Is a socket deadly?

[SuperioS]

I have a socket that is open like the protection thingy is gone and everytime i put something in it i see little lightning stuff.

am I able to die if I touch it with some metal or something (i live in germany if this is important)

 

[divinemistress87]

You would really run the risk of just getting brain damage . Free electroshock therapy though

 

[[..redacted..]]

I have a socket that is open like the protection thingy is gone and everytime i put something in it i see little lightning stuff.

am I able to die if I touch it with some metal or something (i live in germany if this is important)

Almost certainly not. You'll just experience anything from a little to a lot of pain and you'll jerk your hand away from it instinctively. You may also trigger the circuit protection (RCD/GFCI) cutting off the current. I've received multiple shocks from 240V (mains) and never experienced anything more than pain and discomfort. Some of them were very jarring but that's about it.

Electrocution is fairly rare. When it was used as an execution method it often took a long time and required the victim to be restrained and subjected to a continuous current for some time. Most accidental electrocution victims are children or elderly/people with existing heart conditions.

There's lots of information online if you search, giving plenty of details on technical aspects of electric shock in humans. I wouldn't ever recommend it as a means to CTB: it's very painful and unlikely to have a good success rate. The Hollywood myth of chucking a toaster in the bath is nonsense. Even high voltage sources like overhead power lines are more likely to leave you with nasty burns and a long hospital stay.

 

[Praestat_Mori]

Electric current is dangerous and can kill. The problem is the current would need to pass directly through your heart but the way electric current chooses within your body is totally unpredictable.

Most likely you end up in a hospital with sever injuries.

 

[Linda]

It might kill you, but the odds are that it won't. You will probably just get a nasty shock.

 

[deletedaccount30982]

If you're talking a wall plug from a standard home, you'll probably just feel a little spark would be my guess. I'm not an expert though, so don't take my word.

 

[Forveleth]

My dad did this accidentally once. All it did was blow him across he room and pop the breaker.

 

[Ash]

I've been blown across the room by a dodgy socket when I was a kid. My hand tingled for ages but there wasn't a mark on me. My hair didn't even stand up which I was disappointed about.