Can you shower during a thunderstorm? It's not a great idea; not even to do laundry — here's why

• Heading inside is the best way to keep yourself safe from thunderstorms.
• But while at home, you should avoid showering, doing laundry, or using the sink during a storm.

When thunder roars, go indoors, the National Weather Service motto goes. It's simple enough to remember. But did you know that might not be the end of the story?

Instead, the motto might need to be extended to — when thunder roars, go indoors, but don't suds your body or wash your clothes.

Though unlikely, there is a chance that if lightning strikes your home, it can travel through your pipes and electrocute you, Aaron Treadway, the NWS's Severe Weather Program Coordinator, told Insider.

So you should avoid anything that involves water and metal like showering, washing your hands, or doing laundry while it's storming outside.

This can happen because metal and water are very good conductors of electricity. So if your home gets struck, the charge from the lightning may travel into your home and come into contact with you if you're using metal appliances or plumbing.

It can also travel through wiring, like corded landline phones, Treadway said. Luckily, though, those have largely gone out of fashion in American homes.

What if you get struck by lightning in your home?

If that were to happen, your injuries probably wouldn't be as severe as getting struck directly by lightning, Treadway said. But, he furthered, you'd still be at risk for injury.

When a human is electrocuted, the electricity first hijacks your nervous system, sending tidal waves through your body's delicately balanced electrochemical signaling. It can then lead to further complications like heart attack and burns, depending on the severity of the strike, Treadway said.

Though he can't say for certain what extent the damage would be, Treadway said the danger is enough that you shouldn't chance using your plumbing.

"It would still definitely be enough to cause injury and potentially, you know, more serious injuries or fatalities. So that's why we tell people to avoid, you know, again, baths, showers, doing dishes, stuff like that during thunderstorms," he said.

Treadway said its difficult to say know how common this phenomenon is because the NWS doesn't track injuries caused by lightning. But they do track fatalities.

NWS's dataset goes back as far as 2006. It shows that there has only been one lightning-related death in the home in the 16 years of records. This person was using a landline, not plumbing.

How to stay safe in your home during a thunderstorm

There are things you can do to slightly mitigate your risk, like having plastic piping or installing a lightning rod, but even with these precautions, it's just best to stay dry indoors during a thunderstorm, Treadway said.

Even with this in mind, being inside is the safest place you can be during a storm, he said with finality.

"We really want to stress that when thunder roars go indoors, because being in that sturdy home or in a car is much much safer than being outside," he said.