Have you ever gotten a shock?

If you did, the shock probably happened because some part of your body touched a source of electrical current and your body provided a path for the current to reach the ground, bzzzt ... ouch ... you got shocked. Electricity wants to go to the ground, and if you are there to provide the path of least resistance, you become the wire. This is known as a "ground fault". If the amount of current leaking is great enough, combined with a long period of exposure, you could be severely shocked, electrocuted, and even die. Here are some true stories:

• Sid, an 18-year-old employee with 15 months' experience at a fast food restaurant, was electrocuted when he plugged a portable electric toaster into an outlet on the floor which had been damp-mopped five minutes earlier.
• Two children, ages five and six, were electrocuted in Texas when a plugged-in hair dryer fell into the tub in which they were bathing.

The solution? GFCI Circuits.

GFCI constantly monitors electricity flowing in a circuit, and any loss of current. If the current flowing through that circuit differs by a minute amount from that returning, the GFCI quickly switches the power off. The GFCI interrupts power faster than an instant to prevent a potentially deadly dose of electricity. You may still receive a jolt, but you shouldn't be shocked. Most new construction requires GFCI.