Years ago, the “touch test� of verifying whether a circuit such as 120V was energized was in the Electrician’s Handbook and was used by many.

A person would touch the wires/bus with two fingers and get a buzz in their hand/arm indicating it was energized – or no buzz verifying it was de-energized.

I still hear people talk about “the person they knew that used to do this� By today’s standards, not exactly a smart thing to do (and violates all electrical safety practices) We’ve come a long way.

So here is this week’s question.
Do you know of anyone that touched conductors to verify they were energized?

Yes
No
Um, I have done this.

Really? Is there anyone who doesn't know about this? Is this question just looking for how prevalent this practice is or was at one time?

First off, there's licking batteries. It's not just a wive's tale. I've done it. The American Electrician's Handbook used to have a section describing the voltage based on the taste and I can confirm it really works at least on 9 V batteries.

Second, my grandfather did this with the 90 V ringers (telephone technician) and he would use his knuckles or the side of his hand with 120 VAC house wiring. He tried to convince me to do it, too, explaining how you have very little nerves in the side or back of your hand so until you get "used to it" best to do it that way. Needless to say I never "got used to it". I actually use this as part of my schtick for doing training.

Ever heard of a technique called "buzzing" that linemen use? You hold a ferromagnetic tool in your hand and hole it close to the conductor. If the conductor is energized, it buzzes in your hand. Granted the hand is rubber gloved and it only works at above 10 kV or so. Linemen frequently complain that they don't trust noncontact voltage detectors which can fail and need to be tested/checked compared to the highly reliable technique of buzzing a line.

This is one of the reasons that I get serious questions every so often about the idea that 120 V shock can kill you. It gets a little more wild when you use high resistance grounding in medium voltage and at least the math says that it won't kill someone (<100 mA phase to ground with a human in the conductive path). This one has been "tested" more than once...I know of at least 2 people that successfully walked away...some injuries but not what you'd expect. And a couple that survived but didn't exactly walk away.

I agree that most know of this practice. The question was asking if anyone knew of a specific person that actually did this - or maybe the individual themselves did it? I have only run into a handful of people that admitted to doing this or knew someone that did - but most do know about it. The focus suppose to be on circuits like 120 V not batteries but that wasn't clear in the original post.

The whole text of the practices is:

1953 American Electricians’ Handbook

AMERICAN ELECTRICIANS' HANDBOOK 7th Edition 1953 McGraw-Hill MEASURING, TESTING, AND INSTRUMENTS


Electricians often test circuits for the presence of voltage by touching the conductors with the fingers. This method is safe where the voltage does not exceed 250 and is often very convenient for locating a blown-out fuse or for ascertaining whether or not a circuit is alive. Some men can endure the electric shock that results without discomfort whereas others cannot. Therefore, the method is not feasible in some cases. Which are the outside wires and which is the neutral wire of a 115/230-volt, three-wire system can be determined in this way by noting the intensity of the shock that results by touching different pairs of wires with fingers. Use the method with caution and be certain that the voltage of the circuit does not exceed 250 before touching the conductors.

The presence of low voltages can be determined by tasting. The method is feasible only where the pressure is but a few volts and hence is used only in bell and signal work. Where the voltage is very low, the bared ends of the conductors constituting the two sides of the circuit are held a short distance apart on the tongue. If voltage is present a peculiar mildly burning sensation result, which will never be forgotten after one has experienced it. The taste is due to the electrolytic decomposition of the liquids on the tongue which produces a salt having a taste. With voltages of 4 or 5 volts, due to as many cells of a battery, it is best to test for the presence of voltage by holding one of the bared conductors in the hand and touching the other to the tongue. Where a terminal of the battery is grounded, often a taste can be detected by standing on moist ground and touching a conductor from the other battery terminal to the tongue. Care should be exercised to prevent the two conductor ends from touching each other at the tongue, for if they do a spark can result that may burn.

In my teenage years my index and middle fingers were my voltmeter. I could tell the difference between 120 and 240VAC by the feel and intensity of the shock and could sometimes even differentiate between 208 and 240VAC. I had some pretty substantial calluses back then too.

I made a hotdog cooker out of two 10-penny nails, a piece of board, four bottle caps, and an old electric cord from a broken light. 120VAC cooks a hotdog much quicker than boiling. Countless hotdogs were cooked on this contraption without anyone being electrocuted. But then we grew up without seat belts, air bags, microwave ovens, or push-button telephones.

My Grandfather was an electrician and after de-energizing and checking with a known good meter he brushed every wire with the back of his hand. After all the appropriate checks have been done I still do this today.

Careful using the finger voltmeter. I worked on a job with another journeyman who checked a 120/240 volt lighting panel with his fingers from bus to ground and said it was not energized. I got out my high tech Wiggy and tested the panel, it was hot. His fingers were so calloused from a lifetime of doing construction that he didn't sense any current flow. If I have it right I think it takes about 1.1mA for an average man to sense the presence of current. As a follow up to what jellison said about his grandfathers practice of brushing the wires with the back of his hand after taking all appropriate voltage checks, I too made a habit of that when I was working with the tools.

Yes I have seen electricians in the past do this , told me as a kid you just have to to be QUICK !!! .
NO I have not, my first experience with electrocution was at 12 or 13 watching my sister get held to a stove by 120v.
That was it for me with regard to touching voltage of any kind. Good thing for sis I knew what a breaker was, and where to find it at the age of 12 (thanks to Dad) who wasnt in the house at the time and my kid time in construction during summers as a helper.