Jacobs ladder

Well I am a little bored and since I have a electronics cert I may as well use it some time so I am planning on building a jacobs ladder and installing it in my room as yet another gimmick.

what do you guys think?

That's awesome, I think Dad's been meaning to make one sometime for next halloween if he does a display again

What is a Jacobs Ladder

its basicly two copper wires and a high voltage supply.

my friend and I are thinking of using a 20KV flyback transformer as the supply will let you know how the experiments go

I wanna see pics of it in the end, so... Good Luck!

yea, the hardest part will be convincing my mum that its safe as long as you dont touch it while its on.

Exposure to an arc-producing device can pose health hazards. In a closed space such as a classroom or home, the continuous arc formation of an open-air Jacob's Ladder will ionize oxygen and nitrogen, which then re-form into reactive molecules such as ozone and nitric oxide. These free radicals can be damaging to the mucous membranes of people near the spark gap. Plants are also susceptible to ozone poisoning.

These hazards are not present when the arc is formed outdoors since the heated ionized gases will rise up into the air and dissipate into the atmosphere. Spark gaps which only intermittently produce short spark bursts are also minimally hazardous because the volume of ions generated is very small.

Arcs can also produce a broad spectrum of wavelengths spanning the visible light and the invisible ultraviolet and infrared spectrum. Very intense arcs generated by means such as arc welding can produce significant amounts of ultraviolet which is damaging to the retina of the observer. These arcs should only be observed through special dark filters which reduce the arc intensity and shield the observer's eyes from the ultraviolet rays.

THANK-YOU LEE! =D

You say what i can't

Watch out for thoose pesky IONS they'll react with just about anything, also ozone may smell like flowers but it will kill you in seconds. Also the current will most probally ark towards you since you will be the most conductive substance there, all electronic equipment nearby will be frazzled from the resulting EMP effect.

It works in the movies, I say go for it Jtull!

Or you could ask they guy, who does chemistry at ADVANCED level and 99% of chemistry i based on how electrons interact.

Or you could ask the electronics guy (Jtull). You just do it in a large, well ventilated room.

I also done electronics and got a double B in it

Good for you boobie

mmmm BOOBIES

Lee needs to work out how to grow his own to satisfy his cravings.

what kind of chemistry classes have you taken Lee?

Ooh, free radicals. You gotta love them.

I saw this wacky creation around last Christmas. It's a giant Tesla Tornado
http://www.instructables.com/id/Tesla-Tornado-Christmas-Tree/

A-BIack_Man wrote:what kind of chemistry classes have you taken Lee?

. What do you mean by that

leewatson1 wrote:Or you could ask they guy, who does chemistry at ADVANCED level and 99% of chemistry i based on how electrons interact.

yes, but no. Honestly electronics is a lot more complicated than you think there are a lot of laws and things that you probably have no idea about.

Darkwing wrote:Or you could ask the electronics guy (Jtull). You just do it in a large, well ventilated room.

I have a Certificate in Applied Electronics Technology vs a 16 year old's high school 'advanced' science class..... hmmm who do you think knows more on the subject?

leewatson1 wrote:I also done electronics and got a double B in it

Wow I achieved one of the highest scores in the country's electrical licensing exams. I think I have now sufficiently owned you in this field.

Also the jacobs ladder works on ionising the gas between the wires thus getting the ladder as the ions move up from the heat the arc moves with it.

ventilation is a good idea because it turns oxygen into ozone

Hey, if I ever get a wife, and if she can't have kids, would you consider becoming a sperm donor?

umm I have to ask why?

Hehe... Think about what I just said.

(Why would I need a sperm donor if "she" can't get pregnant? And I'm fertile, so that's not a problem.... hahah Just a joke. Ok, a bad joke. Hey, it's late over here.)

hm yea good point. Its late gimme a break. :p

ok well my friend and I attempted to get a good arc from a flyback transformer however we failed to get the flyback to work. :/ we are now working on finding a old microwave transformer and gonna try that.

the next thing JTull will say is "ionising radiation isn't dangerous, right?

Then he will explode in a confetti of flesh and bone. Also some electricity.

I'm studying electronics. Just not very advanced.

Thingy wrote:Then he will explode in a confetti of flesh and bone. Also some electricity.

Just make sure someone has a video camera on them when it happens, could be a youtube sensation

Jtull wrote:ok well my friend and I attempted to get a good arc from a flyback transformer however we failed to get the flyback to work. :/ we are now working on finding a old microwave transformer and gonna try that.

Aww, I have one in my garage.. How much do you think it would cost if I shipped it to you?

Darkwing wrote:

Thingy wrote:Then he will explode in a confetti of flesh and bone. Also some electricity.

Just make sure someone has a video camera on them when it happens, could be a youtube sensation

Aww.. poor Jtull.

Be careful man, ok? Don't nuke yourself.

haha nah it will be fine we are just using the transformer. however ionization of the oxygen is not through radiation just from turning it into a plasma as the electrons change energy levels/come free from the nucleus.