Zapped by enclosure each time I touch it!
Hi there! Each time I touch my enclosure I get a static zap from it. This doesn't seem to happen with any other object in my room. For example, I do not get zapped by the metal desk that the printer is sitting when I touch it. Nor anything else.
I wonder what could be causing this, and whether it is a matter of any concern. I am wondering if I should ground the enclosure. I would probably not attach it to the PSU ground -- I would find a nearby outlet and attach a grounding cable to the screw.
I actually don't have a sense of whether this would work because at least according to my multimeter the metal pieces of the enclosure are have high resistance!? Anyway, I'd appreciate any feedback about this.
RE: Zapped by enclosure each time I touch it!
I initially had this problem with my MK4 in the Prusa enclosure. It would reset the printer everytime I touched the enclosure unless I grounded myself at the same time.
Over summer, this problem has disappeared. Maybe it's the higher humidity (in which case it might come back this winter), or maybe the vibration of the printer over time has worn away the paint in the enclosure joints and it's conducting properly now. Maybe try scratching paint at the joints where the bolts hold it together and see if you can get the resistance down?
Prusa MK4 since Jan 2024, Printables: @MikeB_1505898
RE: Zapped by enclosure each time I touch it!
It's extremely unlikely that the enclosure or printer is picking up a charge and then grounding it through you - it's far more likely the opposite. Is your metal desk grounded? Probably not, and that's why it doesn't happen when you touch your desk. Adding a bit of humidity to the room is one way to reduce this, another might be to place a conductive surface nearby with a few MOhms to ground that you can touch to safely ground yourself prior to touching the enclosure. If you're frequently at your desk, adding a resistor + ground connection to the desk may also give you an opportunity to drain charge while touching your desk before you head over to your printer.
RE: Zapped by enclosure each time I touch it!
Thank you. I realized the other day that I had touched the enclosure without being zapped. Now it has been a little warmer and more humid here lately. But another thing I remembered is that I usually only wear my slippers near the printer when it's cold. So that might actually be the issue. This should have been so obvious but I'll watch out for the correlation going forward and maybe change to some other type of shoe in the future.
RE: Zapped by enclosure each time I touch it!
I had the same issue, and there were (2) causes. My clothing rubbing on the chair material was one source. My shoes rubbing on the carpet was the other. Both are worse during winter (low humidity).
My solution to both sources was a spray bottle of "ACL Staticide 2005". A couple quick sprays on my chair, and a couple on the carpet near the printer, eliminated the issue. Need to repeat that every month or two during the winter, but it's just a couple light sprays -- very little is needed.
The 4-ounce (118ml) bottle would probably be a lifetime supply. I couldn't find that size, but Amazon had the 32-ounce (950ml) bottle for US$30 - so I am set for 4+ lifetimes. 😉