# On removing static electricity!



## spune (Oct 3, 2011)

Morning all.

I have a doserless MC2 and it seems to be building up a lot of static, meaning the grinds come out the shoot almost horizontally!

Any ideas on how to stop this?

Iain


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## sjenner (Nov 8, 2012)

spune said:


> Morning all.
> 
> I have a doserless MC2 and it seems to be building up a lot of static, meaning the grinds come out the shoot almost horizontally!
> 
> ...


You could try RDT (aka Ross Droplet Technique)...

http://www.home-barista.com/grinders/reducing-grinder-static-revisited-t24051.html

Basically the idea is to raise the humidity level as the beans pass through the grind path.

It does work, as a HG One owner, I use it sometimes. There are lots of theories as to why some beans are worse than others.


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## The Systemic Kid (Nov 23, 2012)

sjenner said:


> You could try RDT (aka Ross Droplet Technique)...
> 
> http://www.home-barista.com/grinders/reducing-grinder-static-revisited-t24051.html
> 
> ...


Second that. Some beans are indeed worse than others. Current bag I am on is quite bad. Tried various techniques - waiting for the static to leech away by itself - time consuming and not particularly effective. Also tried tapping lower shute to release static - again not very effective. Resorted to the RDT and instant success. I find two or three droplets on to the beans before grinding gets rid of all static with zero retention. I am, like, Stephen, using a HG One so no worries about water and mains electricity but I can't see two or three droplets being particularly dangerous.


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## sjenner (Nov 8, 2012)

The Systemic Kid said:


> Second that. Some beans are indeed worse than others. Current bag I am on is quite bad. Tried various techniques - waiting for the static to leech away by itself - time consuming and not particularly effective. Also tried tapping lower shute to release static - again not very effective. Resorted to the RDT and instant success. I find two or three droplets on to the beans before grinding gets rid of all static with zero retention. I am, like, Stephen, using a HG One so no worries about water and mains electricity but I can't see two or three droplets being particularly dangerous.


Personally, I wouldn't even consider the presence of AC electricity in a powered grinder, the live parts are fully isolated from the grind path, otherwise we would all be in serious trouble.

I am using a really dinky perfume atomiser (it only holds one teaspoon of water) and it lasts for more than a week of RDT... more of a mist which seems to weigh no more than 0.1 of a gram.


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## GS11 (Feb 20, 2013)

Interesting thread. I'm also using the MC2 doserless and also notice issues with static...... but only with certain type of beans. However, I get exactly the same issue with my zass hand grinder. I'm therefore thinking this is a bean issue rather than a grinder issue.

Perhaps the drier (older) the bean or the higher the chaff content = more static?

The RDT method looks very interesting.... will try it out on my "static" beans shortly:coffee:









*
Update*

Wow made a huge difference. I stirred 1 drop of water in 15g of beans in a plastic beaker and ensured even distribution.

Grinds exited via chute with no chaff/ grinds sticking to chute. I grind to a collecting jar (which i then measure before moving to portafilter) advise static issues gone!

Static and chaff reduced 100%! So glad I read this thread


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## The Systemic Kid (Nov 23, 2012)

spune said:


> Morning all.
> 
> I have a doserless MC2 and it seems to be building up a lot of static, meaning the grinds come out the shoot almost horizontally!
> 
> ...


The RDT works brilliantly on my HG One. But as Stephen points out, may not be a good idea for non manual ones. I wonder if a way round this might be to very lightly spray the beans prior to popping them into the hopper. In no way shoul the beans be wet though. For 16grm two to three tiny drops are sufficient for me. Using an atomiser should be even better. But extreme care should be taken. Water and electricity don't go together!


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## GS11 (Feb 20, 2013)

The Systemic Kid said:


> But extreme care should be taken. Water and electricity don't go together!


Good point. I can imagine some numpty pouring a bottle of water into a hopper full of beans. A disclaimer is always good in these situations


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## sjenner (Nov 8, 2012)

The Systemic Kid said:


> The RDT works brilliantly on my HG One. But as Stephen points out, may not be a good idea for non manual ones. I wonder if a way round this might be to very lightly spray the beans prior to popping them into the hopper. In no way shoul the beans be wet though. For 16grm two to three tiny drops are sufficient for me. Using an atomiser should be even better. But extreme care should be taken. Water and electricity don't go together!


"Water and electricity don't go together"

Neither do grind paths and electricity...

I think you slightly misunderstood my previous comment SK, I was saying that the motor and any other live component of a powered grinder would by necessity be electrically isolated from the grind path... People stick all sorts of things in there, even fingers!, and so a tiny spray, 5mls per week (that's per week) around a kilo of beans, is enough to neutralise the static effect.

But of course I do take the further points about buckets of water (and whatnot) and powered grinders not mixing...


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## spune (Oct 3, 2011)

Thanks a lot, folks! I'll give the RDT a go tomorrow morning. I'll 'wet my beans' prior to putting them in the hopper though, just in case...

I'm using home roasted Coffee Compass Java Jambit at the moment. There is a wee bit of chaff left, but I remove as much as I can 'post roast' so hopefully the RDT should take care of it!

I'll let you know my findings!


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## spune (Oct 3, 2011)

The technique worked a treat, so thanks VERY much!

I weighed out the beans in a pot, put a drop on my fingers and scrambled about a bit before pouring into the grinder.

Will be continuing to use this in future and to pass on the good word.


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## The Systemic Kid (Nov 23, 2012)

spune said:


> The technique worked a treat, so thanks VERY much!
> 
> I weighed out the beans in a pot, put a drop on my fingers and scrambled about a bit before pouring into the grinder.
> 
> Will be continuing to use this in future and to pass on the good word.


Good to hear. I picked up on Stephen's thoughts (above) on using an atomiser and tried it this evening. Weighed my beans and then gave them a single blast of very fine mist. Popped them into my HG One and ground them - zero static retention. Brilliant!


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