Static Electricity on Vinyl


Hello
Having static electricity on some of my vinyl records. They absorb dust and hair. How do you do to get rid of the problem?
Does Furutech Destat III Work?
titus1
There is a passive solution to static on the record.  The SK-EX-III.  Works great on records that have static build up.  3-6 seconds in the sleeve and the static is gone.
Buy the hand held ORB Sakura. It works on batteries. You hold the switch and the unit blows pos and neg ions. Use a circular motion and shut off. This works better than any device including old Milty’s.
Wearing shoes or socks on carpeting is a sure fire way to create a charge; I only play and handle records in bare feet. Re-sleeving a record can create a charge- some of the aftermarket inner sleeves are "anti-static" but you have to sort through what type you prefer--I’d suggest you buy some of the well-regarded brands in small quantities and try various ones. (I now use the MA Records sleeve-- it is some sort of woven plant matter that has a soft fabric-like quality and also doesn’t leave any detritus on the record, something that some aftermarket sleeves seem to do (they shed)).
I find that the so-called anti-static brushes are, for the most part, ineffective, and can also leave a charge. (They also shed). I use a Giotto Rocket Blaster bulb type air puffer- it gets rid of the surface stuff without touching the record, but you have to get used to using it-- you need to hold the record almost vertically, so the air blast and gravity help get the surface stuff off.
A good cleaning is essential and some vacuum machines can charge a record.
The various anti-static machines and the Milty Zerostat type gun work-- but you are ameliorating the charge by another charge-- look for ways to minimize the charge in the first place. Humidity is a factor with heating during the winter. I also don’t re-jacket my records- I put the inner with record in a pocket next to the jacket created by an outer jacket sleeve. I use the old inner as a protective surface and slide the record, with new inner sleeve in between, like a sandwich-- less static than pulling a record out of the jacket, faster to pull the record, less wear on the jacket. Makes for a thicker package though, in terms of shelf space.
Someone once recommended buying a used bench top ionizer of the type used for chip production. You see them on E-Bay, used, for $50- 100 bucks (they can be more expensive).
I only play and handle records in bare feet.

My knees got so bad from the pounding when running, that I was starting to hurt walking barefoot on the hard house floors. So I started wearing all rubber sandals at the recommendation of a fellow runner.

The all rubber sandals had the added benefit of not introducing static when handling records and equipment controls.

I found this information helpful.

"The best combinations of materials to create static electricity would be to have one material from the positive charge list and one from the negative charge list." 

http://www.school-for-champions.com/science/static_materials.htm#.WkQvRVWnGM9


I have found that some record's mats are more prone to statics than others. I used the George Merill mat during the summer time and switch to a Funk mat during winter. That said the Merill perform better with my turntable