PDA

View Full Version : Static Electricity



jroc
02-16-2013, 10:55 AM
I have a question. How do you guys keep static electricity at bay in your homes and in your reloading room in particular? I know adding a humidifier to the furnace would help. We bought a new home this past spring and I am just getting around to setting up my reloading room in the basement. The room that I'm going to put it in has carpet which I have been planning on removing all along. But I am still worried about static as it is very bad in our new house. I have even thought about running a steel strip across the front of my bench and running a wire from it to ground-knowing that my belly would rub up against it before I touch anything else and then all the static I have picked up before I come into the room would be discharged. I am sure I am not the only one with this problem. Any suggestions and ideas would be appreciated. Jim

leadsquirter
02-16-2013, 11:04 AM
You are correct in stating that a furnace humidifier will help. I put a new one on my furnace at the start of the heating season and it completely took care of the static shocks that I had in the past. Just remember to turn it off after the heating season and put a new pad in before next winter.

10mmShooter
02-16-2013, 11:27 AM
I use a specail anti static mat on my reloading bench, used to work for a computer company and it was from on tech area its grounded to disapate the static charge which can kills electronic circuit boards.

MtGun44
02-16-2013, 11:37 AM
I need a humidifier to keep me and the wife from sinus infections and such from drying
out our nasal passages, so the antistatic effects are a pleasant secondary benefit.

I also wipe a dryer sheet in my powder funnels sometimes to keep the kernels sliding
freely.

Bill

runfiverun
02-16-2013, 12:24 PM
well i know jim uses bill as a static discharge unit in his reloading room.
i just like to beep the dogs nose while she is asleep, then i know i am static free.

the strip along the front of your bench grounded to the cement should be fine,an ocassional wipe down with an antistatic dryer sheet on your plastic tools will help too.

WILCO
02-16-2013, 12:27 PM
All good answers given.

tryNto
02-16-2013, 12:29 PM
1 part Liquid Fabric Softener and 2 parts Water in a Spray Bottle. Applied liberally to The Carpet works wonders.

44man
02-16-2013, 03:01 PM
Static will NOT ignite powders, even BP.
I keep my basement to VERY low humidity to keep rust away.
The crazy thing about a plastic powder measure is that, crazy and BP will not ignite in them.
Smoking weed over the measure does not apply!

Phoenix
02-16-2013, 06:05 PM
I use a specail anti static mat on my reloading bench, used to work for a computer company and it was from on tech area its grounded to disapate the static charge which can kills electronic circuit boards.
Beware of this. Static mats are great for electronics, The rule still applies that you must discharge yourself before getting near the mat. In the military one of the techs I had under me started working on a circuit board on the mat without the wrist strap. The board was laying on the mat but he was full of static, He blew the board up pretty bad. Almost every CMOS chip on the board was blown. I ended up just ordering a whole new board from physio control. The point is the mat created a path for the static and will make the discharges alot more violent than they would be without it. It is very important to use the mat with a wrist strap or follow proper procedures to discharge yourself every time you go near the mat.

Powders really dont ignite from static anyway. Possible? Yes Likely? Definitely No.

Example: using a mat the powder will ignite if the powder is on the mat and you walk up with a good charge on your body and touch the mat at the edge of the powder. Without the mat it will not ignite because the intensity of the discharge is not hot enough to ignite powder. Hence why I said to be carefull using a mat. It can give a false sense of security.

I would recommend a Cordless wrist strap. I have been using them to work on circuits for years. it dissipates static slowly and works amazingly well. I can walk around the house shocking myself on everything. Put on the wrist strap and never get shocked again unless I take it off.

Edit: The mat is not as big an issue if the mat is grouded through a 1 Mohm Resistor. This makes the discharge gradual instead of makes you fingers hurt sharp. All good mats should have on in the grounding line. However not all do. Sorry If I came across wrong I have just found that mats give a bad sense of invulnerability to static which is definitely not true.

imsoooted
02-16-2013, 07:48 PM
:twisted:"i just like to beep the dogs nose while she is asleep, then i know i am static free.":twisted:



lmao........

jroc
02-17-2013, 07:22 AM
I guess I don't have to worry I always thought static was way more of a problem than it really is. I thought I had read somewhere in one of my old manuals to always be aware of static. I always thought that the static free funnels were more important to prevent unwanted ignition rather than just to keep powder from sticking. Thanks for all the info.

DLCTEX
02-17-2013, 03:30 PM
+1 on the fabric softener and water trick. I had a truck that would zap me getting in and out until I began misting it with the mix at the start of the day.

Chicken Thief
02-17-2013, 03:37 PM
Static is overrated:

http://www.ctmuzzleloaders.com/ctml_experiments/sparks/sparks.html

44man
02-17-2013, 07:19 PM
I was an aircraft fueler using high octane 100 and 145 in DC 6's and 7's, then to A1 Kero in jets. Grounding was important FIRST.
Powder is just not affected because of the coatings that steer static around each particle.
We were issued nylon cold weather gear and getting out of the truck would build a good charge, enough that I would kick open the door, go inside and zap a guy in the ear. We were always getting shocks but grounding first was safe.
I worked with electronics and wrist bands, those things die right now with static.
Powder can stick from static but it will not ignite. Fabric softeners will clear it up.

jroc
02-17-2013, 08:40 PM
I want to thank everybody for there input. Jim