Weird thing happened today. Low voltage current unning through CO2 tank.

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BoxofRain

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Went to go adjust the pressure on my tank and felt a very low voltage current. The current was felt on the tank and the regulator. No current on the sides of the keezer, the kegs or the taps. Went upstairs to do a internet search to see if this has happened to anyone else. Went back down a few minutes later to check back on it and the current was gone. The tank sits on the hump inside my keezer. Any ideas?
 
uhhh, is there anything electronic connected to the system? Like a temperature probe in a keg that's faulty and possibly back-feeding current through the CO2 system?
Drinking too much?
Is there any moisture inside the refrigerator/freezer that may be carrying a voltage? Maybe you should take a volt meter and check for any A/C or D/C voltage from the regulator to ground?
 
uhhh, is there anything electronic connected to the system? Like a temperature probe in a keg that's faulty and possibly back-feeding current through the CO2 system?
Drinking too much?

LOL, It was my first drink. The only thing I can think of was that I had a damp sweater hanging on the lid of the keezer to dry. Part of it could have been over my Johnson control....even more so when I opened the lid.

You sure it wasn't just a vibration from the fridge motor?

No...it was a low voltage electric current. Flippin Weird, I tell ya.
 
I guess first thing would be to remove the wet sweater. Second, if you've got one, I would still check for voltage through the system. Maybe borrow a volt meter from someone or buy a cheap one from a hardware/electronics store if you don't have one. Sometimes voltage can and can not be felt through your fingers. I have found that you may not feel current though your finger tips at times, but when you brush your elbow or other sensitive skin across it, you might get a tingle.
 
I guess first thing would be to remove the wet sweater. Second, if you've got one, I would still check for voltage through the system. Maybe borrow a volt meter from someone or buy a cheap one from a hardware/electronics store if you don't have one. Sometimes voltage can and can not be felt through your fingers. I have found that you may not feel current though your finger tips at times, but when you brush your elbow or other sensitive skin across it, you might get a tingle.

Good idea... I'll hit it with my multimeter.
 
What exactly is under the hump in there? Isn't it the compressor motor itself? That's why it's in a hump? It's probably not very shielded and the weight of the bottle prolly presses down on the thin metal, making contact with the motor and causing some voltage to go through it. Heck even without the metal pressing down on it, it wouldn't be too surprising to think that if there's a motor turning in there, you're right in the footprint of the electro magnetic field of the motor, so I wouldn't be surprised to feel something. In fact next time if you notice it, carefully lift your bottle straight up and see if you feel the current go away as you lift it out of there.
 
In fact next time if you notice it, carefully lift your bottle straight up and see if you feel the current go away as you lift it out of there.

That's a really good idea. Thanks, I'll do that. I did forget to mention that the keezer wasn't running when this happened.

So I hit it with my multimeter probe and touched the other probe to complete the circuit and sure enough the needle moves a tiny bit. Funny thing is the needle moves more when I touch the tap than when I touch the bottle.
 
That's a really good idea. Thanks, I'll do that. I did forget to mention that the keezer wasn't running when this happened.

So I hit it with my multimeter probe and touched the other probe to complete the circuit and sure enough the needle moves a tiny bit. Funny thing is the needle moves more when I touch the tap than when I touch the bottle.

I'm no electrician, but even a motor that is off has juice running through it, right?

Got a rubber mat of any type, like a floor mat for a car? You could stick it on the hump and put the bottle on top of that too, it should shield it better.
 
Lesson to be learned here - don't put a wet sweater on your Johnson! :D

Seriously, if you really had a voltage on your CO2 tank and it was in contact with the metal wall of the keezer, you should be able to feel it whether you touch the tank, the regulator, or the keezer wall. One other possibility is 60 cycle hum from the motor or wiring even if the motor is not running. Is your tank steel or aluminum? How about the keezer walls (test with a magnet) - maybe vibration from a 60 cycle magnetic field.
 
@ Deafsmith: This is an aluminum tank. I've had a steel one up until a few weeks ago.

It's the outlet that it's plugged into. I've ran an extension cord to two other outlets and the needle on the multimeter hasn't moved. I guess it's not grounded properly. Time to open it up and take a look.

Lesson to be learned here - don't put a wet sweater on your Johnson! :D.

That's what she said...
 
I would check the grounding in your refrigerator/house. You should not get electrocuted from your refrigerator. Is the ground plug broken off from your electrical cord?
 
I would check the grounding in your refrigerator/house. You should not get electrocuted from your refrigerator. Is the ground plug broken off from your electrical cord?

It's the outlet, plug is fine when plugged into other outlets.
 
It's the outlet, plug is fine when plugged into other outlets.

you mean, no voltage "leak" from the keezer when plugged into another outlet? If so, that's a relief. I know I would hate to have problems with my kegerator.
 
you mean, no voltage "leak" from the keezer when plugged into another outlet? If so, that's a relief. I know I would hate to have problems with my kegerator.

Definitely not the kegerator (thank god) Decided to hook it back up to the suspect outlet. Took my shoes off to make myself a better conductor then tested with the multi meter. The needle shot up even more PLUS I felt the slight tingle of a current. This is all happening in the basement so I wanted to make a simple ground for the outlet box to see if the needle would jump once grounded. I touched a wire to the box, then to a copper pipe that runs above it.

BOOM....SPARKS FLEW.

I shut the breaker off and will call for reinforcements tomorrow or monday. I have no problem doing simple wiring and I'm sure I could figure this out, but when I have my wife and daughter right upstairs, I'm not going to mess around. Thanks for your help guys.
 
Good choice on the reinforcements. It's a good thing you found the issue before it became a big hazard. It's a good thing your alright, but most importantly, it"s a good thing the kegerator is ok!
 
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