Grounding wrist strap at home

[Bill*]

Can I buy a three prong plug, REMOVE the two power prongs leaving only the ground prong, plug it into the wall, run 1 wire from that and clip my ground strap lead to it for an effective ground?

I wouldn't wear that in a lightning storm

[DVSmith]

A wrist strap doesn't prevent electrocution. It can mitigate some of the risk of electrocution while still providing a ground path, but an improperly-functioning (or inappropriately utilized) strap will drastically increase the chances of electrocution.

Make sure the wrist strap has at least a 1 megaohm current-limiting resistor in-line with it (should be even higher resistance for working with higher voltages). Some of them have it built in to the cord, but you really should function check safety gear. It's pretty easy to measure end-to-end resistance with a multimeter.

Without the resistor, you become the best path to ground, and it doesn't take much current to stop your ticker.

I have never seen a wrist strap WITHOUT a current limiting resistor, have you? I would be surprised anyone would sell such a thing.

ETA: I would feel far safer recommending he buy a commercially available wrist strap than wrapping a wire around a receptacle ground screw or plugging a three prong plug with the hot and return blades cut off.

[Zartan]

I bought a strap from Radio Shack for like 5 bucks the other day. I'll check for the proper resistance. I reflowed my PS3 with no strap or anything and it works fine, buut I don't want to risk a new motherboard. Thanks!

[the86d]

I have never used grounding straps, nor had grounding pads under equipment. I always just slap metal (case that is plugged in, or even a non-grounded case to equalize/minimize static) before picking stuff up, even on carpet. If I am going to use something on another computer I will slap a case, grab the item, walk it over, place it on a surface, then slap the case it is to be placed into, then proceed by picking up the item again and getting to work on the 2nd slapped case. I may be slap-happy, but I have never fried anything AFAIK in the... (shoot let me count...) 23 years I have been working on computers. (WOW, I AM getting old.) There was a tech at the local computer shop we deal with via my employer (and I buy stuff from them too), and he "does not believe in static".

[stix213]

I personally think grounding straps are dangerous.

1) Attach grounding strap to left wrist
2) Accidentally touch 110v hot with right hand
3) Either 110v goes through your heart or a cheap chinese fuse pops - not going to bet my life on chinese made fuses, no thanks

If you think you are more careful than that, here is a real life scenario I went through: House wall wiring had the ground wires disconnected from the outlet, and the hot and neutral were reversed. The computer power supply tied the neutral and ground together, and the ground to the chassis. So in effect, the wall 110v hot was now tied to the computer chassis. I only discovered this issue when setting up a TV card, and when plugging in the coax from the cable company the entire cable's insulation began to bubble. Not cool

[IntoForever]

YIKES!

Well the house is a year old...

I've inspected new houses that were wired, plumbed or just built wrong so age has nothing to do with it. I have built many computers over the years and never used a grounding strap, just touching the case should do it. If you're worried about working with gun powder, that would be a different story but I still wouldn't mess with the house electrical.

[orangeglo]

I think we have all learned a lot here.

DON'T PLUG YOURSELF INTO A WALL.