Stupid things you've done...
Discussion
Couple of weeks ago I decided to give my runabout a quick vacuum. Deciding that using the outside socket with extension lead and using the car specific vac we have was too much trouble, Mrs D wasnt there so I got the house Dyson out. Our front door is a 3" thick composite thing with steel inserts and hefty stainless frame. I plugged the vacuum into the hallway leaving the door ajar. Unbeknown to me the door had blown shut onto the cable and being a very heavy door cut through the insulation electrifying the door frame and handle.
Touching the door handle I was thrown across the drive smashing the back of my head into the car. A few seconds later she arrives home to find me crawling around the floor in shock. 'Wtf are you doing now?' was all I got..and ' What's my Dyson doing out here?'..
.
Touching the door handle I was thrown across the drive smashing the back of my head into the car. A few seconds later she arrives home to find me crawling around the floor in shock. 'Wtf are you doing now?' was all I got..and ' What's my Dyson doing out here?'..
.
Jeez that's quite an impressive mishap! Final Destination 6! haha
Only thing I ever did was cut a cable tie holding my archliner in place from the previous owner, I wanted to secure it better.
As I was holding the Stanley knife, I literally thought to myself, 'I better not slip' as it slipped straight through the cable tie and directly into my hand just at the base of my thumb. Yes yes, I should have used a set of snips or scissors.
One trip to A&E involving them opening the wound to look in it, then referring me to have it investigated for tendon damage. Two weeks later, cut back open under local anaesthetic to result in no tendon damage anyway. FML
Only thing I ever did was cut a cable tie holding my archliner in place from the previous owner, I wanted to secure it better.
As I was holding the Stanley knife, I literally thought to myself, 'I better not slip' as it slipped straight through the cable tie and directly into my hand just at the base of my thumb. Yes yes, I should have used a set of snips or scissors.
One trip to A&E involving them opening the wound to look in it, then referring me to have it investigated for tendon damage. Two weeks later, cut back open under local anaesthetic to result in no tendon damage anyway. FML
Draxindustries1 said:
Couple of weeks ago I decided to give my runabout a quick vacuum. Deciding that using the outside socket with extension lead and using the car specific vac we have was too much trouble, Mrs D wasnt there so I got the house Dyson out. Our front door is a 3" thick composite thing with steel inserts and hefty stainless frame. I plugged the vacuum into the hallway leaving the door ajar. Unbeknown to me the door had blown shut onto the cable and being a very heavy door cut through the insulation electrifying the door frame and handle.
Touching the door handle I was thrown across the drive smashing the back of my head into the car. A few seconds later she arrives home to find me crawling around the floor in shock. 'Wtf are you doing now?' was all I got..and ' What's my Dyson doing out here?'..
.
God, that is a story, just out of interest how would you earth the door if you had realised? Touching the door handle I was thrown across the drive smashing the back of my head into the car. A few seconds later she arrives home to find me crawling around the floor in shock. 'Wtf are you doing now?' was all I got..and ' What's my Dyson doing out here?'..
.
Draxindustries1 said:
Couple of weeks ago I decided to give my runabout a quick vacuum. Deciding that using the outside socket with extension lead and using the car specific vac we have was too much trouble, Mrs D wasnt there so I got the house Dyson out. Our front door is a 3" thick composite thing with steel inserts and hefty stainless frame. I plugged the vacuum into the hallway leaving the door ajar. Unbeknown to me the door had blown shut onto the cable and being a very heavy door cut through the insulation electrifying the door frame and handle.
Touching the door handle I was thrown across the drive smashing the back of my head into the car. A few seconds later she arrives home to find me crawling around the floor in shock. 'Wtf are you doing now?' was all I got..and ' What's my Dyson doing out here?'..
.
Holy $hit - you were lucky it wasn't raining. Touching the door handle I was thrown across the drive smashing the back of my head into the car. A few seconds later she arrives home to find me crawling around the floor in shock. 'Wtf are you doing now?' was all I got..and ' What's my Dyson doing out here?'..
.
As a teenager, whilst my parents were on holiday and had left me at home alone, I decided it would be a good thing to wash my mum's car for her so it was all shiny when they returned. I did a cracking job on the paint, autoglymmed, the lot.
Then as I lifted the bonnet to give the shut lines a quick wipe with a damp cloth, I thought "that engine looks a bit grimy... I know, I'll wash it."
I didn't think to cover anything up or use any products. This was the 90s, long before YouTube, when we called detailing "giving your car a really thorough clean", so you basically had to make it up as you went. So I just blasted it with the hose until it looked... Well, it looked exactly the same, just wet, and now it wouldn't start.
Fortunately, wherever the water had got in, it dried before my parents returned, the car worked perfectly and they were none the wiser!
Then as I lifted the bonnet to give the shut lines a quick wipe with a damp cloth, I thought "that engine looks a bit grimy... I know, I'll wash it."
I didn't think to cover anything up or use any products. This was the 90s, long before YouTube, when we called detailing "giving your car a really thorough clean", so you basically had to make it up as you went. So I just blasted it with the hose until it looked... Well, it looked exactly the same, just wet, and now it wouldn't start.
Fortunately, wherever the water had got in, it dried before my parents returned, the car worked perfectly and they were none the wiser!
fourstardan said:
Draxindustries1 said:
Couple of weeks ago I decided to give my runabout a quick vacuum. Deciding that using the outside socket with extension lead and using the car specific vac we have was too much trouble, Mrs D wasnt there so I got the house Dyson out. Our front door is a 3" thick composite thing with steel inserts and hefty stainless frame. I plugged the vacuum into the hallway leaving the door ajar. Unbeknown to me the door had blown shut onto the cable and being a very heavy door cut through the insulation electrifying the door frame and handle.
Touching the door handle I was thrown across the drive smashing the back of my head into the car. A few seconds later she arrives home to find me crawling around the floor in shock. 'Wtf are you doing now?' was all I got..and ' What's my Dyson doing out here?'..
.
God, that is a story, just out of interest how would you earth the door if you had realised? Touching the door handle I was thrown across the drive smashing the back of my head into the car. A few seconds later she arrives home to find me crawling around the floor in shock. 'Wtf are you doing now?' was all I got..and ' What's my Dyson doing out here?'..
.
I got about 5 electric shocks today in Tesco pushing the trolley around a special display area where they'd obviously not figured out the static build up from rolling a trolley on a vinyl floor. It took that many pings for me to realise what was going on before deciding to keep myself connected to the trolley permanently to avoid another one.
fourstardan said:
Draxindustries1 said:
Couple of weeks ago I decided to give my runabout a quick vacuum. Deciding that using the outside socket with extension lead and using the car specific vac we have was too much trouble, Mrs D wasnt there so I got the house Dyson out. Our front door is a 3" thick composite thing with steel inserts and hefty stainless frame. I plugged the vacuum into the hallway leaving the door ajar. Unbeknown to me the door had blown shut onto the cable and being a very heavy door cut through the insulation electrifying the door frame and handle.
Touching the door handle I was thrown across the drive smashing the back of my head into the car. A few seconds later she arrives home to find me crawling around the floor in shock. 'Wtf are you doing now?' was all I got..and ' What's my Dyson doing out here?'..
.
God, that is a story, just out of interest how would you earth the door if you had realised? Touching the door handle I was thrown across the drive smashing the back of my head into the car. A few seconds later she arrives home to find me crawling around the floor in shock. 'Wtf are you doing now?' was all I got..and ' What's my Dyson doing out here?'..
.
MrsD went through the garden door into the house and switched off the mains at the circuit board. I had ino idea the cable was damaged though until I touched the handle. After checking the cable it was 2core with no earth..
Draxindustries1 said:
fourstardan said:
Draxindustries1 said:
Couple of weeks ago I decided to give my runabout a quick vacuum. Deciding that using the outside socket with extension lead and using the car specific vac we have was too much trouble, Mrs D wasnt there so I got the house Dyson out. Our front door is a 3" thick composite thing with steel inserts and hefty stainless frame. I plugged the vacuum into the hallway leaving the door ajar. Unbeknown to me the door had blown shut onto the cable and being a very heavy door cut through the insulation electrifying the door frame and handle.
Touching the door handle I was thrown across the drive smashing the back of my head into the car. A few seconds later she arrives home to find me crawling around the floor in shock. 'Wtf are you doing now?' was all I got..and ' What's my Dyson doing out here?'..
.
God, that is a story, just out of interest how would you earth the door if you had realised? Touching the door handle I was thrown across the drive smashing the back of my head into the car. A few seconds later she arrives home to find me crawling around the floor in shock. 'Wtf are you doing now?' was all I got..and ' What's my Dyson doing out here?'..
.
MrsD went through the garden door into the house and switched off the mains at the circuit board. I had ino idea the cable was damaged though until I touched the handle. After checking the cable it was 2core with no earth..
The one that comes to mind (there are many) was replacing the rear shock in my motorbike.
I needed to lift the back of the bike up to take the pressure off the shock, so I decided to use a ratchet strap from the grab rail to the beam above in the garage.
Then (moment of genius) I thought two straps are better than 1, so I made a V shape with the bike at the bottom.
Job went fine, then I had to lower the bike down.
But you can’t gradually release ratchet straps, they just pop and release completely. So I carefully popped both straps at the same time, meaning to quickly grab the bike to stop it falling over once it landed.
What actually happened was that one strap didn’t release, turning the bike into a 230kg pendulum that was swinging towards my other bike. I did the sensible thing and jumped in front of it taking the impact with my chest and arms.
Once I’d recovered enough to get up I carefully lowered the bike down, went into the house and didn’t mention it to my wife.
I needed to lift the back of the bike up to take the pressure off the shock, so I decided to use a ratchet strap from the grab rail to the beam above in the garage.
Then (moment of genius) I thought two straps are better than 1, so I made a V shape with the bike at the bottom.
Job went fine, then I had to lower the bike down.
But you can’t gradually release ratchet straps, they just pop and release completely. So I carefully popped both straps at the same time, meaning to quickly grab the bike to stop it falling over once it landed.
What actually happened was that one strap didn’t release, turning the bike into a 230kg pendulum that was swinging towards my other bike. I did the sensible thing and jumped in front of it taking the impact with my chest and arms.
Once I’d recovered enough to get up I carefully lowered the bike down, went into the house and didn’t mention it to my wife.
ingenieur said:
Draxindustries1 said:
fourstardan said:
Draxindustries1 said:
Couple of weeks ago I decided to give my runabout a quick vacuum. Deciding that using the outside socket with extension lead and using the car specific vac we have was too much trouble, Mrs D wasnt there so I got the house Dyson out. Our front door is a 3" thick composite thing with steel inserts and hefty stainless frame. I plugged the vacuum into the hallway leaving the door ajar. Unbeknown to me the door had blown shut onto the cable and being a very heavy door cut through the insulation electrifying the door frame and handle.
Touching the door handle I was thrown across the drive smashing the back of my head into the car. A few seconds later she arrives home to find me crawling around the floor in shock. 'Wtf are you doing now?' was all I got..and ' What's my Dyson doing out here?'..
.
God, that is a story, just out of interest how would you earth the door if you had realised? Touching the door handle I was thrown across the drive smashing the back of my head into the car. A few seconds later she arrives home to find me crawling around the floor in shock. 'Wtf are you doing now?' was all I got..and ' What's my Dyson doing out here?'..
.
MrsD went through the garden door into the house and switched off the mains at the circuit board. I had ino idea the cable was damaged though until I touched the handle. After checking the cable it was 2core with no earth..
This could be one of those situations where an RCD/RCBO doesn't trip; if the metal parts of the door doesn't have any way of leaking to ground then it won't trip. Must have been positioned just right not to trip a circuit breaker.
Think I’ve mentioned this on here before and turns out I’m not the only one to do it, but..
Deciding to reset the odometer in my first car while driving around a corner was not a good idea. Luckily it was at a slow speed, but still gave me a fright when the car wouldn’t straighten up and my arm was stuck in the steering wheel
Deciding to reset the odometer in my first car while driving around a corner was not a good idea. Luckily it was at a slow speed, but still gave me a fright when the car wouldn’t straighten up and my arm was stuck in the steering wheel
A less entertaining electrical mishap than the OP possibly and not directly my fault/stupidity, but nevertheless…
Many years ago, I lived in a small, semi-detached Cotswold stone cottage in a Wiltshire town. The neighbour and I decided our joint lean-to porches were rather grim looking (render and artificial slate), so decided to replace them with more traditional stone ones. Up bright and early one Saturday morning, we attacked the demolition with vigour and enthusiasm, and by late morning the porches were reduced to rubble. After a light liquid lunch, the neighbour decided that, as the cable running down the front of his cottage no longer served his outside light (removed years previously), he should remove it. Clambering up the stepladder with an axe (
), with me casually looking on without realising the impending outcome, he hacked through the cable with one wild swipe. Cue a huge flash, sparks and a loud bang, neighbour briefly airborne then landing on the rubble. I honestly thought he’d died, but no - he got up, swore a bit and picked up the axe. It had a half-moon chunk out of the blade. He’d cut through the mains supply to both cottages 
The electricity board guys turned up pretty quickly and repaired the damage. Afterward, as we all sat there having a brew and chat, one of the electricians asked Arthur where he worked. “I’m an electrical engineer at Westinghouse Brake & Signal Company…”
The look on the two electricians’ faces was interesting
Many years ago, I lived in a small, semi-detached Cotswold stone cottage in a Wiltshire town. The neighbour and I decided our joint lean-to porches were rather grim looking (render and artificial slate), so decided to replace them with more traditional stone ones. Up bright and early one Saturday morning, we attacked the demolition with vigour and enthusiasm, and by late morning the porches were reduced to rubble. After a light liquid lunch, the neighbour decided that, as the cable running down the front of his cottage no longer served his outside light (removed years previously), he should remove it. Clambering up the stepladder with an axe (
), with me casually looking on without realising the impending outcome, he hacked through the cable with one wild swipe. Cue a huge flash, sparks and a loud bang, neighbour briefly airborne then landing on the rubble. I honestly thought he’d died, but no - he got up, swore a bit and picked up the axe. It had a half-moon chunk out of the blade. He’d cut through the mains supply to both cottages The electricity board guys turned up pretty quickly and repaired the damage. Afterward, as we all sat there having a brew and chat, one of the electricians asked Arthur where he worked. “I’m an electrical engineer at Westinghouse Brake & Signal Company…” The look on the two electricians’ faces was interesting
Edited by Escort3500 on Tuesday 18th October 08:25
Leins said:
Think I’ve mentioned this on here before and turns out I’m not the only one to do it, but..
Deciding to reset the odometer in my first car while driving around a corner was not a good idea. Luckily it was at a slow speed, but still gave me a fright when the car wouldn’t straighten up and my arm was stuck in the steering wheel
I did that! Nearly anyway. I was leaving a multistorey car park, the kind where you had to put the ticket into a slot to raise the barrier. Ticket was sitting in the recess for the instruments and there was a sharp 90 degree turn just before the barrier. At this point things got a bit confusing and I ran into a bollard. My Mum's car, I was hoping she would see the funny side but she didn't.Deciding to reset the odometer in my first car while driving around a corner was not a good idea. Luckily it was at a slow speed, but still gave me a fright when the car wouldn’t straighten up and my arm was stuck in the steering wheel
I decided to fit a dimmer switch without turning off the lighting circuit - shocking!
Best car related one was when I bought a Sierra from a mate that had no spare wheel. He said he had a spare I could pick up so I dropped by and slung it in the well in the boot. When I went to leave the engine turned over fine but the car just wouldn't start. It took us ages to work out that there was a fuel-pump isolator in the spare wheel well.
Best car related one was when I bought a Sierra from a mate that had no spare wheel. He said he had a spare I could pick up so I dropped by and slung it in the well in the boot. When I went to leave the engine turned over fine but the car just wouldn't start. It took us ages to work out that there was a fuel-pump isolator in the spare wheel well.
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