Author Topic: An unusual electrical experience  (Read 806 times)
merc
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An unusual electrical experience « on: July 04, 2026, 01:39:53 PM » Author: merc
This afternoon was mildly warm, cloudy to overcast with moderate wind. No rain. I was passing under those 400kV lines on my bike (normal, not e-bike) and accidentally brushed my fingers on metallic brake levers. Their surface turned from smooth to a kind of "harsh" - I could clearly feel 50 Hz on them! A similar feeling you sometimes have on metallic parts of some electric appliances on mains. No mistake - it disappeared when I passed the place.
While I knew I was safe, it was a bit scary. It's a hill and the lines aren't too high above the road. What's strange - I passed through that place hundreds of times and never noticed that before! Maybe something in the air?
I wonder if anybody ever experienced something similar?
« Last Edit: July 04, 2026, 01:45:08 PM by merc » Logged
Lampwizard
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Re: An unusual electrical experience « Reply #1 on: July 16, 2026, 06:43:50 AM » Author: Lampwizard
You may have picked up some parasitic (harmless) current under favorable weather conditions and high field strenght (multiple kV/m) to make this current perceptable. It went through your body (head, torso, arms) upon touching the metallic brake handles via the bike frame and tires towards earth.

Next time, take a 5ft fluorescent tube and stick it up under the power lines at night. There's a good chance it will faintly light up.
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merc
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Re: An unusual electrical experience « Reply #2 on: July 27, 2026, 05:22:10 PM » Author: merc
Maybe the power lines had been highly loaded (too many people using A/C etc.) hence the strong electromagnetic induction? I was riding the same bike on the same spot a couple of days ago and didn't feel a trace of electricity.

I'm not sure if electromagnetic field 50Hz would light up a fluorescent tube. Some microwave technologies do but the low frequency electromagnetic field?
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Laurens
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Re: An unusual electrical experience « Reply #3 on: July 28, 2026, 01:16:25 AM » Author: Laurens
If the field strenght is high enough, it absolutely can. But you need a pretty dark location for that. I tried it at the 400kV powerlines in my urban location but couldn't see anything.
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