Why Does Static Electricity Get Worse in Winter?

I HATE getting shocked

We've been very lucky in Connecticut so far this Winter. It's only been really cold a couple of times since October. This morning, it's COLD, you can smell snow in the air when you go outside. As I walked into work, I was reminded of how cold it was by simply hanging my coat up. As I hung my jacket on a metal door handle, I got a huge static electricity shock! Oh man, this was a beauty. It made my fingers go numb. I started thinking, why the hell do we get these static electricity shocks only in Winter? So, I did some researching:

According to a post on ExplainthatStuff.com, Static Electricity is simply the burst of energy when two different "charged" materials are brought together. All materials are made out of atoms, which are surrounded by electrons. These electrons have a positive or a negative charge. So, when your finger-- which is positively charged, approaches a piece of metal, which is negatively charged, you get a big discharge of electricity. OUCH.

Why is static electricity is more prevalent in Winter? I never get shocked hanging up my bathing suit on the hook in Summer? It's the humidity in the air. Moisture in the air helps dissipate the static electricity from your body, but in the Winter, there is less humidity in the air. So, without this helpful humidity, we are retaining much more of a charge than in the warmer months.

Simple solutions for avoiding these surprising shocks? Buy a humidifier for your home or office, it will keep you humid, and provide you a saving layer of moisture. You could also keep a coin in your hand, or your keys, as you touch metal objects. I hope my little blog will save you from a surprise shock today.

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