She's electric

[venta]

OK, I've always been prone to generating static electricity. If someone is going to get a shock off a metal thing, it's going to be me.

But over the last couple of months it's been getting a bit silly. My hair is constantly sticking to me/other people/passing objects, I crackle, I get shocks off anything remotely metallic. If I get undressed in the dark I sparkle :)

Which is all quite entertaining in its own way, but I'd like it to stop now. Before I start frying small electronics components. I'm mildly worried every time I pick my laptop up at present.

So, what should I do/not do ? I suspect the fleece I often wear doesn't help, what with it being largely synthetic. I seem to be worst at work, where we have the sort of carpets that don't get on well with rubber-soled shoes, but I'm usually just wandering about in socks. Is it time to break the clogs back out ?

What clothes should I be wearing ? I'd have thought "natural fibres" would be a good start, but wool seems to be something of a mistake.

Is there any truth in the rumour that touching a radiator is a good means of earthing yourself, or was that just some old wives' tale I learnt when I was little ? If not, how do I (practically) earth myself ?

Comments

[cardinalsin.livejournal.com]

I have exactly the same problem. The best solution I've found has been to take my shoes off, but since you've already tried that, I'm stumped.

I wouldn't recommend touching the radiator, unless you want to stand next to it all day. It will indeed earth you, in a most painful manner.

I think its not just the quality of the fibres, but the friction generated by them? In other words, the more the fibres of your clothes rub together, the more charge is going to be generated. How this helps, I'm not sure - perhaps a string vest would be safest :)

[maviscruet.livejournal.com]

Wow. I've only ever generated one spark to the best of my knowledge.

Maybe you need to find someone like me who does not generate and use them as an earther......

[drdoug.livejournal.com]

'Tis the time of year I reckon - all crisp and clear and increasingly vernal. I noticed about March last year that I was getting a lot of static, and I'm getting it again now.

Is there any truth in the rumour that touching a radiator is a good means of earthing yourself

In Britain, yes there is. If your building complies with the Wiring Regs, radiators are connected by whopping great conductors to a good earth where the supply comes in to the building. (If you want to know why, try Googling for 'earthed equipotential bonding' or something like that.) You need to touch a bare metal bit, rather than the painted bits, but it should work.

[nevecat.livejournal.com]

I do that lots too...I think long hair + jumpers may make it worse...

[venta.livejournal.com]

Well, the jumper's staying in this weather.

Maybe I'll try putting my hair up properly and see if that helps.

[al-fruitbat.livejournal.com]

I'm probably not as afflicted as you, but I certainly have static 'issues'. The coke machine at work has me conditioned so I pre-emptively wince when I put money it, and I habitually close my car door with my elbow.

[kissifa.livejournal.com]

I've been getting that a lot too of late. Initially I put it down to a change in trainers, but now I'm not so sure.

Looking at the BBc news article about those neon light tubes stuck in the ground that are illuminated by the electricity in the air around a pylon I'm wondering if our increased static generating abilities might not stem from some similar source...

[venta.livejournal.com]

I think my knowledge of physics is too shaky to have a proper opinion of that. Anyone ?

Kissifa, did you get the CDs OK on Saturday ?

[nalsa.livejournal.com]

Socks & short-fibre nylon carpets are a bad combination, regardless of the socking material. The fleece is a bad idea, as is pretty much anything fluffy, especially given the length of your hair. Unfortunately, winter is also great for generating static, although I've never had a good explanation as to why.

BTW, anything metallic and water-related must be earthed, by law. So, the central heating is going to be grounded at some point, as are taps, water pipes, and steel bathtubs (but not the galvanised ones that hang on the back of privy doors a la the Beverly Hillbillies). You can also earth yourself by touching the PSU of a PC, which, unless it's dreadfully faultly, ought to be earthing itself quite happily just by being plugged into the mains.

[lathany.livejournal.com]

I had a physics teacher who commented that the people who generated the most static electricity were the people who shuffled. I've never really observed people's walking habits enough to say whether I think he was right.

OK. Maybe that wasn't terribly helpful.

[nevecat.livejournal.com]

The fleece is a bad idea, as is pretty much anything fluffy [...] winter is also great for generating static, although I've never had a good explanation as to why.

I'd guess that the wearing of more things of fluffyness (coast, jumpers, scarves...) has something to do with it.

On a purely temperature-based thing...*ponders* - I guess in theory if the gas around an object is cooler, molecules are moving slower, so once a surface has gained charge, there's less opportunity for it to discharge that. Haven't studied thermodynamics for several years though, and I find it difficult to believe that a drop of what really is only a few degrees (on the larger scale of things) would cause a dramatic change.

[nalsa.livejournal.com]

Mmm. Just thinking about this out loud, it could be related to the drop in ambient humidity (and why buildings with AC are nightmares for static). As temperature drops, humidity drops with it, and with less water molecules in the air to act as a conductor to earth then there's less opportunity for the charge to be grounded, thus latching on to anything which might be already polarised...

But what do I know, I'm a biologist ;)

[leathellin.livejournal.com]

So am I but that is the explanation I have heard before and which sounded convincing.

[venta.livejournal.com]

That would seem plausible, but I'm reasonably confident I don't shuffle when walking. It's one of my dad's pet hates so I had "picking my feet up" instilled into me at a very early age :)

[nevecat.livejournal.com]

That seems reasonable, and furthermore explains why I've had more issues with static over the last few years than when at university - evil offices!

[uitlander]

I know that I do shuffle most of the time, and I'm not generating any.

I have no idea whether this is related, but I only ever seem to generate static electricity in notable quantities when visiting New York. To the extent that I get to the point of not wanting to touch anything within a few hours of arriving there. Ancient gypsy curse?

[jiggery-pokery.livejournal.com]

I wouldn't recommend touching the radiator, unless you want to stand next to it all day. It will indeed earth you, in a most painful manner.

I am afflicted by static too, but perhaps not quite as badly as you folk. Joining the crowd, I do earth myself on radiators, on average once or twice a day, but I tend to do so using the palm or heel of my hand, on the grounds that when I get a static shock, it tends to come through a finger, which is horrible. I can't recall earthing myself in this way being painful, though I'm not sure whether this is because I've found a non-painful way to do it or because I'm not doing it effectively. (Earthing by choice does beat involuntary earthing, though, on the grounds that you are at least a little prepared for it.)

Much sympathy for Al about his "closing a car door with an elbow" routine; I do similar things myself. In fact, I have stopped sitting in the front passenger seat of our car because I associate it particularly with static shocks. Can there be any logic to suggest one particular seat in a car could be any more charged than the others, or is this just dumb superstition on my part?

So what should us static sufferers be wearing for practicality? I'm looking for very warm clothes which aren't fluffy, which seems like a contradiction in terms if my memory serves me correctly. Should we be wearing ten layers of silk instead?

[jiggery-pokery.livejournal.com]

Does this suggest that getting a humidifier in the rooms where you work and live would be an effective practical solution? Really not sure about humidifiers and dehumidifiers and their (side-)effects, plus the old joke about putting the two in the same room.

The thermometer behind me suggests this room has 38% humidity, though I'm not sure whether or not I believe it. This room tends to vary between about 35% and 60% humidity. Is this even plausible? What is a desirable level?

[onebyone.livejournal.com]

I think it is plausible. And a random websearch backs me up (hurrah for the random web), since USA Today thinks that 30% is too dry and 50% is too humid.

I've seen (on TV) athletics competitions at which humidity is above 100%. That's about the point where humidity ceases to be at all funny (other than jokes about swimming, of course).

[venta.livejournal.com]

So how is humidity measured, then ? A quick google suggests to me that 100% humidity is the point at which the air is saturated, so I don't see how it can go over that.

[ao-lai.livejournal.com]

If I'm wearing the right shoes, the slightest hint of shoe/floor friction seems to create static. Otherwise, I'm fine.

Just last week I was getting a shock from the back door handle every time I had to go across to Unit 66. I started to go out of my way to avoid it in the end, and shy away from metal things...

[onebyone.livejournal.com]

Humidity higher than 100% means that the air is super-saturated with water vapour - at which point water will start to condense out of the air onto any surface which it can use as a seed. This is the gap between when the temperature is low enough for dew to form and when dew finishes forming.

If the air temperature is also around human body temperature, then it becomes basically impossible to lose any body heat to the air, at which point bad things happen.

The reason aeroplanes leave vapour trails is that air at that height is often super-saturated, and the surface of the plane provides sufficient seed for water to condense. The water droplets which are blown off the plane then provide further seed surfaces. I don't know exactly how the process stops - possibly because condensing water heats the air until it's no longer super-saturated?

[nalsa.livejournal.com]

Relative humidity is something to do with the dew point temperature and what the temperature is right now. However, the dew point isn't a constant because it alters with air pressure, so the calculations themselves are faintly complicated. If dew point^oC=ambient^oC then humidity=100%. I suppose if it's raining then humidity could be over 100%...

(ooh, google found this for me; the graphs look pretty useful.)

[erming.livejournal.com]

I know that you used to be able to get an anti static spray, as it was used on our carpets so that computers don't get a nasty surprise.

If you could get hold of it, then it might be worth going over your fluffy stuff with it.

[verlaine.livejournal.com]

I had a big static electricity when I first started working at Upminster Library, but it's been months now and nary a tingle. I think it's all down to willpower - you just have to show physics that you're the boss and you won't be intimidated, and eventually it just gives up and goes away.

[thegreenman.livejournal.com]

Couldn't you connect one of those conductive hang-down-on-the-road thingies people stick on cars, on your ankle?

I mean the thing people buy for car sickness under the (mistaken) impression that car sickness is caused by static electricity.

[http://users.livejournal.com/_corpse_/]

When I was in the US and I first moved into my apartment, I could barely move for electric shocks. I was told that problem was in part due to the dry air (air conditioning, dontcha know). The solution was to run the shower for a couple of hours with all the doors open to increase the mositure in the local atmos and... er... wet the air.

It worked.

So there you go.

Just make sure the air around you is always moist.

[neilh.livejournal.com]

The office here in Japan is dreadful for generating static, not a good thing when you're dealing with prototype hardware.

Someone assumed it was because too many people here shuffle, but I put it down to having played with Van De Graaf generators too much as a child.

So I earth myself about once an hour, I've found the best way to do this is with knuckles, since they're quite pointy (static likes points, hence living in your hair) and don't have many nerves (unlike fingertips), so it doesn't hurt so much.

[venta.livejournal.com]

I also read earlier today that you're better off earthing with your muscles clenched (ie hand in a fist), since then your muscles are contracted anyway.

[neilh.livejournal.com]

Not sure that would make much difference, since static travels on the surface, but instinctively I use closed hand when earthing, unless I want to feel the shock, when I'll use fingertip (typically before doing some open heart surgery on big iron with delicate insides)

[venta.livejournal.com]

I think the difference is that it's in the nature of an electric shock to make your muscles contract. This effect isn't really noticeable in static shocks, but I'm guessing it's something to do with that.