I wear UGG boots in winter because it’s fucking cold.
I also wrap myself in a blanket on the couch, and have a lovely area rug so I don’t have to walk on a cold floor. All these things are necessary to survive the winter; my house isn’t well insulated.
The problem with all this, is that I build up a static charge. So when I go to pat my beautiful sweetheart of a dog, I zap him. It’s audible and I’m sure, quite unpleasant. Often on the head. He obviously doesn’t like that, I think he’s taking it personally, and I feel awful. It completely cancels out the affection I’m trying to show him.
So the question for the Lemmy community is:
How do I discharge the static before I pat my dog? I have started shocking my partner (which he doesn’t like, but accepts over the alternative), before patting my dog. But as he’s out tonight, I have no human vessel to offer as tribute?
What can I touch in my house before patting my dog so that he doesn’t receive a shock?
Edit: standard Australian house and furniture
Another edit: I’m all the sheets to the wind so the engineering advice is not sinking in. But I’m loving the immediate response that I’d never have gotten on Deaddit.
Again: I can’t stop giggling at how helpful everyone is being and how short m, drunk and silly I am, in a house with apparently no metal
And again: I should probably take me and my baby to bed now, but a big thank you to everyone who replied. You’ve all been lovely. Lemmy is really a different space to ask these questions! I’ll be trying out many of your suggestions over the weekend; big thanks from me and my boy x
Final: thanks to everyone who responded. I did try the kitchen tap again last night and this time it worked! Mustn’t have built up enough charge when I tried the night I posted. I will still primarily zap my partner’s leg as it’s usually closer and doing it makes me laugh. It’s important he understands where he fits in the household hierarchy as well. I also learnt that American houses are very different (screws and radiators everywhere!) so that was interesting too.
No metal? Get some Megadeath albums to fix that.
Here in the us there are certain fabric sprays that help with static buildup, so there might be some alternative over there in Australia.
A humidifier will also work but is pricier in comparison.
Lastly you can wrap a cover cable to your anke and burry the other side in the ground 😆
Does mumbling ‘the ace of spades’ to myself over and over work? Because I was already doing that due to playing cards earlier
Contrary to popular belief the metal is in the mustache, not the lyrics. I think there was a mythbuster episode about it or something
An while you’re at it get a band that’s not shit
I’ve read all the responses here and am horrified that you seem to live in an ungrounded plastic bubble. Is that a Canberra thing? Or can’t even find a small metal object the size of a coin to make discharging painless, how why?
If it’s an old house there should be tonnes of metal things to touch.
Corners of walls, radiators or central air vents or return air vents, screws on switches or power outlets, furniture with metal bits on it, sinks taps and water fixtures with metal parts, thermostat, fireplace casing.
Literally touch everything and report back.
Not an old houuse (2015 build), not sure if we have coins but I’ll check…
No vents in reach and certainly no radiators, no screws… No metal furniture… No screws… The sink didn’t work… No fireplace.
I’m not in Coober Pedy but may as well be it seems!
If you have a desktop computer with a metal case, touch the case.
My partner has this problem a lot. The fridge zaps her pretty often (metal door and handle). There must be a metal surface somewhere on yours? Maybe the shelves? Or the stove / oven?
ETA: As a person who occasionally kicks my kitties when I go to the bathroom in the dark, I sympathize. It’s a terrible feeling when you startle or hurt them. Luckily, they seem to know that I’m a clumsy idiot and accept my immediate apologies.
If by any chance you have wall sockets with the ground connection exposed, you could touch that before petting the good boy/girl.
Not in Australia, but good suggestion in some other countries!
Same thing for radiators and their supply/return lines. Those should be grounded as well. Also the sink.
Two suggestions: run a humidifier. Preferably use a steam one with distilled water. The ultrasonic cool mist ones introduce any minerals and bacteria that are in the water into the air.
The easiest suggestion is to change your blanket. I’m guessing you’re wrapping yourself in a fuzzy fleece blanket. Synthetic fibers like polyester transfer way more static charge than natural fibers. Try looking for a cotton or wool throw. Or for something fuzzy, find a sheep pelt with wool on it. Even using a cotton sheet between you and your current blanket should reduce the amount of charge buildup.
A side benefit of changing blanket materials, is that any blanket that generates a lot of static charge also holds loads of dust and pet hairs. A less static generating blanket will stay cleaner longer.
The easiest way to discharge is to touch a metal faucet. If you have copper pipes, they’ll be grounded, but even just the tap water is conductive enough to dissipate most of the charge.
You probably need to get a humidifier. Low humidity is very common in the winter, and creates (or at least encourages) static buildup. Added bonus is that it will make your place feel warmer at the same time.
You may also want to invest in better insulation. Even if you just rent, there are a variety of cheap and temporary options that can save you a bundle on heating and cooling.
I’ve always felt humidity in winter/cold weather feels more cold, not warm. Am I alone in this appreciation of temperature?
You are not. A dry cold is not as bone chilling as a humid one. I assume there is something about body heat warming up water molecules or denser air or something.
I own the place but honestly, we’ve got “feature weeds” in our back yard so insulation is just another thing on the list
I’m going to agree with the other commenter. We had the same issue and started running a humidifier and it resolved the static issues. Not only is it uncomfortable for your pet, but it’s also really bad for your electronics.
Watch out with the type of humidifier though. Standing water and parts that never dry (e.g. inside hoses in the humidifier) are perfect breeding grounds for bacteria. And “cool mist” type humidifiers use ultrasonic frequencies to atomize all that crap that builds up in your humidifier and spread it into nice little droplets, which are perfect for getting germs really deep into your lungs.
If you tend to get respiratory infections quite often, your humidifier might be to blame.
Mate, my lungs are mostly chalk and I have half the sinus space of most humans. Humidifiers just sound like my version of Skynet
My son has a chronic respiratory illness, and as much as I’d love to raise the humidity in my flat, doing so using a humidifier would probably send him to the hospital pretty fast.
actually, (unless you have been told not to) humidity can help.
Humidity yes, bacteria and other germs, especially germs that can live in water are a massive no-go. Germs like Pseudomonas aeruginosa would give him a permanent lung infection and many strains of it are resistant to pretty much all antibiotics.
For people with his condition, a Pseudomonas infection is usually the point where stuff like sports or even walking up stairs permanently ends.
So raising humidity isn’t bad, but the means to do so are a killer, literally.
Btw, thanks for the downvote. I’m sure you know much more about the illness of my child, an illness that I haven’t even named here, than I do, who has to make sure that kid survives. Seriously, that kind of behaviour triggers me so much. That happens so often, that people who haven’t even heard of that illness before know everything better. It seriously makes me angry.
That kid spent ~5% of his life in hospital, getting IV antibiotics due to his condition. He takes ~30 doses of medicine a day, just to keep him alive. But people who wouldn’t even know how to spell the condition think they know better.
Pro tip: If you aren’t affected by the specific illness in question / aren’t taking care of someone who is, keep your armchair medical knowledge to yourself.
That’s using even more electricity mate and I’m producing enough of my own!
you can make a humidifier with a bowl of water with a towel in it, for faster humidification add more bowls and towels.
There are a few different types of humidifiers out there. Here are the 3 main types:
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Vaporizers. These literally just heat the water until it boils, and the steam evaporates into the air. They use a lot of electricity, which also creates a lot of heat (note: exactly the same amount of you have an electric resistor furnace). They can be a safety risk (because boiling water), and require frequent cleaning/descaling if you have hard water. IMHO, these also make the air feel more humid.
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Evaporators. These are basically just a fan over a wet towel. Very cheap, very low energy. Often less effective. As they are effectively standing water, you have to be careful to keep them clean or the nasties will grow quickly. This is also the type that “whole home” humidifiers typically are.
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Ultrasonic. These are very popular these days, and may randomly be sold as cool mist, warm mist (if they have a small heating element). Low energy options that vibrate the water into a fine mist, which then evaporates. But they will also vibrate everything else in your water into the air. These deposits, like calcium or limestone, can affect your breathing. They will also leave dust all over everything you own. Recommend using distilled water for these.
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Anything conductive and grounded. For example, a lamp with a steel or copper body.
Hmm all cheap lamps in this basic bitch’s house
Yeah they might be cheap, but there is a grounding law here in Australia, so legally those cheap Canberra lamps are required to have a ground. Personally I would recommend your front door, but knowing Canberra your pot plant might be more accessible.
Order a giant metal statue of your dog to put pride of place in your home as an apology to the dog
As a bonus, it will function as something you can touch to earth yourself
alternatively you could try an anti-static wrist strap but i’m not sure it’ll help since you still need something to ground it against
If you get the grounding box you can have an antistatic collar for the dog and a strap for the human. Plug both in and you’re both at the same potential.
Alternatively the human can touch the banana plug side of the strap, as the in-built resistor will “slowly” equalize the charges between you. I say slowly because in human terms as soon as you touch its already done.
The ugg boots may be electrically isolating as well, so a heel-strap is typically worn in ESD environments to overcome insulated soles. In combination with a grounding floor mat, this works without having to think too much about it.
Additionally, you can get a humidifier and maintain a relative humidity above 40%. Thankfully you don’t need insulation to do this!
Source: nasa esd training
I like you
Hold your key’s metal part and touch some other metal that is earthed to discharge yourself.
By holding the key, you provide a way bigger surface area for transferring the charge, so it won’t hurt you.
How about a chain, mate? You can get one at Bunnings by the metre. You can place this somewhere convenient and touch it with the quarter as another commenter said. Not sure if carrying one in your pocket and casually dragging it on the floor would work.
Alternatively just stick a fork in a plant pot, that’ll do for grounded metal I hope
A fork in a pot is definitely not a grounded earth connection. The electrical circuit needs to go back to the actual planet Earth.
A copper cold water pipe coming into the house from outside is a good choice, as are ground terminals on electrical equipment.
Hahaha this is the most confusing comment yet. Where are you???
Sydney I hope
No quarters in Canberra!
Neither here, try the house keys or any coin then, something’s gotta work
I’ve lived in Denver for the past 15 years or so, this is a problem I relate to. If you live in a house or apartment with drywall, it turns out that the corners are made of metal under the plaster. For years I have discharged myself by bumping my forearms against the corner of a wall before flipping a light switch to avoid a painful shock on the tips of my fingers
Yeah wall corners are often metal and the paint on it seems to soften the discharge.
A stove, washing machine or other large electrical appliance with a metal case and grounding pin on the plug should work too. The chassis is connected to an earth ground.
On the plus side, your dog must be convinced that you are a wizard. You need something to ground yourself on.
Touch a radiator. Radiators should be earthed. You can also touch the screws on light switches and sockets, or your sink or stove. Any earthed metal, metal appliances (eg kettles and toasters) should work also. They have to be plugged in, but don’t need to be on.
This is it.
Also a humidifier may help. Static builds up more in dry air.
Touch it with a key or something conductive to avoid getting zapped yourself.
Internet says to touch the screws on a light switch panel.
They’re covered by plastic as standard here
They are screws holding the plate on, usually two flathead screws above and below the switch or paddle that them connect to the junction box which is how they ground you.
Covered in plastic
Covered in plastic how? Mine all look like this https://imgur.com/a/9EBDjPS
There’s these little white plastic plugs over screws, or an entire plastic panel over the top
Replacement covers are like $1.25 at the hardware store. If you’re renting, you can save what’s there in some closet and put them back when you move out.
Damn, I was going to suggest this, I do it all the time. Perhaps shuffle around and touch everything in sight until you find something that zaps and therefore discharges you. Once you find something grounding (zappy) touch that before you touch your dog.
If you really don’t have anything metal in your house (metal sinks or any appliance with an outer metal shell that should be grounded), grab an extension cord, cut it and completely remove any cable that is not the yellow and geeen one, that is the earth cable (assuming in Australia that is the correct color scheme), expose that wire and touch it to discharge. Make sure the other cables are in no way exposed. If yoy want to be extra safe, buy a plug and only connect the earth cable.
/s of course, don’t do that unless you know your way around AC power
I’m so nervous reading this
Easiest way to address this is to wear a metal Casio watch and have it touch anything metallic attached to a wall like door latch guides or maybe even coat hangers to dissipate any static electricity. Another choice is to grab the metal part of a key and tap them as well.