This tip appears in the July 2018 issue of Connect, our customer newsletter. We’re reprinting it here because it’s good safety advice.

Q. My buddy is a do-it-yourselfer and never bothers to turn off the circuit breakers when he’s working on an electrical outlet. How can I explain to him how dangerous this is?

A. Consider that a very small amount of electricity — less than 50 milliamps — can be enough to stop someone’s heart. A 15-amp circuit breaker in his house won’t trip and stop the flow of electricity until 300 times that amount, or 15,000 milliamps, is traveling through his body. Tell your friend to shut off the breaker, and test the outlet, before doing any work. It could be a life-saver.

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