Can we talk about the time I zapped myself fixing a game console?

I was trying to replace a capacitor on an old PlayStation and forgot to discharge the power supply first. When I touched the board, I got a shock that made my hair stand up! My buddy in the shop laughed so hard he dropped his screwdriver. Now I always use a discharge tool, even for small jobs. That tingly feeling was not fun at all.

4 comments

4 Comments

zarap771mo ago

What gets me is how a little shock can make you jerk back and wreck the board. Seen more consoles killed by that jump than the actual short.

dylan_ward1mo ago

Exactly, that sudden jump is the worst part. I was soldering once, got a tiny zap from my iron, and jerked my hand right into a bottle of flux that tipped over. It went everywhere and ruined a whole project board. @zarap77 is totally right, the reaction does way more damage. You go from a minor thing to a huge mess in half a second.

evan_martin181mo ago

Focus on training your hands to stay put when surprised. I learned from old electricians to always keep my non-dominant hand behind my back while soldering. It sounds silly, but it stops the chain reaction of knocking things over. You still feel the zap, but your body doesn't wreck the setup.

garcia.mila11d ago

Wait, that zap from an iron is usually just static, not an actual shock. But yeah, the flinch is the real problem. Evan_martin18 has the right idea with that hand-behind-the-back trick.