I don't have any spare bulbs to try it but I was measuring the mains today to test the electricity transformer. We are getting 243.2-243.3v at the wall sockets which is within the tolerable range. E.g no fault.
As I had my oscilloscope I was measuring current leakage from the mains cables. Was I put the oscilloscope near the kitchen door (the mains cables from the consumer unit are all buried above it) a perfect sine wave appeared on the display.
I then put the prongs on the wall and the wall itself was producing around 0.98v due to the current leak from the all the mains cables being so close together. Now it has been a long long long time since I studied any real physics but if I connected a low voltage lamp to the that wall would it light up from the current from the leak?
I guess I would have to connect the neutral into a the neutral in a socket?
Forgive my time on here tonight, I am normally out on a Saturday so need ways to fill my time.
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>> I then put the prongs on the wall and the wall itself was producing around
>> 0.98v due to the current leak from the all the mains cables being so close
>> together. Now it has been a long long long time since I studied any real
>> physics but if I connected a low voltage lamp to the that wall would it
>> light up from the current from the leak?
No because I guess there is insufficient current to light the bulb. In effect what you are doing with your scope is recreating a mains cable finder that us DIYers use.
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I suspected that that there may not have been enough ampage. I assume if the cables were carrying a much higher current then it would be possible?
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>> I suspected that that there may not have been enough ampage. I assume if the
>> cables were carrying a much higher current then it would be possible?
Depends on how much leakage there is through the cable insulation and plaster! You could induce some current by using a coil against the wall.
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Is this for when you are too drunk to find the socket, just push the plug against the wall and hope? ;)
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I recall a case of a military radio station losing power to an aerial. They eventually found a neighbour discovered the aerial feeder was adjacent to his property and had put an inductive tap on his side of the boundary and used it to illuminate his garage.
Some power going to the aerial!
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You need to bare part of the live wire before burying it in the wall if you want the experiment to really work. Don't do this at home.
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Scientific experience - will this work? - Zero
