Its the most wonderful…

ACKKKK!  STATIC ELECTRICITY!!!
Static Electricity is a problem for Metal Bed Knitting Machines and for yarn! On a metal bed machine the symptoms are a grinding sound and the carriage may be difficult to move. 

Those of us that have experienced the joys of static electricity know that it will stop your holiday speed machine knitting dead in its tracks!  Its knowing how to deal with it that will get you through these dry times.  There are many quick and easy ways to resolve static electricity build up and get your carriage moving.  First lets look at why static electricity is going to impact your ability to knit.

Is your knitting schedule full of yarn and gifting plans at the last minute?  Did your household heat get turned on in the last month?  If so … you know that your household air is dry.  When you mix dry air, fiber, and metal parts that touch each other repeatedly you will have issues with static build up.  This will cause your carriage to “lock up” or be difficult to move it will also make your yarn stick to itself in ways you might not expect.

SO… how does this happen?  Well if my linking skills have worked properly the words STATIC ELECTRICITY are leading you to the wiki which discusses Static Electricity. Ultimately an electric charge can build up on the surfaces of your machine bed as a result of contact (friction) based charge. Your carriage and needles are rubbing against the yarn and the effect on the machine bed is the same as that of your hair when you rub a balloon against it. Instead of its hair standing on end the charge causes the carriage to make a grinding sound and become hard to move.

Now we fix it. First and foremost, if your machine and yarn are becoming electrically charged the air in your home is probably quite dry. This can cause problems with sinuses as well. Something that will help you, your machine and your family is to add humidity to your home. This can be as easy as boiling some water on the stove, or keeping a pot of water on or near the fireplace. This will release moisture into your household air in the form of steam. You can also purchase a humidifier or air ionizer for use in key areas of your home.

Once static is a problem you’ll need to take some quick and easy action then knit on with joy. The first line of static defense is keeping your machine clean and lubricated. A clean machine offers less loose fluffy fiber for exchanging electrical charge between fresh yarn, bed and carriage. Lubrication acts as an anti static agent.  In the same realm is the use of a dryer sheet. A dryer sheet run gently down the bed of a machine removes static just that fast.  Its not a permanent solution however.  Over time the anti static agent will wear off. So you need to re-apply. I personally am not fond of this resolution. I don’t enjoy handling dryer sheets so a permanent solution needed to be found. 

Consider that many metal bed knitting machines have electronic components near the bed or within the carriage. Static discharge on or near these components can damage them beyond repair.  Are you scared silly now?  There are several permanent ways to resolve static electricity from building up and being a problem.  There are Anti Static devices that can be connected to your machine bed which re route the potentially damaging static and release the charge harmlessly away from sensitive parts.  These attach to your machine bed and are grounded away from sensitive parts.

Yarn itself can be treated to ease static build up. Placed in the freezer for a few hours will add enough moisture to allow you to knit happily until the yarn has been in the dry air for awhile. It can then be returned to the freezer. Many people use Lori Lynn Yarn Spray with great success. This is applied to yarn placedd in a bag.  This has to be re-applied as you knit down to uncoated fibers.  Wax is another anti static agent.  Many machines have wax holders built in.  The wax coating is very light and washes out without special handling. Refills for the wax holder are available from any dealer. Consider these wax refills even if you don’t have an actual wax holder. Yarn can be threaded through the hole and have the same effect. Tea-light candles with wicks removed can also be substituted. The wax refills for knitting machines are smaller and lighter weight you can purchase them no matter what machine you presently own. Wax also smooths fibers when working with extra fluffy yarns making them easier to knit with.

So what did I do?   I had an urgent need so a handy copper scrubbie is in use, and has been to the point that I forgot that static could be a problem.   A new user’s issue reminded me about static problems and knitting machines.  

 I know there are other methods and ways to correct and avoid Static Electricity.  Add your comments about your resolutions!  You can email photos of your anti static resolutions if you’d like to share them here.  You never know who you’ll be helping!

This entry was posted on December 9, 2009 at 10:39 am and is filed under Education, Machine Knitting, Techniques. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.