I test the lines, and sure enough 240v. Then I test one vs ground and it's 120v. And the other is 120v. They're both hot! They're opposite phase! They're only 240v when connected together! I have learned about single phase residential wiring. Neat.
Replies
Back to my grandpa. He was born in London, in 1914. Died in 2001. In the 1930s, he worked as a wireman, running electric lines to houses that still weren't hooked up to the grid. Because electricity was still kinda new. Cue me as a child wondering how their fridges worked before then.
aug 21, 2025, 12:15 am • 0 0 • view
So my grandpa, in his 20s, in London, is working with guys running 240v lines into houses built in the 1700s.
aug 21, 2025, 12:23 am • 0 0 • view
And I'm fretting over 240v, because I'm vaguely aware that with 120v you're probably not going to fuck yourself up (I've shocked myself a few times...) but with 240v enters the realm of you *can* fuck yourself up.
aug 21, 2025, 12:25 am • 0 0 • view
Meanwhile, 90 years ago in merry old England... My grandfather's coworkers were testing if lines were live by straight up touching them. One guy's thumb had a callous so thick, he had to lick his thumb first to get enough feeling of the zap.
aug 21, 2025, 12:27 am • 0 0 • view
And here I was, worried about two opposite phase 120v lines /fin
aug 21, 2025, 12:28 am • 1 0 • view