# Electric power cord soaked in water (need answer fast) **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [June 13, 2018, 8:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/electric-power-cord-soaked-in-water-need-answer-fast/816048 "2018-06-13T20:13:51Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 11\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![PoppaSan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/poppasan/32/189_2.png) [@PoppaSan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PoppaSan)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2018, 9:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/electric-power-cord-soaked-in-water-need-answer-fast/816048/21 "2018-06-16T09:36:26Z")
> [@beowulff](#): > > I’m sure all those things are true. > But, did they trip a breaker? Usually yes. Also, the max current before the breaker trips isn’t the breaker rating but could be any amount over that up to the max short circuit capacity of the transformer feeding it. Household size could be into the tens of thousands of amps. Read the tiny print on a breaker for the interrupting rating sometime. ---
**Author:** ![Leo\_Bloom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leo_bloom/32/10377_2.png) [@Leo\_Bloom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leo_Bloom)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2018, 1:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/electric-power-cord-soaked-in-water-need-answer-fast/816048/22 "2018-06-16T13:25:11Z")
> [@K2500](#): > > I’m not really sure tbh. I suspect the water, combined with cleaning agents(or not) make for a path of high enough resistance that it won’t be enough to trip the breaker, but would be enough to generate enough heat to further corrode the steel, brass copper and plastics that these components are made from eventually causing a low resistance path via carbon tracking and arc over that the breaker trips. > > Also, that is all speculation on my part. While I know that resistance and conductivity tables do exist, I would imagine that there are way to many variables to calculate any particular time to failure due to moisture intrusion or corrosion. All I know for sure is the things cook till a breaker trips or a fuse blows, and quite a bit of moisture is present on many occasions. Thank you. \* off to look up “carbon tracking” \* ---
**Author:** ![beowulff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beowulff/32/542_2.png) [@beowulff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beowulff)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2018, 2:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/electric-power-cord-soaked-in-water-need-answer-fast/816048/23 "2018-06-16T14:31:14Z")
> [@PoppaSan](#): > > Usually yes. Also, the max current before the breaker trips isn’t the breaker rating but could be any amount over that up to the max short circuit capacity of the transformer feeding it. Household size could be into the tens of thousands of amps. Read the tiny print on a breaker for the interrupting rating sometime. I know all about breakers. ---
**Author:** ![Crafter\_Man](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crafter_man/32/458_2.png) [@Crafter\_Man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crafter_Man)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2018, 2:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/electric-power-cord-soaked-in-water-need-answer-fast/816048/24 "2018-06-16T14:38:16Z")
> [@PoppaSan](#): > > Currently I work in a food processing plant and it is a daily occurrence where a plug melts down after sanitation with nothing but really high pressure water contaminating the plug. A _daily_ occurrence? :dubious: If that were true, the place would be shut down and a major investigation would occur. (At least in the U.S.) Sorry, but I do not believe it is a daily occurrence at your workplace. > [@beowulff](#): > > You’re never going to be able to trip a breaker with a wet plug. > Tripping a breaker requires pulling more that 15A for several seconds. Even very dirty water will have too much resistance to pull that much current over the small surface area that the prongs of a plug create. So let’s do some math. We will assume the following: - A standard 120 VAC plug (NEMA 5-15P plug) has 120 V between the hot and neutral prongs. - Salty water – and only salty water – is between the hot and neutral prongs. - Resistance of salty water is low enough to cause 16 A to flow in the circuit (7.5 Ω). - Temperature = 30 °C. Based on the [dimensions and spacing of the hot and neutral prongs](https://www.quail.com/content/Quail/pdf/DimSpecs/NEMA_5-15P_site.pdf), the resistivity of the salt water would have to be 0.07 Ω·m or less. [For the saltwater to have a resistivity of 0.07 Ω·m at 30 °C, it would have to have a concentration of 100,000 ppm of salt](http://www1.uis.no/Fag/Learningspace_kurs/PetBachelor/webpage/tech%5CSchlumberger%20charts%5C01_gen_1-1_1-5.p3.pdf). Saltwater with a concentration of 100,000 ppm of salt is extremely unlikely, as [the concentration of highly saline water is 10,000 to 35,000 ppm](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saline_water). Furthermore, it is not possible for the volume between the two prongs to be 100% filled with saltwater. The prongs are plugged into a receptacle, so there is a lot of plastic insulation between them. OTOH, what if the load is drawing 13 A? In that case, the saltwater only needs to draw 3 A (40 Ω), which means the resistivity would be 0.38 Ω·m (20,000 ppm of salt). This is within the range of highly saline water. But let’s not forget it is still not possible for the volume between the two prongs to be 100% filled with saltwater; the prongs are plugged into a receptacle, so there is a lot of plastic insulation between them. And that’s for _saltwater_… regular ol’ “dirty water” will have a much higher resistivity. So I agree with **beowulff** … I don’t think it’s possible for the water _itself_ to trip a breaker. However, I suppose it could lead to a situation where parallel arcing occurs via arc tracking or carbonization of the insulation, and this can cause a breaker to trip. It could also cause corrosion which can create a poor connection and eventually cause a “glowing contact” to form. ---
**Author:** ![K2500](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/f6c823/32.png) [@K2500](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/K2500)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2018, 5:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/electric-power-cord-soaked-in-water-need-answer-fast/816048/25 "2018-06-16T17:28:34Z")
> [@Crafter\_Man](#): > > A _daily_ occurrence? :dubious: If that were true, the place would be shut down and a major investigation would occur. (At least in the U.S.) Sorry, but I do not believe it is a daily occurrence at your workplace. > So let’s do some math. We will assume the following: > > - A standard 120 VAC plug (NEMA 5-15P plug) has 120 V between the hot and neutral prongs. > - Salty water – and only salty water – is between the hot and neutral prongs. > - Resistance of salty water is low enough to cause 16 A to flow in the circuit (7.5 Ω). > - Temperature = 30 °C. > > Based on the [dimensions and spacing of the hot and neutral prongs](https://www.quail.com/content/Quail/pdf/DimSpecs/NEMA_5-15P_site.pdf), the resistivity of the salt water would have to be 0.07 Ω·m or less. [For the saltwater to have a resistivity of 0.07 Ω·m at 30 °C, it would have to have a concentration of 100,000 ppm of salt](http://www1.uis.no/Fag/Learningspace_kurs/PetBachelor/webpage/tech%5CSchlumberger%20charts%5C01_gen_1-1_1-5.p3.pdf). > > Saltwater with a concentration of 100,000 ppm of salt is extremely unlikely, as [the concentration of highly saline water is 10,000 to 35,000 ppm](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saline_water). Furthermore, it is not possible for the volume between the two prongs to be 100% filled with saltwater. The prongs are plugged into a receptacle, so there is a lot of plastic insulation between them. > > OTOH, what if the load is drawing 13 A? In that case, the saltwater only needs to draw 3 A (40 Ω), which means the resistivity would be 0.38 Ω·m (20,000 ppm of salt). This is within the range of highly saline water. But let’s not forget it is still not possible for the volume between the two prongs to be 100% filled with saltwater; the prongs are plugged into a receptacle, so there is a lot of plastic insulation between them. > > And that’s for _saltwater_… regular ol’ “dirty water” will have a much higher resistivity. > > So I agree with **beowulff** … I don’t think it’s possible for the water _itself_ to trip a breaker. However, I suppose it could lead to a situation where parallel arcing occurs via arc tracking or carbonization of the insulation, and this can cause a breaker to trip. It could also cause corrosion which can create a poor connection and eventually cause a “glowing contact” to form. Nitpick: this asuumes that the neutral is the only return path to the source. Which, while possible, is unlikely in any semi modern instalation. ---
**Author:** ![Crafter\_Man](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crafter_man/32/458_2.png) [@Crafter\_Man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crafter_Man)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2018, 5:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/electric-power-cord-soaked-in-water-need-answer-fast/816048/26 "2018-06-16T17:37:02Z")
> [@K2500](#): > > Nitpick: this asuumes that the neutral is the only return path to the source. Which, while possible, is unlikely in any semi modern instalation. Yes, there’s also the ground prong. And metal box (if metal). And metal outlet cover (if metal). And the un-insulated ground wire. And the “internals” of the receptacle. But I am confident that, if you perform a 1st-order model on each return path, you will get a similar result. ---
**Author:** ![K2500](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/f6c823/32.png) [@K2500](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/K2500)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2018, 5:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/electric-power-cord-soaked-in-water-need-answer-fast/816048/27 "2018-06-16T17:53:02Z")
> [@Crafter\_Man](#): > > snip… > > But I am confident that, if you perform a 1st-order model on each return path, you will get a similar result. I don’t know what that is, but I have to assume that it does not involve spraying a live cord with salt water and seeing what happens, which is a little disappointing. ---
**Author:** ![beowulff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beowulff/32/542_2.png) [@beowulff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beowulff)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2018, 6:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/electric-power-cord-soaked-in-water-need-answer-fast/816048/28 "2018-06-16T18:16:57Z")
BTW - The real concern is NOT that getting a power cord wet will trip the breaker - it’e the exact opposite! That is, if there is a mid-resistance connection formed by dirty water, the plug can get very hot and cause a fire long before the breaker will trip. Also, it’s a shock hazard. ---
**Author:** ![Crafter\_Man](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crafter_man/32/458_2.png) [@Crafter\_Man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crafter_Man)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2018, 7:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/electric-power-cord-soaked-in-water-need-answer-fast/816048/29 "2018-06-16T19:51:59Z")
> [@beowulff](#): > > …it’s a shock hazard. This is the most important thing. I don’t want to touch a plug or receptacle that’s wet. ---
**Author:** ![Velocity](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/velocity/32/18006_2.png) [@Velocity](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Velocity)\ **Post date:** [July 3, 2018, 5:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/electric-power-cord-soaked-in-water-need-answer-fast/816048/30 "2018-07-03T17:42:01Z")
So aside from the damage to a surge protector or extension cord itself - what about the appliances attached to that power strip? Would a water-soaked power strip shoot too much, or too little, electricity into a computer hooked up to it? ---
**Author:** ![beowulff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beowulff/32/542_2.png) [@beowulff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beowulff)\ **Post date:** [July 3, 2018, 6:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/electric-power-cord-soaked-in-water-need-answer-fast/816048/31 "2018-07-03T18:27:21Z")
> [@Velocity](#): > > So aside from the damage to a surge protector or extension cord itself - what about the appliances attached to that power strip? Would a water-soaked power strip shoot too much, or too little, electricity into a computer hooked up to it? No. I mean, come on now. It’s just a wire. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/electric-power-cord-soaked-in-water-need-answer-fast/816048.md?page=1)