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<div class="moz-cite-prefix">On 1/4/2013 10:25 AM, David Nelsen
wrote:<br>
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<blockquote
cite="mid:CAEN4z2QaksoCdTBTz1jr31z2bpe+-LNY0PE+OkA=9z5pKpVMMA@mail.gmail.com"
type="cite"><font color="#ff0000">I agree- Take a volt meter if
you have one and perform a voltage check from ground to hot,
ground to neutral then hot to neutral. Neutral is the white
wire connected to the left larger vertical prong and hot should
be connected to the right smaller vertical prong. (Looking at
the outlet) Also you may want to do a voltage check between
computer chassis and ground. If you dont have a volt meter I
strongly suggest picking up a cheap one or atleast getting a
polarity checker from menards or the hardware store. You could
have a problem where the outlet is mis wired and hot and neutral
are reversed. This can present a transparent problem yet could
be dangerous. Good Luck</font>
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<div class="gmail_quote">On Fri, Jan 4, 2013 at 10:19 AM, Ryan
Coleman <span dir="ltr"><<a moz-do-not-send="true"
href="mailto:ryanjcole@me.com" target="_blank">ryanjcole@me.com</a>></span>
wrote:<br>
<blockquote class="gmail_quote" style="margin:0 0 0
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On 1/4/2013 10:04 AM, Smith, Craig A (MN14) wrote:<br>
<blockquote class="gmail_quote" style="margin:0 0 0
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<blockquote class="gmail_quote" style="margin:0 0 0
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my 9yo daughter looks shocked and says the computer buzzed
her. i touch what she touched, floor grate and computer
chassis, and buzzo. so perhaps improper grounding might
be a factor in mobo deaths?<br>
</blockquote>
<br>
Many years ago, I got a shock from the metal chassis of my
dad's reel-to-reel tape deck. He said "unplug and plug it
in the other way" (this was before the days polarized
plugs). I tried this and it worked!<br>
<br>
The explanation was that there was a high-impedance short
between the power transformer and the chassis. Plugging it
in the other way moved the short closer to neutral (grounded
at the fuse-box and the utility pole).<br>
<br>
Assuming you have a polarized plug, you might check your
outlet. You can buy a 3-led tester at the hardware store
for less than $5.<br>
<br>
If you're using a UPS, then that may be at fault.<br>
</blockquote>
<br>
I assumed (shame on me) that by "tripp lite" that mentioned in
his next email was a tester of some sort... but I would think
that along your thought line there that testing on another
outlet would work just as well? Extensions suck but I would
recommend that everyone have at least one heavy duty extension
cord in their homes of 25-50 feet in length. They are worth
every penny (I have four - but two are in my car for my day
job).<br>
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<br>
This is a really easy test - it allowed me to discover that NONE of
the "grounded" outlets in my apartment were, indeed, grounded...
which is fine except for the fact that my UPS must have a ground...
The landlord - upon learning of this problem - has agreed to get an
outlet in each room properly grounded... he doesn't want to deal
with my insurance company when I claim the explosion of battery acid
from my UPS after a lightning strike (a little over dramatic, I
admit, but I was amazed to find that out of 20 wall outlets 0 were
actually grounded - and 15 of the plug pairs had a grounding pin...
and a few of the outlets are still the cloth insulated wire...)<br>
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