OT - Electric Shocks From Shopping Carts

DerbyDad03 · 2012-09-13T15:59:58+00:00

I was shopping at BJ's last night and was pushing one of their big redshopping carts around the store. The carts are metal, with a plasticsemi-circle attached to the top of the handle, leaving the metal onthe bottom of the handle exposed.A couple of times I felt something strange on the finger tips on myleft hand so I (carefully) slid my hand along the underside of thehandle to see if there something sharp under there. It was completelysmooth.I continued walking around the store and continued to feel the strangesensation every few steps, eventually realizing that it felt like Iwas being shocked.I paid close attention to the position of my hands and found that if Iwrapped my hands around the handle in a normal fashion, but moved myfinger tips so that they were very close to, but not touching, themetal underside of the handle, I would get a static electricity shockevery few steps.It didn't hurt, but it was not a pleasant feeling.

Sep 13, 2012 26 Replies

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DerbyDad03 13 years ago

I'll really show my age.

I worked for the IT department of a major company and spent a couple of years installing countless Radio Shack TRS-80 word processors. The static electricity issues with these machines were notorious for wiping out the data on the 8" floppies.

I recall one system where you could walk up, touch the plastic case of the keyboard and the daisy wheel printer would spit out a character.

In the worst locations we would attach grounding straps to the sprinkler system with a wrist strap for the users to put on before they sat down to use the machine.

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Frank 13 years ago

This defines triboelectric effect:

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I believe someone should be able to find tables of materials and relative potential charge when rubbed together.

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Doug 13 years ago

So that explains your crazy thoughts about a week or so ago... too much heat and not enough water :-)

I guess you have less allergies or colds there tho ??

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jeff_wisnia 13 years ago

I hate the unoiled squeeky wheel bearings, or the too tight dry ones which make the cart want to turn when you push it.

Jeff

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tanberryquick 13 years ago

Did you ever get a BJ at BJ's?

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king_key 13 years ago

Certain types of winter coats seem to cause this. I had one coat that was some sort of plastic material or nylon, or something like that, and it was always giving me shocks when I got out of the car. I sent that coat to the garbage and seldom got shocked with other coats.

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wabbit 13 years ago

Just open the car door and take a piss on the ground first!!!!

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