[buckeye05]

Whenever I use the receptacles in the garage it seems any metal tool etc will produce a minor shock. What causes this an how can I fix it?

[rhbell]

I'm not a electritian but I would say your outlet is not grounded. Flip the breaker off and remove the cover, than remove the retaining screws for the outlet and see if it is grounded to the box. Most times is either green wire or bare copper from receptical to a green screw in back of box.

[tkrussell]

Thou rhbell is correct to look for a ground inside the outlet box, you may need to test the ground to see it is actually working. If you have a voltage tester, you need to test across the hot of the outlet with one lead and connect the other lead of a volt meter to the metal box, or the bare or green wire inside the outlet.

There may be a grounding wire, green or bare, or the metal casing of conduit or BX cable, but there may be a loose connection or cable connector, preventing the equipment grounding wire from working.

Keep in mind, what ever tool you are using, may have a short in it that is looking for a ground, and since there is none at the outlet, the fault current is draining through you. This tool needs to be looked at for a short and repaired.

Or it is possible that there is something else on the circuit that has a short, and if the equipment ground is broken in the circuit, the fault current is in the bare metal and the ground at you outlet, and the current is coming out of the ground into the tool and into you.

These are a couple of ideas that may be causing your problem. If you don't get it fixed, someday you can be in real trouble, if the fault current is greater than 5 milliamps and it flows across your heart.

Just an FYI, all new homes, and for the last several years, must have GFI outlets in the garage, just for your protection from faulty power tools.

[labman]

One quick check of the tool would be to take it in the bathroom and plug it into a GFCI outlet. Even a properly grounded 3 prong outlet should trip the breaker if it is shorted.

[shparsons]

Whenever I use the receptacles in the garage it seems any metal tool etc will produce a minor shock. What causes this an how can I fix it?

Either u have a hot wire bleeding over on your ground or the neutral is lose inside the plug... if the wire is just pushed in the back of the plug take them out and put around screw and make sure all screws are tight

[JackT]

You may also want to check the polarity of your receptacles in your garage. Be sure the black (hot conductor) is connected to the brass screw and the white (neutral) has been connected to the silver screw. Not all home electrical installations are done by qualified electricians. You can purchase a receptacle analyzer from most electrical stores for about $10.00

[alectrician]

You may also want to check the polarity of your receptacles in your garage. Be sure the black (hot conductor) is connected to the brass screw and the white (neutral) has been connected to the silver screw. Not all home electrical installations are done by qualified electricians. You can purchase a receptacle analyzer from most electrical stores for about $10.00

That is the handiest thing to have when testing unknown work quality. It saves a lot of time and frustration troubleshooting rookie wiring. Buy one today and save your life and mind