The dangers of high-voltage electricity are significantly greater than those of low-voltage electricity used to power equipment in installations.
The risky practice of fractal or Lichtenberg burning exposes the user to high-voltage electricity.
Lichtenberg machines, which are used to make or assemble fractal burning apparatus, are also potentially hazardous.
Without a specially built enclosed apparatus, there is no way to make the device or its operation safe.
We advise people not to build, construct, or supply equipment that uses high-voltage energy sources, such as Lichtenberg machines.
What kind of wood does Lichtenberg burn?
Fractal burning, also known as Lichtenberg, is a technique that uses high-voltage electricity and a conductive solution to create images like these on wood. Fractal burning is still wreaking havoc, with one death and three serious injuries reported in two separate accidents in the last two months.
What’s the best way to generate wood lightning?
Some ingenious woodworkers have devised a method for creating one-of-a-kind lightning-like woodburned ornaments. The process is known as lichtenberg, and it entails passing a high-voltage charge through specially treated wood. The charge causes a lightning or tree-shaped burn that branches out across the wood as it travels from one touch to the next. Painting the wood with a conductive solution (typically baking soda and water) and delivering a high-voltage charge from a transformer are two steps in the process. Take a look at the video below to see how to do it.
For fractal burning, what voltage is required?
Microwave oven transformers employ alternating current and are often used in the fractal wood burning process since they are quite easy to get. They can produce exceptionally high voltages of 1000 to 15,000 volts (V), resulting in lethal currents of 500 to 2000 milliamps (mA).
What is a Lichtenberg generator, and how does it work?
Since 2017, Health Canada has received six complaints of fatal injuries caused by the usage of wood-burning devices known as Lichtenberg generators in Canada. Electrical safety authorities in the provinces and territories provided this information.
Lichtenberg generators are frequently advertised as wood-burning equipment for creating art or abstract items. Fractal burning is a technique that uses high-voltage electrical currents to create patterns. These devices also have live electrical components and are exceedingly dangerous to use or handle in any way.
These high-voltage electrical devices can be purchased online as full units, or they can be created by users from electrical components salvaged from consumer products, such as microwave oven high-voltage energy sources.
Health Canada warns Canadians against attempting to use or manufacture a Lichtenberg generator for any reason, since they can cause fatal harm to users and bystanders.
These devices have not been assessed or tested to any Canadian safety standards, despite advertisements or information consumers may find online. They have not been approved by certification or inspection authorities and have not been evaluated or tested to any Canadian safety standards.
What kind of wood is ideal for fractal burning?
Fractal burning is a technique that produces very distinctive aesthetic effects in wood. That’s why, before you put on your safety gloves and try it out, you should learn more about the kind of wood that the fractal burning process requires.
Cedar, oak, maple, walnut, and olive are the best five woods for fractal burning. The best fractal burning results are determined by three factors in wood. The wood’s density, grain tightness, and grain pattern are all factors to consider. All of these woods are dense and have a grain that is either tight or has a pattern that is ideal for the process.
Woodturning is becoming more popular these days, and there are a variety of techniques for creating wonderful designs on wood. Fractal burning, though, has to be the most unique, as well as the most deadly, of all of these. This is due to the patterns being created by using electricity on wood.
How can you make your own Lichtenberg figures?
An electrical discharge on or inside of an insulator produces Lichtenberg figures, which are fern-like branching formations. Every Lichtenberg figure is one-of-a-kind, like snowflakes, an intricate and stunning natural work of art. Lichtenberg figures can be found in the skin of lightning strike victims, in lightning strikes into sand (fulgurites), and in nearly any high-voltage electrical discharge into an insulator. Georg Christoph Lichtenberg, the scientist who discovered and analyzed the structures, is named after him.
Using Lichtenberg’s original method is one option to build your own Lichtenberg figure. For the insulator, he utilized solidified tree sap resin and dust to reveal the fractal design. You can use polyethylene sheets as an insulator and then disclose the fractal design with talcum powder, powdered sulfur, or lycopodium powder.
- In the center of the plastic sheet, place a sharp metal point. A nail is an excellent option. It’s just important that it’s a good electrical conductor.
- Static electricity is used to zap the metal object.
- Electricity passes through the metal and across the insulator made of plastic. How far the pattern spreads from the metal tip and how deep it penetrates the plastic depends on the quantity of discharge. So, if you shock the metal with your fingertip after shuffling across carpeting, the pattern will probably be less than if you use a Wimhurst machine.
- Blow powder onto the plastic sheet’s surface. It will stick to the pattern, allowing the figure to be revealed.
Burning a Lichtenberg Figure Into Wood
Another simple way is to burn a fractal pattern onto pine wood. This can be accomplished by providing a voltage of 2-10 kV to a pair of nails driven into a moistened piece of pine wood. Snapping alligator clips onto pieces of wood is another possibility. The pine is moistened to prevent it from burning when the power is applied. To improve the surface conductivity of the wood, add some baking soda to the water used to wet it. You’ll have to play about with the distance between the nails and the charge time. If the wood begins to dry out, turn off the electricity and spray it with extra water before continuing. A small amount of fire is to be expected and is perfectly OK. It also matters what kind of wood you use. Here’s what to anticipate:
Is it possible to burn wood with a welder?
You already know that fractal wood burning can’t be done using a welder. Because a welding machine cannot provide the necessary power for a wood-burning operation.