What causes phantom voltage?

Conductors that are installed in close proximity to one another, and are capacitively coupled to each other, can cause this a.c. voltage reading. Such a reading could be 2 or 3 volts, or it may be as high as the voltage on the adjacent conductors. This is what is referred to as a “phantom” voltage.

What is the voltage between two hot wires?





around 220 to 240 volts

The voltage between either hot wire and the neutral wire is somewhere around 110 to 120 volts, RMS (root mean square). The voltage between the two hot wires is around 220 to 240 volts, RMS. The higher voltage is used to drive appliances that need more power, such as washing machines and air conditioners.

How do you get rid of induced voltage?

Methods to reduce the effect of Inductive Coupling Between Cables

  1. Limit the cables length running in parallel.
  2. Increase the distance between the disturbing cable and the victim cable.
  3. Ground one shield end of both cables.

Why do I have voltage when switch is off?

Just to recap, a “phantom voltage” is where a wire from a switch to a light or outlet runs next to a permanently live wire, when the switch is off, the AC voltage in the other wire can induce a voltage in the switched-off wire.

What happens if you connect 2 hot wires together?





A short circuit happens when a “hot” wire (black) touches another hot wire or touches a “neutral” wire (white) in one of your outlets. When these two wires touch, a large amount of current flows, creating more heat than the circuit can handle, so it shuts off.

What happens if you wire two hots together?

Two hots of same circuit – nothing should happen.

What causes backfeed voltage?

Backfed voltages are voltages that often originate from another circuit or part of the equipment, but “backfeed” through indicating lights, control power transformers or even resistors in equipment.

Why do I have 80 volts on my neutral?

Check voltage across each conductors. If you read 80V between the hot and neutral, and read 120V between the hot and ground. You have a malfunctioning neutral. If you read 80V between hot and both the neutral and ground your problem is with the hot conductor.

Are wires hot when switch is off?



One possiblility is that the electrician that wired the house used a switch leg to control the fan. In this case, one of the black wires in the fan would ALWAYS be hot unless the breaker is turned off. There would be no neutral in the switch box, only one always hot wire and one switched hot wire.

Will rubber gloves stop electric shock?

Myth: Rubber gloves and rubber shoes protect you from electricity. Truth: That’s true only if they are 100 percent pure rubber with no holes or tears (the kind that electrical linemen wear).

Can you get shocked from a neutral wire?

The neutral wire does have current going through it. However, we do not get shocked when we touch something with current going through it, we get shocked when current goes through us.

Should a white wire be hot?



Here’s a rundown of electrical wires: The black wire is the “hot” wire, it carries the electricity from the breaker panel into the switch or light source. The white wire is the “neutral” wire, it takes any unused electricity and current and sends it back to the breaker panel.

Why does my neutral wire have voltage?

The voltage you are seeing on the neutral wire is conducting through that other load from the hot. Your voltage tester is detecting voltage without drawing current so the resistance of the other load is not seen. Try disconnecting/turning off all other loads on that circuit.

Why do I have 120 volts between neutral and ground?

If you have a neutral wire removed from the neutral bus bar in your panel it is possible to see 120VAC on that wire if the circuit breaker for that circuit is turned on and there is a load connected to the circuit and load device is also turned on.

Does a neutral wire carry voltage?

Voltage is carried by the live conductor, but a neutral conductor is also necessary for two important functions: Serving as a zero voltage reference point.

Is there any current in neutral wire?



A hot wire is a wire that will provide the electric source and it will be alternating current. The neutral wire will be connected to the earth ground, the color of the neutral wire could be grey or white. During normal operations, the neutral wire will carry current.

What happens if earth and neutral wires touch?

In Short if neutral wire touches a earth wire,

An earth wire carrying load current is a risk of electric shock because a person touching this earth may present an alternative path for the load current and thus the risk of electric shock.