Anti static strap

[Toyboy]

This question is for the more mature generation on here. When we were kids, I remember all the gas/fuel trucks, large & small, had a strap or chain dragging on the road underneath them. We were told at that time that those straps & chains kept the static electricity from building up and causing the truck to explode. OK, made sense to us kids.

Fast forward 55 years, you never see them. Don't even know when they went away. Are they doing something different today or were they never needed in the first place?

 

[Industrial Toys]

I remember maybe back in the sixties or seventies it was common to see cars with that one strap dragging on the ground. That and those curb feeling whiskers. Maybe it was just the same kind of fad as the neon colored windshield wipers of the ninties!

I know my 2K Dakota always gave me nasty shocks from sitting on the upholstry. Often thought about trying a strap, but never got around to it.

I had a discussion with my rocket scientist friend recently. Never underestimate the huge static charge built up from liquid flowing in a non conductive hose. Especially if the fluid is flamable or is that inflamable? Many fuel hoses have a conductive brade which is grounded. Maybe, they didn't have this years ago.

 

[Thomas]

Also get nasty shocks and started thread mid December what to do.
Rubber straps etc. didn't help my cause,just had to suck it up each time or push on window to open door.

 

[bcp]

It isn't just a rubber strap. You already have rubber touching the road. It needs to be a conductor.

http://www.gates.com/brochure.cfm?brochure=1527&location_id=1183

Bruce

 

[jinman]

All fuel trucks today have a metal cable with a big alligator clip to connect prior to transferring fuel. At airports, I normally see ground points built into the tarmac where fueling will take place. Both the aircraft and the fuel truck will be attached so that everything is at the same potential while fueling. An auto has a metal neck on the fill tube which also grounds through the fuel nozzle.

 

[weedpharma]

Today's tyres contain a fair amount of carbon. This is capable of conducting charge to earth.
Most zaps from the car are due to static from moving on the seat when you open the door. This charge is between the person and the body of the car therefore the charge is not dissipated to earth.

Weedpharma

 

[Coyote machine]

Today's tyres contain a fair amount of carbon. This is capable of conducting charge to earth.
Most zaps from the car are due to static from moving on the seat when you open the door. This charge is between the person and the body of the car therefore the charge is not dissipated to earth.

Weedpharma

That same static charge is why leaving you cell phone in the car when you fuel up is required. When women in particular and men to a lesser degree/frequency get out and answer a call, or start a call then get back into their car/truck, to stay warm in winter, then get back out to remove the fuel nozzle this static generated can cause a spark and or explosion. The phone can do the same thing. Lots of stations have signs on the tanks telling one to not use electronic devices when fueling.

 

[B7510HSD]

Saw the title of this and got excited thought maybe someone invented something the wife might like to wear!!

 

[stuckmotor]

Toyboy,
I too, remember those straps and asking about them. I never got around to asking why I don't see them any more. I'm glad you brought them up.
We used to find little silver strips of tin foil or mylar in the fields. I was told they were chaff dropped by airplanes to confuse radar. They don't seem to be used anymore either.

 

[Mace Canute]

That same static charge is why leaving you cell phone in the car when you fuel up is required. When women in particular and men to a lesser degree/frequency get out and answer a call, or start a call then get back into their car/truck, to stay warm in winter, then get back out to remove the fuel nozzle this static generated can cause a spark and or explosion. The phone can do the same thing. Lots of stations have signs on the tanks telling one to not use electronic devices when fueling.

That's an Internet myth.

snopes.com: Cell Phone Use at Gas Pump