its not so much the voltage its the amps, all it takes is just a few miliamps to cause an irregular heart beat, and next thing ya know yer dead, just a fraction of 1 amp can be the end. Im sorry to hear about yer loss as well.

 

So in essence the not having a GFI killed him??

 

A little clarification on a Ground Fault Circut Interupter. The electrical service box may or may not have the nuetral and ground bonded togeather, it does not matter to a GFCI.
The heater (or anything else plugged into the circut for that matter) can be a two or three wire connection, the GFCI will not care.
The way a GFCI works is the power leaving on black wire for a breaker or out the smallest slot on a recpticle is metered. the returning power is metered as it comes back on the white wire or into the longer slot of a recpticle. the current must match within less than 5ma difference or the GFCI will trip. This will indicate a loss in the circut. It does not matter where the loss is going.

I cannot believe an electrician could put an outlet anywhere near animals without a GFCI. Rumor has it that it only takes 50 volts to kill a hog. I am not sure what that figure is for horses.

I would have your local electrical inspector look at this installation before the others have a chance to "fix" it. A violation would be a easy way to prove your case and get your Kentucky Derby Winner paid for.

Your heater is more than likely bad. A small leak will cause the type of problem you have. A GFCI would have stopped the flow of power before it could have done harm.

Any new outdoor 120/240 volt electrical service installed now requires at least one GFCI. So if this metered service is feeding only this outlet, you have a problem installation. Around here the utility would also be liable for hooking this up without a GFCI.

Does any of this make sense?

 

Houndog is more than likely correct.

 

Would having a GFI outlet alone have prevented this?

 

Now that I understand about GFCI unless it was changed with all the NEW electric going ons LAST winter the float,water FROZE.While checking it I figured POWER was off.A workman just happened to be around the pipeline company(usually no one around back then)and I asked if he had a key to the elect."compound",he did.I found a NEW small breaker box with two breakers turned OFF.Turned them on.ONE of them controlled the current to pasture.It was STANDARD breakers.No extra trip buttons or resets buttons etc.I've HAD my HANDS on them in the past.Thats WHAT the electriction Saturday evening was mulling around in his head and wanted to CHECK Monday I bet! I will start the phone calls in the Morning to the heater manufacture and Plantaion Pipeline.Its NOT a money ISSUE guys! I'm 51 now and as a hobby or small business I stand a stud and have mares etc.I breed and sell Tobiano Tennessee Walkers.BUT this older GELDING whom got killed I had 17 YEARS.He was my pleasure horse I bought in 1988.I have ridden him MANY miles and he was a BUD through divorce,job changes,moves etc.He was going to be 21 this spring.He was in GREAT shape,16hhs Chestnut Roan with a blonde mane and tail.He was in HORSEY retirement on good pasture with 7 pregnant mares.I could have lost any of THEM and been mad.But with him I'm not mad.I'm terribly UPSET!!!!!! He should have been able to get a drink of water without killing him! I AM LUCKY none of the OTHERS drank.I could have had them stacked up around the water tank.

 

The NEXT thing is THANKS GUYS.I posted this same question on a Elect.Forum I found.I got three replys and TWO were I bet HE chewed a cord.It was NOT chewed. I never have posted ANYTHING on this forum BUT DIESEL jabber.YET you ALL came through with GOOD PLAUSABLE ANSWERS and insight.I learned a LOT from these threads.I mulled this for hours last night and this morning was posting this scene here and on TDR.My wife walked in and said OH your asking your DIESEL BUDDYS.You ALL here on DIESEL TRUCK RESOURCE came through! If I can EVER be of assistance just ask! Thank you,David(Hounddog)

 

I hope you get it figured out. Good ideas above. There is a qoute, not sure who, but ..." The outside of a horse is good for the inside of a man."

Ed

 

You all got me paranoid now, so aside from the water heaters, what about hot wire fencing? Does it have this same potential.

 

Well I'm NOT good with elect. but NO as long as its grounded good for lighting.One of THESE SMART guys I'm sure can explain how IT works.

 

Could be wrong, but I think Ronald Reagan said that.

Sorry about your horse, David.

Thanks for bringing this up. Not that it's any consolation but you may have prevented a catastrophe at our place. I was about to hook up a 240V compressor to the subpanel in the shop and noticed that the neutral and grounds are all attached to a common bus bar. One of the 240V 30A breakers feeds the submerged well pump. Not a GFCI in sight. Maybe I should replace the whole panel with something a bit more up to date before somebody gets hurt?

Tom

 

Just taking a guess, but , I would say that when the tank froze with the heater in it was the begining of the end for the heater. All it needs is a very small crack in the housing to leak a bit of water in, to let a bit of electric current out.
You stated that the breakers were of the standard type, what about the outlet? Any reset buttons? That would have been their last chance to protect the user.

You also stated it is not about the money. Why not? I really hate when I bid a job like that one with GFCI equipment, and the competiton does not. His lower morals allow him the chance to profit. You now have a chance to help even the score a bit. Maybee you dont need or want the money, but the local 4-H riding club or (insert name of local kids group active with horses) could use a new coral fence (or other project). The legacy of your old friend could live on and help others. If you succede in getting a payoff in the horse death, other electricians will hear about it and maybee think twice about an outlet around animals in your area.

 

Tom
If is indeed a "sub" panel, then the nuetrals and grounds should be seperated unless there is a ground rod at that panel.
As for a GFCI on a well pump, if it a submerged pump it probably will not work. Seems to be a problem some how when it is down that small hole. A GFCI will usually work on a sump pump, but I have yet to have any luck with them holding a submerged deepwell pump. On a system like that just make sure your grounds are good.

 

fschiola
Probably

 

It froze mid winter last year.Not solid but enough to freeze the float and split the hose connector.Heater was not a solid block of ice but froze none the less.Removed heater early to mid March last year and put it back in 1st/2nd week of November(first below 32 degree weather was going to be that night as I remember) this year.No warnings on it about freezing but there is about GFCI.I am calling the manufacture this am.www.alliedprecision.com its the floating heater with cage.Don't know what kind or where well is.The NEW line was a few hundered feet long when I saw it installed.They ran power and water line same time in same ditch to the tank.I'm SURE(pretty sure) the Pipeline company SUBED the work out.There are NOT many pipeline employees best as I can tell.Mostly sub contractors.The pipeline is underground to a BIG station that makes more pressure to push the fuel on? The property its on which joins the property had a diverter valve leak until a SMELL and some ground drop.They redid fence line at pasture and pipeline and have spent untold amount of money with a land reclaiming company has installed underground vents? that blow air into the ground to remove hydrocarbons.Lots of TEST equipment montoring the air coming from the ground? Part of the deal was the pipeline company fenced the creek in the woods OUT and they would supply water to livestock 24/7 365 until one day as EVERTHING tested clear.Seems the company doing the work has SUBS from all over.The elect.guy that was there Saturday evening was a sub from South Dakota.said he had been living in a motel 5 months near Athens Ga.just to work at that site.