No Swimming; danger of electric shock!
 

With 110-volt power used by private home owners for powering their boat lift, or a boat marina with 110-v dock outlets, there is the potential for someone swimming nearby to experience the shock from stray voltage loss into the lake water which can cause a drowning.

Amazon has a $99.99 Shock-Alarm-electric shock drowning protection for pools, boats, & marinas that gets a 4-star rating and has 93 user opinions.

www.shockalarm.com ..... $99.99 ...... https://youtube.com/watch?v=e5bf7X7OyCc

www.shockalert.com ..... $149.95 ...... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jhXUR63BEhw ..... This Shock Alert, a floating yellow device that beeps and lights up is attached to a short tow line, and seems easier to use for testing marina or town docks which are a much larger than a private dock.

Have never, ever seen anyone use one of these in Lake Winnipesaukee?

Anyone have any experience using it?

Anyone have any experience with getting shocked in the water and was it a shocking experience .... ha-ha-ha ... :D ... sorry, couldn't resist that wisecrack on what is a serious safety issue. .... :eek:

Is NO joke ..... https://www.electrocuted.com/electrocution-in-water/ ...... some information, here, from the friendly & experienced Electrocution Lawyers in Farmington Hills, Michigan (not a joke-:confused:). ... ho-ho-ho! ... eek! ... budda-bing! ... zap!

.... looking for stray voltage leaks in Lake Winnipesaukee?
 

You know it seems that a voltage leak test could be done using one of the $149.95 Shock Alerts, the larger yellow floating device that uses both a buzzer and a light, attached by a 6' line to a stand-up paddle board, and paddled slowly past suspect spots around the lake.

By paddling while kneeling on a sup, one would seem to be pretty much insulated and safe from any voltage leaks in the water because the sup is a fiberglass/plastic/vinyl non-conductor for 110-v electric current, and will block a pathway for electricity to flow.

Town docks and marinas that use ice-eating, water circulators for winter ice protection that leave their wiring out there, in place, all year around, are suspect for leaky stray voltage.

Boat lifts that run on 110-v current are also suspect.

And, according to the linked report in the above post #1, a running motor boat can put nearby swimmers in danger with a stray voltage leak coming from the boat? ..... :eek:

This organization recommends NOT using warning devices

https://www.electricshockdrowning.org/

Here is their position about warning devices:

https://www.electricshockdrowning.or...t-devices.html

Be informed and decide for yourself.

Well, this link is saying that a ground fault circuit interrupter should not be considered a safe use with a 110-volt boat lift motor because:

"GFCIs can and do fail, too often without switching off the power. This is why you should NEVER purposefully put yourself, or any other family member, friend, guest, pet, etc., in a position where they rely on one of these devices to ensure their safety."

It is not uncommon on Lake Winnipesaukee to have a private boat lift hooked up to the 110-v house current with a gfci for protection and the home owner believes it to be safe because it has a gfci.

I wonder what the NH state electric code has to say on this use?

I figure that wearing a foam noodle swim belt could make all the difference if you encounter any muscle numbing, stray voltage while swimming past a boat lift in water over your head. A foam noodle belt can make a big difference!