwards. She has mentioned hearing & feeling bones breaking on elderly
patients.

....and you hope you aren't working on an American tourist who, if your
attempts are successful, will promptly sue you for the injuries caused :-(

David

On Fri, 13 Aug 2010 17:43:15 +0100, The Medway Handyman wrote:

Somewhat gruesome, but they are also trained to ignore damage to ribs
whilst doing CPR, on the grounds that if they "get him back" the ribs
can be sorted afterwards.

Quite, it's almost if you don't crack a rib you aren't doing it hard
enough. Something that doesn't come across in most First Aid courses
even when pounding Resusiannies chest...

--
Cheers
Dave.

dennis@home wrote:
"Andrew Gabriel" wrote in message
...
In article ,
fred writes:

The story of my own (multiple) adolescent electrocutions can wait
until later.

BTW, you can only be electrocuted once, and you can't talk
about it afterwards....

Not actually true, you can die and be resuscitated.

Would you please show me how that is done with you as the subject?

--
Adam

In article , Andrew Gabriel
writes
In article ,
fred writes:

The story of my own (multiple) adolescent electrocutions can wait until
later.

BTW, you can only be electrocuted once, and you can't talk
about it afterwards....

Ah, I convulse corrected :-)
--
fred
FIVE TV's superbright logo - not the DOG's, it's ********