I'm too scared for that. I'm ordering "1000-Volt Insulated Long-Nosed Pliers" to pull the plugs after I short it. The plugs are kind of in the way and if I don't see sparks or hear pops I'm not willing to assume it's shorted. ....
You are way, way, way, way over-thinking this. You commented earlier about worrying that an insulated screwdriver might have a blade that doesn't conduct enough. None of this matters. Any old plastic handled screwdriver will work.
You don't need anything special at all, just some basic precautions in case the capacitor has a charge on it (and it might not, most have bleeders on them, and it probably shut off during the low voltage portion of the cycle.
A 220V circuit has ~ 300 V peak (if it hit it just right, remember, this is AC, not a DC rectified circuit). A 300V circuit doesn't need any special insulation, and old plastic screwdriver is fine. And if you want to be super picky, follow the procedure of clipping the blade to ground, then shorting each lead and across the leads. That means the blade will never be more than a few volts above ground (I've done this to test engine ignitions, I didn't get a shock, and that's tens of thousands of volts).
As mentioned, as extra precaution, and good basic practice, keep one hand in your pocket, and don't touch the chassis or other ground with your body. You don't need special insulated shoes, or special gloves, just don't come in direct contact with metal.
Live stream it, we will all watch as this becomes an absolute non-event. And if you do everything wrong,
and keep it plugged in and manage to get a shock (even that's not a certainty, even with it plugged in), we will call 911 for you.
You will be fine, just do it!
edit - if you can't get the screwdriver in there across the terminals, just use the screwdriver to shove some aluminum foil in there. Just get them shorted is all.
-ERD50
