Brand new AC will not come on

[JRTJH]

Originally Posted by n1282x

In all fairness, people that are not comfortable with trouble shooting electrical circuits and then they come on this forum to ask for help, you really need data in your hands. That data comes from a voltmeter. You can buy a nice fluke voltmeter on Amazon for $100. Even if you don't know how to use it buy it then get online and read the difference between AC and dc. Before you ask questions on this forum you should have that voltmeter and a piece of paper and you should have already wrote down the readings that you have received. This forum can be a lot more useful if it has the data it needs to make informed decisions.

In all fairness, some electrical circuit troubleshooting can be done with an old table lamp with a known good bulb. Just plug it in and if the bulb lights, the circuit is working... No need for a volt meter of any kind, much less a $100 version for someone who doesn't know the difference between AC and DC.... And spending that kind of money may cause some people to feel the need to use that voltmeter (to justify the purchase), even if they have to grab a bare wire and hold it against the red (or was it the black) wire with a point on a plastic stick.....

Sometimes, it's safer for all involved to NOT buy a voltmeter !!!!! YMMV

[sourdough]

Y'all remember, ever tried, using the old thumb and index finger for a voltmeter? You can tell low voltage from hi and AC from DC. Pretty "handy".

OP, this is not a suggestion and was said in jest.

[wiredgeorge]

Originally Posted by NH_Bulldog

George, we are fortunate enough that our FD C2 works for the power company and is equipped and qualified to do service disconnections at fire scenes. For what it’s worth, most street level power distribution systems (poles along the road) are 13k to 14k (that is 13,000 volts AC to 14,000 volts AC). More than enough to fry your hotdog!

I think the point of the demo was to show us dumb country firefighters that you should push live transmission lines off the road with a branch/stick, etc. Juice will go through and fry you even though the tree branch appears to be a non conductor. In the country, at 11PM till 2AM, many traffic incidents involve inebriated drivers and poles with downed wires. A utility crew, either Medina Electric, Bandera Electric or CPS from San Antonio can take many hours to show up this type scene.

[CedarCreekWoody]

"I think the point of the demo was to show us dumb country firefighters that you should push live transmission lines off the road with a branch/stick, etc"

George I think the message was to NOT use a branch or stick on a live line. I saw that same demo at the Texas A&M fire school and it made a believer out of me!

[wiredgeorge]

Originally Posted by CedarCreekWoody

"I think the point of the demo was to show us dumb country firefighters that you should push live transmission lines off the road with a branch/stick, etc"

George I think the message was to NOT use a branch or stick on a live line. I saw that same demo at the Texas A&M fire school and it made a believer out of me!

That's what I meant... didn't think anyone read my dumb comments.

[chuckster57]

Originally Posted by wiredgeorge

That's what I meant... didn't think anyone read my dumb comments.

I almost chocked on my donut when I read it

[gkainz]

Originally Posted by chuckster57

I almost chocked on my donut when I read it

I chocked on a donut once. The tire would not come back up out of the donut hole.

[CedarCreekWoody]

Originally Posted by wiredgeorge

That's what I meant... didn't think anyone read my dumb comments.

Someone has to keep you straight!

[flybouy]

George, doesn't your FD put fiberglass poles on the truck's for dealing with wires?

[wiredgeorge]

Originally Posted by flybouy

George, doesn't your FD put fiberglass poles on the truck's for dealing with wires?

Not that I recall but it has been 9 years since I stopped active firefighting. As I approached geezerhood, I became engineer for our pumper but mostly fought wildfires. I am not sure I would attack a live high voltage line with a fiberglass pole anyway. Saw voltage pass through a long wooden pole and blow up a hot dog stuck on the end. That left an impression on me.

[CedarCreekWoody]

Originally Posted by flybouy

George, doesn't your FD put fiberglass poles on the truck's for dealing with wires?

We have these pike poles on our engines, used one last week at a residential fire.

[flybouy]

Originally Posted by wiredgeorge

Not that I recall but it has been 9 years since I stopped active firefighting. As I approached geezerhood, I became engineer for our pumper but mostly fought wildfires. I am not sure I would attack a live high voltage line with a fiberglass pole anyway. Saw voltage pass through a long wooden pole and blow up a hot dog stuck on the end. That left an impression on me.

Wood will naturally wick water and hold moisture. Fiberglass will not as long as its dry. If you note a utility crew working on the ground you'll see the crew using shovels, picks, and other tools all with fiberglass handles. Most Fire Departments I know will wait for the utility company unless it's someone in imminent danger (not breathing, bleeding out, etc.) but I don't live where it would be hours to get them there either.

[CedarCreekWoody]

Marshall we are getting off the subject but I will respond. Last weekend we fought a residential fire (RV actually) and had a downed power line sparking at our feet. We used a pike pole to move it as the response time from the power company was two hours. We were comfortable doing this as we could see it was a 240 volt line coming out of the transformer. Had it been the 1,000+ volt feeder line it would have been a different issue. Those are the ones that will come after you. Like George I live in a rural area.

[wiredgeorge]

I was a Texas state certified fire fighter for about 12 years and in that time only fought about a half dozen structure fires. We also had mutual aid agreements with neighboring VFDs and aided them. We typically shuttled water as the area of Texas we live doesn't have fire hydrants. Water sources were tanks or the lake for the most part. Several of the new sub divisions had fire hydrants and all were painted black. Using these in a fire situation would have caused water line cavitation. By the time a rural VFD such as ours got to a structure fire scene about all that could be done is to save the cedar trees in the area. Of the structure fires, one was a stone house that had the roof fall in and a couple others were drug manufacturing places that went up violently. We had small fires in residences we responded to when things like fires in dryer vents happened or dinner caught on fire and were restricted to the kitchen. I mainly responded to wildfire. Many dozens.