Electrical Safety in Wet Locations

Water lowers your body’s resistance to electricity and creates easy paths to ground. A shock that would only sting in dry conditions can kill when you’re sweaty, wet or standing in water. Rain, puddles, wet concrete, washdowns and flooded basements all turn ordinary cords and tools into serious hazards.

• Construction
• General Industry

Why water makes shocks worse

How much current flows through your body depends on voltage and resistance. Dry skin resists current well. Wet skin can have a small fraction of that resistance, so the same 120 volts pushes far more current through you.

A typical 15-amp household circuit can deliver 15,000 milliamps, many times a deadly amount.

Common wet locations on the job

• Outdoor work in rain, snow or heavy dew
• Excavations and trenches with groundwater, and dewatering pumps
• Concrete pours, saw cutting and core drilling with water
• Pressure washing, hydro-demolition and washdown areas in food and chemical plants
• Tanks, boilers, vaults, manholes and other tight metal or damp spaces
• Basements, crawl spaces and flood cleanup
• Pools, fountains, cooling towers and docks

Safe practices

• Use GFCI protection for every tool and cord in wet or damp areas. Test it before use. See GFCI Protection.
• Use cords and connectors rated for outdoor and wet use (look for a “W” in the cord type, like SJTW or SOOW); keep connections off the ground and out of puddles.
• Use tools rated for wet locations, or cordless tools, when working in water.
• Keep your hands, gloves and boots dry when handling plugs and cords.
• Use weatherproof “in-use” covers on outdoor receptacles and temp power boxes, so they stay covered with a cord plugged in.
• In tanks, boilers and other tight wet spaces, use low-voltage lighting or GFCI-protected lighting and tools, and follow confined space rules.
• Stop work and unplug equipment if it gets soaked, and have it checked before reuse.

• Don’t stand in water while using corded electrical tools.
• Don’t touch electrical equipment that has been submerged, including after a flood. It must be inspected by a qualified person.
• Don’t run pumps or lights in excavations without GFCI protection.
• Don’t wrap connections in plastic bags or tape as “weatherproofing.”
• Don’t point a pressure washer or hose at panels, motors, lights or plugs.

Before work in a wet area

• Every cord and tool is on a GFCI that tests OK
• Cords are wet-rated and undamaged, with ground pins
• Connections are raised off the ground and away from water
• Receptacle covers close over plugged-in cords
• Pumps, lights and heaters are listed for the location
• Crew knows where to shut off power in an emergency

Last updated: October 1, 2026