When walking across your carpet during the winter results in painful static discharges, know that there are ways you can combat this phenomenon. During the winter season, carpet can develop static charges. When it comes to synthetic carpet, the static charge can damage the carpet’s fibers. Additionally, the static in carpet is essentially a type of magnet that attracts dirt and dust, resulting in dirty carpets. As you can see, static in carpet isn’t just an annoyance, it leads to dirty and damaged carpets. Heart of Texas Chem-Dry will share how static builds up in carpets and how you can prevent static in your carpets.
Why Does Carpet Produce Static Electricity?
All states of matter is made of atoms which contain equal numbers of positive and negative protons. When the positive and negative protons become unbalanced, they generate a static charge. What causes the unbalancing can vary. However, in the case of carpet, it is often due to two materials meeting and rubbing together. Some common examples are walking across carpet, most often with socks on, or rubbing your hand or body on the carpet. The friction between the two materials creates the static charge. Carpet is unique in the sense it can generate static or electrical energy and hold on to it for days and even weeks, unlike metals. Some of the common fibers in carpet such as wool, nylon, silk, cotton, acrylic, viscose, polyester, ramie, and acetate, can generate and hold static energy. Static often generates more quickly during the winter as activity slows down and the cold air helps to retain the electric energy.
Hazards of Static Electricity
Soils can also generate static in carpets and even attract even more soils into the carpet fibers. Basically, the static is helping to make the carpet dirty. Static can cause a need for more frequent carpet cleaning and even damage the carpet at the same time. The soil in the carpet can rub against the carpet fibers which slowly thins the carpet. Additionally, the electrical discharge also damages the carpet fiber and it can especially effect synthetic carpets. There have even been reported events of huge static discharges that lead to a house fire when in contact with a flammable substance.
Anti Static Spray & Other Prevention
Static energy is a more common problem during the season of low humidity, which in most cases is winter. The winter cold drops humidity levels down and allows for static charges to build up inside your home and in the carpets. One of the key aspects of preventing static build up in your home’s carpet is by controlling the indoor humidity. By adding a humidifier in the home, you can help produce the needed humidity to reduce static and its development. There are also Anti-Static agents that you can apply on top of the carpet. However, some anti-static agents can be a little sticky. Therefore, when seeking out anti-static agents, make sure to read reviews.
Carpet Cleaning Services & More in Waco, Dallas, Arlington, Harker Heights, Cedar Park, Allen & the State of Texas
Battling winter static can be done by either adding humidity into the home or with anti-static agents. For quality carpet cleaning services and more, contact Heart of Texas Chem-Dry and schedule our services today.
