ESD

[xjlkx]

Hello Everyone -

My server room seems to be generating a substantial and sustained static charge - substantial enough to potentially do damage. I was just wondering what people are using to de-stat their server rooms. Any suggestions would be great. Thanks

 

[secsdavifcom]

I don't know much about server rooms, but I do know a little bit about static electricity. It is not impossible that your problem is due to extreme dryness. The drier it is, the more static you are going to get. I would suggest you obtain a good quality humidistat. That is basically a thermometer which also doubles has a humidity indicator. Idealy, the humidity content of your room should be around 50% RH (Relative humidity). If it is below 35 or 40%, it is too dry and would generate a lot of static. If it is that low and stays low all day and all the time, you should get a humidifier. If you do get a humidifier, be EXTRA carefull not to exceed 50 or 55%. Excess humidity could rust out electrical componant of your equipment.
Hope this was of some help.

 

[AlexandreAmant]

Static electricity is produced when two non-conductor materials are rubber against each other (eg a cumb in the hair). Each piece gets loaded with charges of different sign (+ and -).
In a room, the most common way of getting static electricity is rubber shoes on a vinyl floor or carpet floor.
I would recommend to first look at the floor and the shoes people are wearing. It is not uncommon to ask people to remove their shoes in a server room, and it will keep dust and mud away as well.

Secondly, as secsdavifcom mentionned it, ambiant humidity, especially in a room where a lot of fans are running (I guess), they will produce static electricity (by rubbing plastic against air).
Possibly, your room is aircond, so you can regulate the humidity through that.

Thirdly, it is a good idea to wear an antistatic bracelet that you connect to the chassis of the machine you are working on if you want to be 100% safe against static electricity. The bracelet will connect you to the earth via the computer's chassis. ALWAYS make sure the power chord is plugged in and the earth connection in your server room is ok. If you work on an unplugged machine, the antistatic bracelet will be of almost no use.

If you don't want to use a bracelet, always make sure a part of your body touches the computer's chassis anytime, this will connect you to the earth and thus discharge you.

For your information, if you feel static electricity (most common is when going out of a car and touching the door), this means that the voltage between you and the car was above 5000 V.
ESD sensitive devices (a CPU for example) can be destroyed with a less than 1000 V of static electricity, so even when you don't feel it, it can be fatal to your machine.

Hope it helped !

@lex

 

[edfair]

There is a floor treatment spray that helps. You might try a google search for it. Ed Fair
unixstuff@juno.com
Any advice I give is my best judgement based on my interpretation of the facts you supply. Help increase my knowledge by providing some feedback, good or bad, on any advice I have given.

 

[ANFPS26]

There are also anti-static floor mats that are grounded to the metal framework of the cabinets. We had these where I used to work.
These don't seem to be the grounded type, but are one example:

http://www.matdepot.com/mat2/showprod.cfm?&DID=1&CATID=2&objectgroup_id=2

Do a Google search for more. Jim

Please come back and let us know if your
problem is fixed and what fixed it!!