Static Electricity Woes: Solving My Jacket Problem

[mattmns]

First of all, I know nothing about physics, so if I use the wrong term, or something don't get me too hard of a time But this problem has been really bugging me these past few weeks. For some reason, my jacket seems to give me a huge amount of static electricity. Almost every time I get out of my car, I touch the door (to close it) and I get a little shock. Then I walk into my apartment, take my jacket off, and I hear all these little sparks, and my entire backside of my shirt has a "static" feel to it. Also, the other night when I was going to bed, I had a ton of build up I guess, and just moving my hands across my blanket at night, I could see a ton of little sparks lighting up. This has really got to the point where I wonder if I could seriously injure myself. Any ideas as to what is going on and what I can do to stop this? If it helps, it is a faux-shearling coat. Thanks!

 

[Astronuc]

That happens to me when the air is very dry and I'm wearing particular close that are really good insulators and I've been walking on certain carpets or slid across a seat (e.g. car seat), or if I remove a well insulated jacket from certain shirts or pullovers. If one has a metal key, then use the key to discharge onself, or touch the cuff or elbow of the jacket against a conductive surface.

Try not to shuffle (slide) one's feet on a carpet, but step.

There are also sprays (even water) that one could use to improve the conductance of one clothes such that a static charge will not build up.


It's cool to take off a jacket or sweater in the dark and see the flashes of light from the charge transfer.

 

[Oerg]

maybe cover your car seat with a shirt that doesn't transfer static on your jacket i guess..??

 

[moose]

I don't think it's just your jacket's fault completely. It tends to happen a lot this time of the year...

 

[physics girl phd]

Different types of fabric touch, the fibers ultimately contain atoms/molecules with different affinities for electrons. If the difference is large, the electrons can get transferred easily, resulting in static electricity. Ex.: if I do the laundry at hop and throw in my favorite 70's polyester top (it's not one of those big-collar things, although I can pull those off!) in the dryer with our cotton sheets, we have a problem (actually, it causes a problem pretty much no matter what!). I suspect, sadly, that your jacket is the problem (it likely has a different affinity for electrons than your cat-seat fabric and your shirts). Humidity would help alleviate the problem because water molecules would somewhat cover the surface of both materials, making transfer more difficult, and sprays would help too like AstroNuc suggests... but ultimately, I think it's just your jacket. It's Faux... i.e. some type of poly/plastic (think "glide-wrap" with static cling!). Sorry...

 

[Moonbear]

A humidifier in your home will help eliminate the issues when you're home. Not much to be done when you're outside this time of year though. I just got the humidifiers turned on this week...my cue that it's time to do that is when I try to brush the cat and all her fur starts sticking straight up, and I get shocks from the static when I try to pet her.

 

[bchandler]

Going down the plastic slide at any children's playground a few times with your jacket on should cure the problem.

 

[OAQfirst]

Maybe you should look into harnessing power from your jacket?

A VICTORIAN man conducted 30,000 volts of static electricity in his jacket today but walked away without a scratch.
Frank Clewer, from Dennington in the south-west of the state, left a trail of burned carpet and molten plastic through the nearby city of Warrnambool.

Authorities later tested his polar-fleece jacket using a device that measures static electricity, and said the dial initially went off the scale before settling on a figure greater than 30,000 volts.

http://www.news.com.au/adelaidenow/story/0,22606,16628269-1702,00.html

 

[Math Jeans]

I suggest just using an anti-static spray. But beware, that stuff is very unpleasant to inhale.

 

[Proton Soup]

just buy a stylish http://www.staticproducts.info/antistaticclothing.html"

 

[binzing]

Your in Arizona aren't you Matt?

 

[WarPhalange]

Maybe you should look into harnessing power from your jacket?

http://www.news.com.au/adelaidenow/story/0,22606,16628269-1702,00.html

I thought static electricity routinely had voltages in the thousands? 30k is a bit much, but not unbelievable.

 

[binzing]

Yeah, I think so War...He must have had some good current there though...

 

[WarPhalange]

I remember on CSI I think yesterday they were testing tasers/stun guns and one of the "military grade" ones was super extra dangerous because it output 1 million volts. I was like "So?"

If it has a ridiculously low current, it won't make too much of a difference from a static shock.

 

[Pythagorean]

It gets -40 in the winter here so it tends to get really dry. As a result, I got shocked almost every time I stepped out of my truck. I know have the habit of touching the metal door frame before my feet ever touch the ground when getting out of a vehicle (even in the summer :/).

 

[Proton Soup]

I remember on CSI I think yesterday they were testing tasers/stun guns and one of the "military grade" ones was super extra dangerous because it output 1 million volts. I was like "So?"

If it has a ridiculously low current, it won't make too much of a difference from a static shock.

you can kill someone with "ridiculously low" currents if you poke electrodes into them. it's called a microshock hazard. what saves you here, probably, is high frequency and the current path.

 

[WarPhalange]

Microshock hazard? You mean having your heart fibrillate and then you die? I know about that, but I was thinking even lower than that.

How many amps does it take to make the heart fibrillate? Something like 70mA? Or was it 700mA?

Apparently this book says 70mA:

http://books.google.com/books?id=Fd...&hl=en&sa=X&oi=book_result&resnum=1&ct=result

So 70mA * 1MV = 70kW

That will fry you. But if you have something like a few microamps or even nanoamps going through, then you really won't feel much besides a regular shock.

 

[mattmns]

Thanks for all the suggestions! It has been very dry and cold here in Denver, though we finally got some snow today. I will check out the anti static spray (the anti-static Jackets are cool, but I don't think I could pull off the look). The ideas about touching metal objects sound good and I will give them a test. Again, thanks!

 

[OAQfirst]

Microshock hazard? You mean having your heart fibrillate and then you die? I know about that, but I was thinking even lower than that.

How many amps does it take to make the heart fibrillate? Something like 70mA? Or was it 700mA?

Apparently this book says 70mA:

http://books.google.com/books?id=Fd...&hl=en&sa=X&oi=book_result&resnum=1&ct=result

So 70mA * 1MV = 70kW

That will fry you. But if you have something like a few microamps or even nanoamps going through, then you really won't feel much besides a regular shock.

On the other hand, consider what he did to his environment.

 

[Proton Soup]

Microshock hazard? You mean having your heart fibrillate and then you die? I know about that, but I was thinking even lower than that.

How many amps does it take to make the heart fibrillate? Something like 70mA? Or was it 700mA?

Apparently this book says 70mA:

http://books.google.com/books?id=Fd...&hl=en&sa=X&oi=book_result&resnum=1&ct=result

So 70mA * 1MV = 70kW

That will fry you. But if you have something like a few microamps or even nanoamps going through, then you really won't feel much besides a regular shock.

a microshock is invasive, and it will depend on current density, path, and frequency. applied directly to cardiac muscle of a dog, as low as 20 uA will cause fibrillation. when you have devices with electrodes that puncture the skin, such as these police tasers, the effect is much greater than with some low-end consumer device with a couple of blunt electrodes sticking out.