Author Topic: Grounding Myself  (Read 1930 times)

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Offline bwclarkTopic starter

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Grounding Myself
« on: April 12, 2015, 09:45:24 pm »
Can I ground myself to my power supply?
 

Offline TimFox

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Re: Grounding Myself
« Reply #1 on: April 12, 2015, 09:53:08 pm »
If this is a normal laboratory power supply, note that neither the positive nor negative terminal is grounded.  There is usually a ground post on the front panel to allow you to ground either end, depending on the application.  That "ground" is technically the metal case of the supply that connects to the green (or green/yellow) lead in the three-wire power cord that goes to your building's electrical ground.

Are you just looking for a convenient place to connect an anti-ESD ground strap?  I would ground that, following manufacturer's instructions, to a ground (such as conduit) that does not involve a power cord.
 

Offline bugs

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Re: Grounding Myself
« Reply #2 on: April 13, 2015, 10:20:09 am »
Don't ground yourself! It is a recipe for disaster. You have a good chance at a shock if you do.
For ESD you always have a high impedance ~1meg to ground.
Ground is not the same everywhere and transients can realy ruin your day.
If you accidentally touch anything live you will ensure a big shock, while if you are not grounded the high impedance to ground may offer a little more protection (protection by limited impedance, in IEC terms).
Just stick you voltage meter between your PE conductor and for instance Cable TV, Central Heating, your tap, coax Ethernet (if you still have it :), etc. and you can imagine how it would feel :)
 


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