A while ago after installing some new components I started having an issue with my audio - through the speakers I would get a buzz - not hum - that didn't increase with volume. I tried almost everything, including connecting only the central unit, other set of speakers, other outlet etc. and finally found a solution by putting in my TV tuner, and plugging the TV cable into it, which would kill the buzz completly.
By then I had already been googling things for a while and knew that this was somehow related to grounding. It's normal for the TV cable to shock pinch now and then, but when the cable goes into the back of the computer, if one is to hold two ends of the cable, a current strong enough to make the fingertips twitch is felt. It became clear at that point that there's some kind of charge in my computer case, that's causing the audio interference, and which can be leaked out the TV cable to eliminate it.
I then began backtracing this. For many years, before the speaker buzz even, whenever I would work on the back of the computer, I would sometimes get a shock if I touched the heater at the same time. I recently made a test and put one of my hands on the back of the PC and one on the heater. At first nothing at all happens, but if I look for even a VERY small portion where the paint on the heater has chipped, and touch it, I can feel the same continuous shock as when holding the TV cable ends. This ONLY happens when the TV cable is not plugged.
And then I began to look at a different phenomenon. I never really thought about it, but this had been happening for as long as I've lived here. If I run my fingers gently over the metal surface of the case, I can feel a vibration against my fingers. This is a feeling I can replicate with the refrigerator and washing machine aswell. It is also a feeling I can find when, for example, my mother has her laptop on her lap and is sitting on the couch, and the charger is plugged in. Her skin feels just like the refrigerator/pc/washing machine. And yes the laptop charger does have 3 prongs. It's not a shock sensation, but you can feel the presence of a current.
While I have not yet experimented with anything other than the PC, would this vibration I'm feeling in contact with these items also turn to shock if I were to touch something grounded? Many years back we had an older washing machine, which had paint chips in several places. It too was plugged into a wall socket that's supposedly grounded, but if I touched those metal portions I would feel the exact same kind of continuous shock I feel with the PC, WITHOUT having to touch any grounded source.
Since I have lived here all my life I have no referrence point, as I've not carried out these experiments in other people's homes. Is it normal to feel this vibration when running your fingers against powerful appliances, or is it a sign of bad grounding throughout the house?
By then I had already been googling things for a while and knew that this was somehow related to grounding. It's normal for the TV cable to shock pinch now and then, but when the cable goes into the back of the computer, if one is to hold two ends of the cable, a current strong enough to make the fingertips twitch is felt. It became clear at that point that there's some kind of charge in my computer case, that's causing the audio interference, and which can be leaked out the TV cable to eliminate it.
I then began backtracing this. For many years, before the speaker buzz even, whenever I would work on the back of the computer, I would sometimes get a shock if I touched the heater at the same time. I recently made a test and put one of my hands on the back of the PC and one on the heater. At first nothing at all happens, but if I look for even a VERY small portion where the paint on the heater has chipped, and touch it, I can feel the same continuous shock as when holding the TV cable ends. This ONLY happens when the TV cable is not plugged.
And then I began to look at a different phenomenon. I never really thought about it, but this had been happening for as long as I've lived here. If I run my fingers gently over the metal surface of the case, I can feel a vibration against my fingers. This is a feeling I can replicate with the refrigerator and washing machine aswell. It is also a feeling I can find when, for example, my mother has her laptop on her lap and is sitting on the couch, and the charger is plugged in. Her skin feels just like the refrigerator/pc/washing machine. And yes the laptop charger does have 3 prongs. It's not a shock sensation, but you can feel the presence of a current.
While I have not yet experimented with anything other than the PC, would this vibration I'm feeling in contact with these items also turn to shock if I were to touch something grounded? Many years back we had an older washing machine, which had paint chips in several places. It too was plugged into a wall socket that's supposedly grounded, but if I touched those metal portions I would feel the exact same kind of continuous shock I feel with the PC, WITHOUT having to touch any grounded source.
Since I have lived here all my life I have no referrence point, as I've not carried out these experiments in other people's homes. Is it normal to feel this vibration when running your fingers against powerful appliances, or is it a sign of bad grounding throughout the house?
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