An electric mosquito swatter has several thousand volts of electricity, so why doesn’t it hurt people?

It is the hottest time of the summer. In addition to the hot temperature, there is another thing that is unbearable in summer, that is mosquitoes. Not only do they suck blood and make you crazy, but the annoying mosquitoes also buzz in your ears . Every time when you are about to fall asleep, you suddenly hear a burst of ups and downs of buzzing in your ears, and the sleepiness that you have accumulated with great difficulty disappears without a trace!

I have been harassed by mosquitoes recently. They happened several times in one night. I didn’t kill any mosquitoes, but the sky gradually brightened! These annoying little flying insects are the natural enemies of humans in summer!

Seeing this scene, do you feel your fist harden? Source: pixabay

In order to kill these annoying guys, people have invented many ways to kill mosquitoes, including simple ones such as fly swatters and slippers; chemical methods such as mosquito coils and electric mosquito coils; DEET and diced meth that make mosquitoes unable to find their targets; mosquito nets that keep mosquitoes away from thousands of miles away...

But I would say that the most satisfying way to kill mosquitoes is probably with an electric mosquito swatter.

Not only can it "kill" mosquitoes with one strike, but the "crackling" sound of electric shock after hitting the mosquito is very refreshing, and the electric mosquito swatter also has a very high hit rate. So, how high is the voltage of the electric mosquito swatter using high voltage electricity? Is such a high voltage dangerous to the human body? Today, let's talk about the things about electric mosquito swatters.

1.Why does the electric mosquito swatter have such a high voltage?

The voltage generated by the electric mosquito swatters we use nowadays is usually over 2000 volts . When mosquitoes encounter such a high voltage, they are usually electrocuted to death. So how is this voltage generated?

Electric mosquito swatter source 丨 Wikipedia

The internal circuit of the electric mosquito swatter includes components such as an oscillation circuit, a boost circuit and a voltage doubling circuit . When the switch of the electric mosquito swatter is pressed, the DC voltage output from the battery is converted into an alternating voltage through an oscillation circuit composed of a transistor and a transformer; the alternating voltage is enhanced to about several hundred volts through the transformer in the boost circuit; and then the voltage is doubled through a voltage doubling circuit composed of a diode and a capacitor, and finally a high voltage of more than 2000 volts can be obtained.

If you observe the electric mosquito swatters used at home, you will find that they are generally made of three layers of metal mesh. The two outermost layers of metal mesh are not directly connected to the middle layer, and there is a little distance between them. The middle layer is connected to the positive pole of the power supply and circuit, and the outer layer of metal mesh is connected to the negative pole.

The three-layer metal mesh of the electric mosquito swatter Source: pixabay

At the same time, we know that air has a breakdown voltage (usually, the breakdown voltage of 2 mm of air is about 1000-2000V). The so-called "breakdown voltage" refers to the voltage that causes the medium to break down. For air, the breakdown voltage is related to the humidity, temperature, density and composition of the air. The voltage between the outer metal mesh and the middle metal mesh of the electric mosquito swatter is usually not enough to reach the breakdown voltage of the air, so no discharge will occur.

However, when the swatter is swung to "cover" the mosquito between the two layers of metal mesh of the electric mosquito swatter, the mosquito acts as a conductor to connect the outer metal mesh and the inner metal mesh, causing discharge and killing the mosquito.

2. Have you noticed that electric mosquito swatters have a higher hit rate?

Mosquitoes have very advanced flying skills and can even dodge raindrops. So why do relatively bulky electric mosquito swatters have a higher hit rate than more flexible fly swatters?

You may think that "electric mosquito swatters are charged and can kill mosquitoes as long as they touch them", but this is only one aspect of the secret of killing mosquitoes with electric mosquito swatters. The reason why electric mosquito swatters have a higher hit rate is due to static electricity .

That's right, it's the static electricity that attracts paper scraps on a glass rod in a physics experiment. When the electric mosquito swatter is turned on, the ultra-high voltage will also form an electrostatic field between the swatter surfaces. When we wave the electric mosquito swatter close to the mosquitoes, the low-mass mosquitoes will easily be attracted by the electrostatic field and hit the power grid and be electrocuted.

If you find a mosquito resting on the wall, you can turn on the electric mosquito swatter, use the swatter face to get close to the mosquito, and observe its trajectory when it takes off to see if it is attracted by the swatter face.

Of course, this effect only works when the mosquito is relatively close to the swatter, and to some extent it also prevents the mosquito from escaping. In addition, for insects with larger mass, such as cockroaches, flies and beetles, this effect is even less obvious.

3. Will I get an electric shock if I accidentally touch an electric mosquito swatter?

Next is the question that everyone is most concerned about: Will you get an electric shock if you accidentally touch an electric mosquito swatter?

First of all: Don’t touch!

As we all know, the safe voltage for the human body is 36 volts, so the voltage of an electric mosquito swatter at work is as high as 2000 volts, which will undoubtedly make people feel "very dangerous."

In fact, if you directly touch a working electric mosquito swatter, for example, the three-layer net structure electric mosquito swatter mentioned above, the outer metal net will not be charged, and you will not be electrocuted if you only touch the outer metal net (equivalent to the neutral line of the power grid). However, in actual operation, you may accidentally get electrocuted due to sweat hair, aging of the electric mosquito swatter, and other unknown factors; in addition, some electric mosquito swatters may also have a charged outer metal net due to different structures, so it is better not to touch it. In addition, you should also be careful not to bring the charged net surface close to others.

However, the current of the electric mosquito swatter is very small, so even if you get shocked accidentally, there will be no danger to your life, so you can rest assured (but it will be very painful). In addition, there will be residual electricity in the power grid after the electric mosquito swatter is used, so if you accidentally touch it, you will feel numb.

There are also single-layer electric mosquito swatters like the one in the picture, so don’t touch them. Source: pixabay

But one thing to note is that the electric shock caused by electric mosquito swatters may affect the work of pacemakers. In addition, people with other underlying diseases such as epilepsy should also be careful about the electric shock caused by electric mosquito swatters.

All in all, electric mosquito swatters are still a safe and reliable mosquito-killing tool for the general public. As long as you choose electric mosquito swatters produced by reliable manufacturers, you can safely and boldly use them to "avenge" mosquitoes.