Foil insulation can be fatal

BBC reports:

"The Australian government has ordered a huge safety audit of every home that was fitted with foil insulation as part of a nationwide energy-saving plan. The insulation programme was suspended after it was linked to a number of electrocution deaths."

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Reply to
HeyBub
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Oh no, now we will have to bond insulation ;-)

Reply to
gfretwell

BZZZZZZZT KABOOOM!!!!

Reply to
Moldy Cheese

quote from the article...

"But the metallic foil used in older houses has already killed four electricians who were installing it....."

since when do electricicans install insulation?

Mark

Reply to
Mark

Mark wrote in news: snipped-for-privacy@l26g2000yqd.googlegroups.com:

Improperly grounded insulation I guess!

Reply to
Red Green

Or poorly insulated foil insulation ;-)

the uk has a problem with plastic pipe being intermixed with legacy cast iron and copper pipe. their 220 service has no ground reference and "earth"(equipment ground) depends on a metallic connection thru the public water pipes.

So one neighbor has an appliance with a breakdown to one side of the 220 line, and another neighbor has a bad appliance with a breakdown to the other side of the 220. A plumber or utility worker opens a water line and suddenly there is 220 between the two sections of metallic water line.

Reply to
larry

Oh, that sure clears up a lot. Of something, I suppose. Doesn't affect the price of tea in China though.

Reply to
Twayne

Well, I only have peripheral knowledge of such things in OZ, but:

  1. Electricians install insulation? I can see how an electrician might come in contact with the foil, but while "installing" it?
  2. Touching the Mains causes the foil to become live? Wouldn't that be more of a problem with exposed electrical components than with the foil?
  3. "Far North Queensland" happens to be an area I've been around. Well not far north really; the area of Townsville and Garbutt Air Base to be specific. The far north of Queensland could well be pretty old stuff; like maybe they have knob & tube wiring? I don't know of any other way to easily contact Mains power.

I don't believe the article and tend to doubt its authenticity. Either that or the BBC in that case has/had some very ignorant and inexperienced writers. The whole thing just doesn't make sense to me. Anyway, I don't believe everythign I read and that's one I think is fishy.

HTH,

Twayne

Reply to
Twayne

It makes sense when you consider a companion article asserted that the reason for the foil in the first place was to intercept harmful rays and mind-reading microwaves. As part of the installation, the foil was to be connected to a Tesla coil...

Just kidding...

Reply to
HeyBub
[snip]

This PROBABLY didn't happen...

At China's major supplier to tea to restaurants, a man named Chen had a problem. All Chinese-grown tea had become diseased and they were low on uncontaminated tea. So Chen traveled to the UK to buy some tea there. He stopped along one street to look at an unusual sight. A man was lying unconscious with his hands in a freshly-dug hole, holding onto the ends of a disconnected pipe. Chen calls for an ambulance. Police also show up to deal with a domestic dispute. Two women are arguing loudly. Each accuses the other of being a witch, and putting a spell on her electric dryer. Chen returns home, having forgotten the tea.

Reply to
Harry L

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