The Quackery Thread

[jack]

See they do earthing shoes as well. Wonder how much better they are than these

https://www.safetecdirect.co.uk/product ... xDEALw_wcB

Turns out that "grounding" is a "thing". There is a lot out there about it, together with no significant science, merely a lot of speculation and some very subjective pilot studies.

The ESD clogs are there for a very well defined reason, much like conductive carpet tiles in assembly and rework labs, but conductive and grounded sheets in bed? I suppose if you're using mains powered devices in bed...

[Nick]

Well we do have an electric blanket.

[andrew Ivimey]

Yeah but does it have a 100k earth resistor!!!?

[jack]

Yeah but does it have a 100k earth resistor!!!?

Well, it's 10 times better than most earth straps which are 1 megohm, so it must be good!

[Mike H]

Anyone remember the conductive straps you could hang from your car? Dangled down behind the rear wheels or something like that. It was a 'thing' quite a few years ago.

[pre65]

Anyone remember the conductive straps you could hang from your car? Dangled down behind the rear wheels or something like that. It was a 'thing' quite a few years ago.

Yes, I do. Normally attached to the rear bumper bar ?

[Mike H]

Sounds like them. Some had like a lightning bolt symbol printed on, I remember.

[jack]

Sounds like them. Some had like a lightning bolt symbol printed on, I remember.

Allegedly, they were supposed to stop folk getting car sick...

[shane]

They were supposed to stop car sickness by discharging static, although I never understood why static might have been a cause of car sickness, and car tyres are sufficiently conductive to earth the body anyway.

[Dave the bass]

Sounds like them. Some had like a lightning bolt symbol printed on, I remember.

That was to remind the electricity which way it had to go.

[Mike H]

Of course!

[shane]

Saw one today firmly attached to the plastic bumper of a Ford Fiesta.

[Mike H]

[Morgan Jones]

And car tyres are sufficiently conductive to earth the body anyway.

Not on our 1988 Ford Fester they weren't; got a zap each time I got out. Kept meaning to fit one one of those trailing strips (had a steel core). Not to the plastic bumper, mind. And the fan belt squealed too.

[shane]

Ah yes, but….

I used to often get a belt off Dad’s old Morris 1100, but only when I got out and turned round to close the door. I think what was happening was that synthetic fabrics in my clothes generated a static charge when I was sitting in the vinyl seats, which didn’t have a path to ground until after I’d opened the door using the plastic internal door handle, stood on the ground in my crepe or leather-soled shoes and then touched the metal external door handle, thereby discharging through the car body and tyres to earth.

Could be wrong though!