Feel Electric Current Touching 4runner Body Panels

T

troopa4life

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I have a weird issue and think it may be a bad ground but don't really know. I was getting out of my truck today and as I closed the door I felt a mild electric current. It felt like a buzzing under my fingertips... I then stroked the door and felt the buzzing again. Could this be the cause of a bad ground?? Has anyone else had this issue??
 
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I would be leaning towards a wire shorting out rather than a bad ground if you're getting current on body panels.
Might be hard to track down. Check your fuses for anything blown that you may not be aware of.
 
Are you sure it wasn't just static charge?

With a DC system, it's hard to imagine what/how you'd feel any charge on a body panel because (A) it's a low voltage system, (B) paint makes it hard for a current to pass through, (C) the truck itself acts as a ground... but I'm no EE.

Like rajuncajun said, I'd check for blown fuses as a start.
 
Thank you both for the suggestions I will check fuses tomorrow. I'm pretty sure it's not static because correct me if I'm wrong but once static discharges everything is neutralized. This is a constant electrical discharge that you can feel no matter what. I'm not too electrically inclined so I do not know. I'll keep you updated on what I find tomorrow. Thanks again.
 
I worked in the construction industry in college on low voltage building control systems that operated at 24 volts. You could only feel the voltage when completing connections while twisting two wires together. It felt like licking a 9 volt but less intense. Since our vehicles operate at 12 volts and only see high current at the starter and alternator It seems unlikely that you would be able to feel any voltage. You can't shock yourself with a 9 volt by just using dry fingers and 12 isn't much higher than 9.
 
Any chance this is associated with a particular location? Have you felt it at the mall as well as at home, for example? This could be utility leakage given it seems to happen with your feet on the ground. A problem with the car CANNOT complete a circuit through your body to ground. You would have to be touching the car in TWO different places.
 
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Ok sorry for the late reply, I have been trying to do alot of research to figure this out but cannot find anything. DURK... Yes... I do not feel the electric current at my house. I work near several huge industrial powerlines and notice the electric current only there when I get really close. That is the only place I felt it. I have not felt it at my house or anywhere else. Is this normal??
 
That makes more sense. They must be some high current indeed. I know AEP runs 765 k volt lines through the Midwest and I've heard of this happening before. There's a reservoir near my house that has high voltage lines over it and you can feel the electricity when sailing beneath them if your mast is tall enough.
 
Wonder what the electricity is doing to our bodies??? No wonder more people now have cancer :shrug:. Thank you all for the help, really thought I was going crazy.
 
OK that makes more sense. I've been sitting back kinda watching this thread because I know it isn't possible with a 12VDC system. If something were to ground to the body, a fuse would blow or the amperage would get so high the wire would melt.
 
fish0281 said:
Are you sure it wasn't just static charge?

With a DC system, it's hard to imagine what/how you'd feel any charge on a body panel because (A) it's a low voltage system, (B) paint makes it hard for a current to pass through, (C) the truck itself acts as a ground... but I'm no EE.

Like rajuncajun said, I'd check for blown fuses as a start.
Click to expand...

Totally agree! I shock myself everytime I close a door, on ANY vehicle, in any climate, any state, been that way for the last ten years (on vehicles built in the last ten years) but have NEVER shocked myself when returning to that vehicle.
 
troopa4life said:
Ok sorry for the late reply, I have been trying to do alot of research to figure this out but cannot find anything. DURK... Yes... I do not feel the electric current at my house. I work near several huge industrial powerlines and notice the electric current only there when I get really close. That is the only place I felt it. I have not felt it at my house or anywhere else. Is this normal??
Click to expand...

Oh, yeah. A high voltage T-line can do all kinds of funky stuff. Power companies usually have a department just to help people out with stuff in their homes or swimming pools. So, definitely NOT the fault of your car. Doesn't anyone else at work have a similar problem?

Basically, your car is acting as an antenna picking up electromagnetic energy from the T-line. It is insulated by the tires, so when you get out, you are a path between earth ground and the antenna. Try rubber soled shoes/running shoes, just for kicks.

I worked, eons ago, in a summer camp where a 500kV T-line went right over our canoe launching site. We had to pick up the aluminum canoes with gloves to carry them from the trailer to the water. Once in the water, they were grounded, so they were fine. The precious little suburban monsters we cared for never felt a thing as they were irradiated.
 
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On Friday, I couldn't park in the garage, I had to park near the culdesac near the garage at work. The culdesac is where the power line is located. Once I'm in the garage it's fine. It was just Friday when I felt it, and couldn't think of why I felt the electric current until you mentioned it. :thanks:
 
I've noticed this same phenomenon while parked near transmission lines as well. There is a mall nearby which was built under these lines. During construction, the structural welders were having tons of troubles because of them. Definitely a little unnerving!
 
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