What happens to electricity that is “grounded”?
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Electricity that only goes one way, like from a battery, has to go back where it came from to complete a circuit. Electricity that switches direction back and forth can go from a source into a capacitor without going back to the source, because the direction switches before the capacitor fills up, so the two electrical directions cancel each other out.
The electricity in your walls switches direction. The moist dirt under your house can act like a giant capacitor. Often for safety, electrical devices will connect a piece that’s not supposed to be electrified (like a metal shell of an appliance) to the dirt under your house, so that if a malfunction electrifies the piece, the electricity will dissipate in the dirt instead of shocking you.
The wire that connects an appliance to the dirt capacitor under your house is the ground wire. Electricity that alternates direction will cancel itself out and become harmless if you put it into the ground wire.
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