Can you get a shock off an electric shower ?

Question

My missus got a small shock off our electric shower when she was turning it off (recently replaced it), all the plumbers we speak to say its impossible to get a shock off one, but surely if the plastic seal inside the unit (under the on/off switch) wears/corrodes away then water can get to the electrics ?

Answer 1

You MUST heed the correct advice of hawk ( the incredibly rich & none stupid plumber! ) You MUST have a 30ma RCD fitted in line with your shower,so again as hawk has stated switch it of don't use it & get a suitably qualified sparky to test the shower installation

Poor "not stupid" sparky for to many years to want to remember!

Answer 2

You certainly can! Your plumbers are fibbing.  I lived in a flat in London where the casing to the (Triton T-80) showere was broken and water would sometimes get into the wiring (it´s electrical for heaven´s sake!) and my flatmates and I would get shocks. At first we thought we were imagining it, but when we realised what was going on, we got it fixed.

Hope this puts your mind at rest, that no, your missus is not making it up!

Answer 3

either get it checked or replace it, do not use this item

Answer 4

Yes you do get, I experienced once and just replaced it with an ordinary shower,It was horrible experience......

Answer 5

Oh god yes!

Just don't sit shampoo bottles and other wet things on the top is all I'll say!

Answer 6

this is serious and deadly.

as answered the earth to your house could be missing.

there is a stake that is driven into the earth and the earth wire is connected to this. when an earth is missing the voltage sometimes floats.

however if the wires neutral and active are connected incorrectly then possible causes like this can happen.

good luck

Answer 7

Check that your trip switch is working properly. You do have one fitted I hope.

Answer 8

this is why a pull cord switch should be in place firstly turn off the pull cord then the shower. but due to the shielding of the shower(double insulated) if fitted propely you should never get a shock. are you sure your pipes are earth bonded correctly?

Answer 9

Wow, I've always been woried about this but thought it would never happen. I guess it could, just make sure your shower is in good condition and fitted properly.

Answer 10

hear hear napper ,  a fellow plumber not stupid  neither  , rich but not stupid LOL,

check that there is a MCB plus RCB at main consumer unit

get an electrician in to check it out AND DO NOT USE UNTIL YOU DO !!! as if it is not correctly earthed it could kill you or your wife .... is she insured ...? from  a rich and not so stupid

plumber

Answer 11

You bet you can !!!!!

if waterpiping is not correctly bonded or earthed it can cause shocks. Most are fairly minor but they can be frightening.

You need to contact an electrician to sort it out. It is one of the issues that we as plumbers must be very aware of.

By the way i don't think I am stupid.

Answer 12

It is possible and happened to me once.

Answer 13

if it was installed correctly it would have been earthed and there is no way she could have gotten a shock from the internal electrics............

so

1) it may not have been installed correctly

2) the earth connections may have come adrift/ corroded

3) she may have generated the shock herself (static shock) if she had (for example) just taken off a nylon robe

Answer 14

It is quite rare to get a shock off a shower. Its quite concerning but I would get the electrics checked out.