This is one of those questions that many people haven’t thought about: is it safe to shower during a thunderstorm? Sure, taking a shower might seem like a harmless part of an everyday routine, but what many people don’t know is that showering during a thunderstorm could pose some serious risks.
Thunderstorms are more than falling rain and thunder; they also come with some powerful lightning bolts that can easily travel through your house's plumbing network and potentially put you or a family member in danger when showering during a thunderstorm.
Granted, many of us may not associate the bathroom with a lightning strike, but by understanding electrical conductivity and how electricity interacts with water and metal, you can keep both you and your loved ones safe during thunderstorms.
Can Lightning Travel Through Your Home’s Metal Plumbing?
While lightning traveling through your home plumbing can seem like something out of a sci-fi movie, the truth is that it is very possible. Not to mention that lightning can also travel through household appliances and utilities.
Whenever there is a thunderstorm, lightning will not just strike open fields and trees but also tall structures such as buildings and utility poles. From here, the current can follow any conductive path inside buildings and homes. We are talking about electrical wiring, phone lines, and even water and plumbing systems.
When lightning strikes near a house or utility system, the electricity searches for the fastest route to the ground. Metal water pipes offer an excellent path for electricity, and if the metal pipes are connected throughout the plumbing system of the house, then the electric charge will be able to travel through them, coming out from the faucets, metal drains, and even the shower heads.
With homes that feature much older electrical and plumbing systems, the risk is multiplied, posing a serious danger to the inhabitants. Metal conducts electricity far more effectively than plastic.
Another excellent conductor of electricity is the human body. This is especially the case when wet. When you are washing your hands at the sink or taking a shower, if lightning strikes, you could be open to a serious electric shock. And while such incidents are rare, when they occur, they often cause serious injury or even death.
Keep in mind also that the danger isn’t just from direct strikes. For instance, if a nearby lightning strike hits a water main, power line, or even the ground right outside your house, this could result in a power surge that travels through connected metal systems, including the plumbing system.
Furthermore, modern plumbing materials, which often comprise non-conductive PVC plumbing, aren’t a guarantee of safety. A lot of homes will use different materials in their plumbing systems, such as a mixture of metal and plastic, resulting in areas for electricity to pass through.
Additionally, appliances like washing machines and water heaters often have ground wires connected to the electrical system, which creates a new potential pathway for the lightning strike.
Due to such risks, experts such as the National Weather Service (NWS) will recommend avoiding using the plumbing system, which also includes the shower system, whenever there is a thunderstorm. While this might seem like being overly cautious when dealing with lightning, even something as small as a routine action could turn deadly.
By knowing how lightning could interact with the utilities in your home, you can understand why some simple precautions could help make a big difference. The first step to keeping safe, therefore, is to always be informed.
Expert Advice and Safety Recommendations During Thunderstorms
Let’s take a deeper dive into what the experts recommend during a thunderstorm and why such advice is actually crucial. First of all, most experts seem to agree on one thing-that it is better to remain overly cautious than have to deal with the consequences and risks posed by a thunderstorm.
Organizations such as the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), as well as the National Weather Service (NWS), offer some clear guidelines that can help keep you safe whenever there is a thunderstorm.
Avoid Water-Related Activities
This is among the top recommendations and includes avoiding taking a shower, washing dishes, using the bathtub, doing laundry, or even rinsing hands at the faucet. Since we’ve established that lightning is capable of traveling through your house’s plumbing, any level of contact with water can put you at a high risk of getting electrocuted.
Avoid Electrical Wiring
We’ve also seen that lightning is capable of traveling through the house's electrical wiring. This is why it’s recommended to avoid contact with appliances, electrical outlets, and other electrical devices whenever there’s a thunderstorm. We are talking about avoiding both large appliances, such as washing machines, as well as small appliances, like toasters or hair dryers. If you want to unplug appliances and other electronic devices to keep them safe from power surges, then it’s best to do so before the storm and never during the storm.
Landline Telephone
Another unlikely hazard to take note of in the house is the landline telephone. Compared to smartphones, which are completely safe to use regardless of the weather conditions, landline telephones can transmit a lightning bolt straight to the user. It is advisable to avoid using landline telephones, and according to the National Weather Service (NWS), to only use them when it's an emergency.
Safety Tips During a Thunderstorm
Stay Indoors
The first tip to consider during a thunderstorm is location. First off, the best place to be during a thunderstorm is inside the house. And away from all the electronic cable systems and the plumbing. It is safe to use battery-operated systems, including laptops and smartphones, provided they are not plugged in.
Avoid windows and Doors
When indoors, also stay away from windows and doors. Ensure that you do not touch anything that has a connection with the outside, such as garage door openers and cable TV wires. If you live in a multiple-story building, keep the most activity on the lower floors. This is because lightning tends to prefer taller structures.
Prepare Ahead of Time
The best way to remain safe during a thunderstorm is to make preparations ahead of time. If you live in an area that commonly gets thunderstorms, then it pays to pay attention to the weather forecasts and to take changes in the weather seriously.
Have flashlights, a portable power station, and extra batteries to mitigate against the possibility of an outage. Remember to keep your phone fully charged in order to stay updated on the latest weather patterns.
Simply put, being aware and having the right preparation measures in place is the key to staying safe during a thunderstorm. When a thunderstorm is forecasted, ensure that you make plans and prepare ahead so you don’t need to use the electrical system or plumbing when the storm arrives.
Alternative Actions to Take During Thunderstorms
Portable Power Stations Are Better Than Fuel Generators
There are significant advantages that portable power stations offer over fuel-powered generators, especially during times of thunderstorms. One of these is the silent operation, which is more than can be said for generators. This makes portable power stations ideal for nighttime and indoor use.
The fact that they are emission-free means that they don't release dangerous carbon monoxide into the house. Unlike gasoline, which requires one to store some in case it runs out, you don't have to worry about storage or refueling during a storm.
And let's not forget that no tangled cords or storage tanks are making them a cleaner and more energy-efficient option.
Why They're Safer Than the Grid
One of the major advantages of getting a portable power station is that it reduces reliance on the grid, which can be highly unreliable during storms. The grid is prone to surges caused by lightning strikes, which can not only damage home appliances but also pose a hazard to you and your family.
But with portable power stations, you won't have to worry about such risks, as they function in a closed, self-contained circuit, which means there is no external conduit for the current to travel through your home’s electrical wiring. This creates an effective safety barrier during storms.
Another great advantage of portable power stations is that they are not affected by power outages, allowing you to remain connected even when the grid is down, ensuring that you have essentials like lighting, communication devices, and medical equipment during hazardous weather.
| Feature | Grid Power | Fuel Generators | Portable Power Stations |
|
Risk of Power |
High (outages, surges) |
Medium (fuel-dependent, mechanical issues) |
Low (self-contained, surge-free) |
|
Noise Level |
Silent |
Loud and disruptive |
Silent |
|
Safety Indoors |
Unsafe with electrical conduction risk |
Unsafe carbon monoxide, fire hazard |
Safe emission-free |
|
Operational Costs |
Medium to High |
High fuel cost, maintenance |
Low (rechargeable, minimal upkeep) |
|
Setup Convenience |
Automatic but vulnerable |
Complex (fuel, cables, ventilation) |
Easy (plug-and-play, portable) |
Whenever there is a thunderstorm, it is natural to want to go about your day as normal. That said, given that thunderstorms, particularly lightning, can pose some serious risks, it pays to adjust your routine to remain safe.
The good thing is that there are some alternatives that you can turn to as you wait out the storm.
Use Stored Prefilled Water
This can help meet your daily water needs. Consider putting a few gallons aside for consumption during a thunderstorm, just like you would in case of a power outage. This water can be used for brushing your teeth, cooking, or washing your hands. But when is the right time to fill up your water? Well, whenever you get a weather report on an approaching storm.
You don’t have to worry much whenever you are using the restroom, especially if your type of toilet relies on gravity. But you will need to avoid using the taps and faucets and instead rely on the stored water to wash your hands.
Use Battery-Operated Devices
Instead of using your electrical appliances during a storm, opt for battery-operated devices. When using your laptop or mobile phone, ensure that you are not connected to the charger or wall socket. If you need light, use battery-powered lanterns or flashlights. Avoid gaming consoles or desktop computers.
If you find yourself in the middle of a chore, such as doing your laundry, turn off the washing machine and unplug it from the socket to resume later. Avoid vacuuming or using the electric hair dryer or even electric shavers (unless they are battery-powered). The goal is to minimize contact with any appliance that could serve as a conduit for electricity.
For entertainment, while ensuring minimal risk during a storm, make sure you do not engage any electric device that will need to be connected to the wall socket. Consider activities such as reading a book, playing a board game, or listening to music on your smartphone.
Home Battery Backup Solutions for Thunderstorm Preparedness
Granted, the key to keeping both you and your family safe during a thunderstorm is staying away from wired electronics and plumbing systems. But this doesn’t mean that you have to weather out the storm without power.
Thanks to advancements in technology and home energy storage, it is now possible to continue using many of your home appliances and electronic devices without relying on the grid. Among the best ways to remain both powered up and safe during the storm is to invest in reliable, good-quality backup power systems.
BLUETTI AC500 + 2*B300K Home Battery Backup System
For households that are looking for a long-lasting and powerful solution, the BLUETTI AC500 + 2*B300K Home Battery Backup System is an excellent choice. The system is built to offer high-capacity power off the grid and is more than capable of running critical appliances during a storm or extended power outage.
It features expandable battery modules and a smart management system, allowing it to power energy-hungry devices, including refrigerators, lights, medical equipment, and even office gear. It allows you hours, sometimes even days, without having to tap into the electrical grid.
This makes it the perfect backup power solution to weather the storm, offering an alternative to plugging devices into the wall outlet, which could expose family members to great risk from lightning-induced current or electric surges.
The BLUETTI AC500 + 2*B300K Home Battery Backup System offers safe and grounded power thanks to its built-in inverter and many output ports, which let you plug in devices with confidence, knowing that you are completely safe. It is also solar compatible, which means you can recharge the system with renewable energy during times when the grid is down.
BLUETTI Elite 200 V2 Portable Power Station
For homeowners who would prefer something a little more portable, the BLUETTI Elite 200 V2 Portable Power Station offers a great alternative. While it is compact, this is still a powerful backup power solution and is perfect for smaller-scale power requirements such as charging laptops, smartphones, LED lights, or even that Wi-Fi router.
One thing that makes the Elite200 V2 Portable Power Station an excellent choice for thunderstorms is how easy to carry and how flexible it is. Simple to pick up and move around the house, it also offers a quiet operation compared to those noisy fuel-powered generators.
Whether you opt for the AC 500 or prefer the Elite200 V2, you will get the peace of mind that you don’t have to be completely in the dark during a thunderstorm, thanks to a clean, safe, and surge-free source of backup power and a great alternative to the traditional power outlet.
Conclusion
Thunderstorms are more than dramatic skies-they come with some serious risks, especially when it comes to the electrical wiring and plumbing system. Staying away from showers and faucets as well as electrical devices whenever there’s a storm can help keep you safe from lightning strikes that could travel through the plumbing and wiring. By understanding the risks and preparing ahead of time with the proper tools and safety practices, you can enjoy peace of mind even during the most severe thunderstorms.
Battery-powered portable stations such as the BLUETTI Elite200 V2 Portable Power Station or the BLUETTI AC500 + 2*B300K offer a safe and smart alternative to access power while staying away from dangerous systems. Having zero emissions, no noise pollution, and offering surge-free energy makes them ideal during stormy situations. As severe weather becomes common, portable power stations offer a smart option for year-round preparedness.
