If you would throw an electrical device into the ocean , how big would the area where you can get electrocuted be?
In: Physics
This is no simple ELI5 answer because there are many, many factors to consider.
However, you can roughly [calculate](https://www.reddit.com/r/askscience/comments/2wb16v/how_far_can_electricity_travel_through_water/copcl05?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3) the “safe distance” from something like a toaster in the ocean. And that’s roughly 77 meters, or ~250 feet, for a 120v toaster.
This depends on the device, many devices would result in more current flowing directly between internal conductors exposed to seawater than from terminals to “earth”.
Based on the voltage level, grounding arrangement of the system, and the available current there would be a current and voltage gradient of varying size centered on the exposed conductors.
Edit: reworded first paragraph regarding flow of current to earth.
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If you threw an electrical device (either 110v or 220v) into the ocean it would simply short out. The area that one could be electrocuted would be minuscule as the current would travel straight down to the nearest part of ocean floor. Unless your at the exact spot where you dropped something like a toaster in you’d feel nothing.
Also if you tried just putting a cable in to the ocean hooked up a generator the same thing would happen. The generator would just short out stopping any current from transferring to the ocean water.
It depends on where the return path for the current is, and on how much current is flowing. Could be the return path stays entirely within the device, or there could be tens to hundreds of feet that become dangerous(see electrofishing).
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