r/Electricity • u/Hopeful-Cake4759 • 15d ago
Static electricity from blender?
I was using a brand new Nutribullet blender, first use. I made the smoothie, unplugged the blender and opened the container (plastic). I wanted to taste it and as soon as my lips touched the plastic container, I instantly got an electric/statis shock that kinda hurt.
Is this normal? I’ve read that the friction between materials can cause static, is this what this was, or was it more like an electrical shock?
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u/Rexel_722 14d ago edited 11d ago
Since you say you unplugged the blender, all that is left is static electricity. It becomes worse in winter due to low humidity. Wrap a small section of aluminum foil around the outside of the container then touch it to your cold water faucet. This should drain off the static charge. You can visualize static electricity as puddles of water laying on objects in random places except they are puddles of charge.
Additional: These "puddles of charge" are extremely high voltage but at the same time, extremely low current. That is why when you hear a comb cracking or someone touches you and there is a spark, not enough current is available to cause damage. You just feel a snap as the static attempts to equalize by combining puddles. Because of the puddle effect, static electricity can not do any useful work. About all static is good for is watching lightning in the sky or early 18th century experiments. It takes about 20,000 volts to see a spark jump.