Static Electricity while hand planiing

[david beck]

I know i just sound like a nut but i am going bats trying to plane wood inside lately. The shavings/sawdust stick like glue to my planes(all i have used lately) and i remove it with a dust vac, brushing it off or pulling it out with your hands doesnt work it just gets all over everything. I understand its not a big deal in this case but it sure is annoying and i wondered if any of you had a easy fix?

[Patrick Chase]

I know i just sound like a nut but i am going bats trying to plane wood inside lately. The shavings/sawdust stick like glue to my planes(all i have used lately) and i remove it with a dust vac, brushing it off or pulling it out with your hands doesnt work it just gets all over everything. I understand its not a big deal in this case but it sure is annoying and i wondered if any of you had a easy fix?

Wax or oil the plane sole. Less dry friction, less static buildup.

I've seen the same when planing in very dry environments BTW.

[Pat Barry]

Get a bit of humidity into the room

[Jim Koepke]

What kind of floor do you have.

Static electricity can be created by a combination of interacting components. It used to cause all kinds of problems during my time as a silkscreen printer. Your shoes moving on the floor can be building up a charge on you and what you are holding. You might be able to rig a grounding wire to the plane and see if this helps.

jtk

[Andrew Seemann]

That happens in Minnesota in the winter. It just gets so dry here. In my shop at least if I tried to add enough humidity to make static go away, I would probably have a half inch of ice on the windows. It is just a fact of life; you kind of forget about it after a while.

Even more annoying is getting zapped by the grocery cart every 10 feet. And basically having to bathe in moisturizer. And still getting skin spits on the ends of your fingers for 4 months.

[Nathan Johnson]

Rub dryer sheets on everything. :)



* Disclosure: I'm kidding. This is probably a bad idea for reasons I'm not aware of.
** Disclosure 2: I don't use dryer sheets in the laundry.
*** Disclosure 3: I should be working, not posting.

[Peter Christensen]

There are antistatic floor paints available to dissipate static from you and anything else on it.

[david beck]

Thank you for the advice everyone. It is sure not a big deal but i found it curious i guess. I must admit the dryer sheet idea did have me thinking, wish i had some i would try it just to see for myself what it would do.

[Stanley Covington]

Wax or oil the plane sole. Less dry friction, less static buildup. I've seen the same when planing in very dry environments BTW. Ditto what Patrick said re oil. You may also tray wiping the surface being planed with a damp and clean rag prior to each pass. Stan

[Lonnie Gallaher]

I have had the same experience here in SoCal. Plane shavings sticking to the plane as well as my clothing.

[Don Emmerling]

I know i just sound like a nut but i am going bats trying to plane wood inside lately. The shavings/sawdust stick like glue to my planes(all i have used lately) and i remove it with a dust vac, brushing it off or pulling it out with your hands doesnt work it just gets all over everything. I understand its not a big deal in this case but it sure is annoying and i wondered if any of you had a easy fix?

It is not the plane or the wood, it is coming from your clothes as you interact with the plane or any other item that can accept electrons. When low humidity is present the transfer of electrons is quite easy, harder when moisture is around. Raise the humidity, a lot, to get rid of the electrons travelling.

Don

[Clint Bach]

Have you tried a tin foil hat? I have no idea if it will work but if you try it please send pictures!!!

C

[Frederick Skelly]

Thank you for the advice everyone. It is sure not a big deal but i found it curious i guess. I must admit the dryer sheet idea did have me thinking, wish i had some i would try it just to see for myself what it would do.

I wonder if dryer sheets have any silicone or something else that could foul up your finish?

(I'm just raising it for discussion. I don't know that the dryer sheets contain such things, nor whether there would be enough to impact a finish. I know that I don't worry about this when using parafin wax on my plane soles, because any trace of wax that might be left on the surface gets dissolved in the shellac.)

Fred

[Pat Barry]

You can buy de-ionizing fans. Some of them have heaters built in. They generate negative ions to reduce static generation. Note that using a steel plane is likely not the cause of the static problem. Also, using wax will likely just make the problem worse.

[Noah Magnuson]

You can get 'grounding anti-static wrist straps' for this very purpose (just search amazon or some place like it). You do have to clip it to something that will ground it. You could always shove it into the ground of an extension cord (if you are very sure you know which one is ground). You could also buy a replacement 3 prong plug and only connect a lead to the ground which you can then clip to. Anyway, if you are grounded, the plane will also naturally ground out as you handle it and dissipate the static so the sawdust doesn't stick.

[Lee Schierer]

It is not the plane or the wood, it is coming from your clothes as you interact with the plane or any other item that can accept electrons. When low humidity is present the transfer of electrons is quite easy, harder when moisture is around. Raise the humidity, a lot, to get rid of the electrons travelling.

Don

Years ago my son was playing with our Commodore 64 and he slid across the carpeted floor and touched the computer as he did a large spark jumped from his finger. That was the end of the computer. We got it repaired and I purchased a cam of 3M anti static spray. I sprayed the carpet and no matter what you did you couldn't generate any static.
374921

[Stanley Covington]

Wood shavings and wood dust can create static. This is a serious problem in production situations, where the solution is to provide adequate grounding to bleed-off charge before it can accumulate and discharge violently. I have never experienced it using wooden planes, but I have when using metal-bodied planes in dry conditions.

If you are serious about eliminating static and are willing to spend some money, then there are industrial solutions used at cleanrooms, where the specified and tightly-controlled humidity, special clothing, and equipment tend to create lots of harmful static electricity discharge. Some of the solutions include the ionizing fans mentioned above, ionizing bars, anti-static floor mats, and body grounding equipment. None of this is cheap. Here is a link to website that has a decent listing. http://www.cleanroomshop.com/anti-static-esd.html

[david beck]

Thank you for all the advice everyone, and for some giggles(tin hat lol). No, industrial solutions and or expensive ones are not an option for me, i am disabled and it is only a annoyance not a fire risk or such in this case. Humidity levels have been over 54percent in here so i cant just do that, i use wax on my planes so since someone mentioned that can make it worst i can try none on one and i think i will try the spray or such on my shooting ramp. Right now i just simply use a shop vac and silicone brush to wipe it off the tool and me lol.

[Simon MacGowen]

I am very very surprised that no one has mentioned this simple and readily available solution from Lee Valley. It works every time regardless of where or what humidity condition you work in.

http://www.leevalley.com/us/wood/page.aspx?p=69302&cat=1,42401

Simon

[Frederick Skelly]

You're right Simon - one of us should have brought that up! That "preen" step is extremely important.
Fred

[Lee Schierer]

T i think i will try the spray or such on my shooting ramp.

Spray the 3M spray on your floor and on the soles of your shoes. Most likely your shoes and floor are creating the charge on you. Wear cotton shirts instead of wool.

[Patrick Chase]

I am very very surprised that no one has mentioned this simple and readily available solution from Lee Valley. It works every time regardless of where or what humidity condition you work in.

http://www.leevalley.com/us/wood/page.aspx?p=69302&cat=1,42401

Simon

Yeah, it's been almost exactly two years since I last brought that one up (http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?239095-A-tightly-set-mouth-to-control-tear-out&p=2510111#post2510111). Apparently I'm slacking. Thanks!