Static electricity


Hey now  folks,

I finally made the  jump  back into  vinyl late last year. I am a midi  hifi guy but made sure I was on the  higher end getting back into analog, so I went with a Pro-Ject Classic SB in walnut with the Sumiko Bluepoint  No.2 MC cartridge.

I also upgraded my integrated amp to a Rouge Sphinx V3 and purchased the Record Doctor V. Just about out of the  break in period and very  happy over all...except when it comes to static electricity. It is especially bad coming off the platter. The Pro-Ject came with a  felt mat and the static was not that  bad. I read that cork would be even better so I got the Pro-Ject one.

I also have a Zerostat Milty 3, which I am using religiously at the 12/4/8 o'clock positions.

I do have  force air for heat and live in New England, so I know that the dry air is not helping. With the cork mat there is so much static electricity now, that the cork mat will stick to the record when I  try to flip it over, which is very annoying. I do have, and prefer, a  dust cover too.

I mean honestly I have peeled plenty of onions in my day but now this?!?

Am I doing something wrong here? Should I  go back to the  felt mat?

Pleading for wisdom from the turntable peanut gallery.

Staticky in Connecticut 
idigmusic64
Lose the plastic lid. Double sided tape on the mat OR use no mat. Use a humidifier.
1+ @noromance. I have been looking closely into this problem. 
1st, make sure the bearing is grounded. Check continuity with a meter set to ohms. If not run a wire from ground to it. Use high quality anti static inner sleeves. Plain paper are the absolute worst. 
Run a humidifier if you can. You can have one installed in your HVAC system.
IMHO the Zerostat is a PITA. I use a grounded sweep arm which not only discharges the record but sweeps incidental dust out of the way. I always keep my dust cover closed. Many here think this interferes with the sound. According to myself and Mark Dohmann it actually improves the sound by attenuating sound before it gets to the tonearm. He is working on one for his Helix turntable. He told this to me in an email conversation.
If your records are clean to start with and you always put them directly back into the jackets you will never have to clean a record unless you buy them used.
I recently learned that playing the record does create a small electrostatic charge of several hundred volts depending on humidity. If the record is not discharged the voltage is additive. Every time you play the record several hundred volts are added. Antistatic sleeves do not discharge the record! They just do not add any more charge. Paper sleeves can add charge! Other than a conductive sweep arm the best way to discharge a record is a conductive brush wired to ground. It is not enough just to hold it. The impedance of you is too high. You can drill a little hole and attach a wire with a sheet metal screw. I tried it myself and it works great. There is a thread on this subject where I promised to get some real data and publish the results. If you want to learn more on the subject google Triboelectric effect or series. I would like to add one more very interesting discovery. The darn label contributes electrons to the vinyl!! Records will develop a small charge all on their own! The vinyl will go negative and the label positive! 
I forgot to mention, those of you using your hair to detect static. It is not sensitive enough. If you tie a fine cotton thread to pencil you can detect just 100 volts. The vinyl will attract the thread like hair and the label will repel it.