In my quest to remove harmful chemicals from my life I have tried to find a way to remove static electricity from my clothing. It is bone dry around these parts. Couple that with very hard water and a trip through the dryer and clothing is hopelessly staticky. I've tried various "solutions" found online, to include wool balls, and nothing works worth a damn. What does work is line drying, but I don't do a lot of that for several reasons. Recently, I've begun adding borax to my laundry cycle (with homemade laundry soap), and it seems to substantially reduce the amount of static for one reason or another.

I came across something recently that interested me. I found this post on a Reddit page:

quote:

My brother built the perfect anti-static device for me.

At one end is a wire clothes hanger. Connected to that is a long electrical wire. And at the other end is a three-prong electrical plug. The electrical wire is connected ONLY to the grounding terminal of the plug.

Any time I encounter static all I have to do is plug in this device and drag the hanger end over my clothing or sheets/towels. It's immensely satisfying to hear all those little snapping sounds as the static is conducted away from my laundry. It's completely safe and 100% effective.

Does this sound legit? It seems as though grounding the clothing through your homes common ground would work. Obviously one doesn't want to play around with the juice, but it seems if you open up the plug on an extension cord, remove the +/- wires leaving the ground, close up the plug, and then connect the other end of the ground wire to something like a coat hangar or a length of tie wire, you could ground everything out and not risk having any juice flowing through.

Yea? Nay?

Personally I would not mix wire, electrical outlet, hanger and flammable material. Anyway, we had serious static electricity problems when we lived in the Bishop CA area. Low humidity and dry weather caused major issues. It was so bad, my wife had a touch lamp and blew it out with the discharge. Anyway, we used to spray the carpet with non scented Downey and that seemed to help a lot . So maybe softener and a humidifier might help? I also used to have a bare piece of electrical wire that I formed a ring on the end. It was about 6” in length. I would carry it in my hand and touch items first with it before going hands on.

Here's what we do at work to setup ESD safe work areas.

https://elimstat.com/grounding/

There's dummy plugs that plug into the outlet and the only connection is a banana jack to the ground.

The only thing your setup is missing is:

Grounding cables typically come with 1 meg ohm (1 x 10e6 ohms) resistors to ensure that electricity moving through them is always traveling at a static dissipative rate.

The purpose of the resistor is to slow down an electrostatic discharge event (ESD) from a highly charged ungrounded surface from discharging instantaneously through the cord. The resistor slows down ESD a few more milliseconds than if it were not present.

^^^^^ that seems like a similar concept to the coat hanger idea.

quote:

Originally posted by Lineman101:
....Downey

Loaded with phthalates and other nasty chemicals. Same as most other commercial fabric softeners. They work great, but I don't want that stuff sitting on my skin all day.

Why not get a humidifier and try to stay about 25% RH in the house.

Not an option. I loathe humidity.

quote:

Originally posted by Gustofer:
Not an option. I loathe humidity.

Well without the proper humidity level in your house, this will be a losing battle as humidity plays a huge part in static build-up.

I was going to suggest a humidifier also. I use one all winter and not only helps with static electricity, but works wonders with my own respiratory system. Lack of humidity in winter does a hell of a job on my sinuses, throat and lungs. I want 50% anyway.

quote:

Originally posted by Gustofer:
Not an option. I loathe humidity.

Understand but 25% RH isn’t close to being humid. A RH of between 45-50% is ideal according to most health sources.

In N.C. this year we have the opposite problem. The RH outside hear has been 75-95%!! For most of the day due to all the rain we’ve received this year.

I have to deal with this on a daily basis at work, but for handling of sensitive explosives and devices. Another effective mitigation is the material of which your clothing is made. Cotton, or mostly cotton blends, are significantly better at mitigating static than artificial fibers. Even though wool and silk are natural, they are shit for static.

The clothes hanger idea sounds like mostly bullshit. That only dissipates the charges that are present at the time of the operation. As soon as you stop and begin moving/touching the clothing, charges start to build back up again instantly.

quote:

Originally posted by flesheatingvirus:
That only dissipates the charges that are present at the time of the operation. As soon as you stop and begin moving/touching the clothing, charges start to build back up again instantly.

That doesn't sound right (not saying I'm right either ).

If I understand what you are saying, if I line dried a T-shirt, for example, it would essentially have no static charge, but static would build up when I folded it and/or put it on to wear. That doesn't happen...at least not to a discernible level.

It doesn’t happen to a discernible level in all instances. Static charges are created by triboelectric effects. That has to do with two or more objects touching, then they are not touching- a transfer of electrons has occurred. This happens when you are walking, changing garments, standing up or sitting down in a chair, etc. It happens every day where your body is charged up with thousands of volts and most of the time we don’t even notice. Even liquid flowing in a pipe can generate a static charge. I know, it sounds very counterintuitive.

Most of the time when you get shocked, grabbing a door knob? That is typically at least 3000 to 5000V. The charge potential generated by a human body can be significantly higher than this.

I teach a class where part is about mitigating ESD, too.

I just keep my hands moist when folding clothes from the dryer by running water over them from the nearby laundry tub. Works like a charm.

Hmmm....

Vinegar. I use vinegar (when needed) for the purpose you ask about.

“ Yes, white vinegar can be used to reduce static cling on clothes, acting as a natural fabric softener and static reducer. Adding a half cup to the rinse cycle or using a vinegar-dampened cloth in the dryer are effective methods.
Here's how to use vinegar to combat static cling:
1. Adding Vinegar to the Rinse Cycle:
Add 1/4 to 1/2 cup of white vinegar to the rinse cycle of your washing machine.
This helps neutralize static charges and remove detergent residue, which can contribute to static buildup.
The vinegar smell will dissipate as the clothes dry.
2. Using a Vinegar-Dampened Cloth in the Dryer:
Wet a clean washcloth, sock, or small piece of fabric with white vinegar.
Toss the damp cloth into the dryer with your clothes.
The vinegar helps keep the air moist and reduces static cling as the clothes tumble.
Again, the vinegar smell will disappear once the clothes are dry.
3. Other Tips:
Avoid over-drying:
.
Over-drying can increase static cling, so use the dryer's sensor or remove clothes while slightly damp.
Dry synthetic fabrics separately:
.
Synthetic fabrics are more prone to static and can transfer it to other clothes.
Increase humidity:
.
Using a humidifier or hanging clothes in a steamy bathroom can also help reduce static cling. .

Anti-static spray:
.
You can also purchase or make your own anti-static spray using vinegar and other ingredients.
.

I spent my entire career working in high voltage substations. The static charge in a 500 kv switchyard is amazing . Reach for the door handle of your truck and jump an arc loud enough to hear. You get used to the minor sting .
Folding laundry ? Non issue ...

Old thread revival----

FWIW, I didn't build the coat hanger thing, but I did find a solution that may be helpful for others.

Borax.

I looked up how it works and it has something to do with softening the water or increasing the alkalinity or some such thing. Personally, I think it's sorcery, but I'm OK with that.

A couple tablespoons per washer load and no more static. Science (or sorcery) strikes again!

You should add a humidifier for your nasal passages and furniture. You do not use as much heat with higher humidity.

I’d think a wire going to earth would do about the same as your hanger without involving the building electricity. Up north in the winter, my table saw and dust collector would build enough static that it was downright painful when I touched a metal part. I took some copper wire and wrapped it on a wrench that I tossed on the garage floor and never got zapped again.