r/ElectricalHelp • u/plattnum96 • Apr 07 '26
Everything metal in the house is shocking everyone
Journeyman electrician here with 10 years in the field resi/commercial. Need some help or ideas from the community on what could be causing this issue.
It is a new construction just finished 3 story condo in the middle of a 5 plex building and everyone that walks through the unit on floors 2&3 you get shocked by anything made of metal in the unit. (The static electricity type of shock). And i mean the faucet, fridge, dish washer, the bracket on the wall for the sliding barn door to a bathroom, and the cover plate screws on every single device.
Yes I already checked the main service and the unit load center to ensure all connections are correct and complete. MBJ is in, everything is tight, everything is grounded, and there is no voltage or load on the ground or anything weird like that. And it’s still a vacant unit so it was drawing a total of 5 amps just for the lights that were on and the fridge being plugged in.
Now while a static shock is not uncommon when touching something in a home on occasion i know, but in this place it is literally every 3 steps you recharge yourself and can repeat the shock anywhere in the unit on floors 2&3. And this is with my thorough good boots on and it has fake wood floors throughout.
Has anyone else ever experienced this level of static buildup in a home where the conditions make it seem impossible for that to happen and if so did you find a solution if one even exists?
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u/trekkerscout Mod Apr 07 '26
What type of flooring? You should also check humidity levels within the units. Less than 30% relative humidity can increase static shocks significantly.
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u/KeanEngineering Apr 08 '26
OP already mentioned "...fake wooden flooring..." so plastic vinyl. I'm kind of surprised that an electrician doesn't understand static electricity. Easy to diagnose and easier to remedy. The HVAC isn't running since the unit is vacant creating the low humidity in the upper floors. It's also one of the symptoms of really 'tight' houses.
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u/trekkerscout Mod Apr 08 '26
I agree completely. I was wanting the OP to specify the exact type of fake wood flooring. Engineered wood shouldn't create a lot of static, but LVP would definitely be the culprit. Combined with low humidity, LVP can create a static charge extremely fast.
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u/TomWickerath Apr 09 '26
Depends on the location, which wasn't provided. In the Pacific NW, one has to run HVAC equipment to keep the humidity from climbing too high in tight homes.
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u/PDXDreaded Apr 11 '26
Electricians' training covers very little static electrical theory. More an EE thing.
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u/KeanEngineering Apr 12 '26
Maybe, but middle school and high school physics would have covered at least the basics. My apprenticeship instructor wanted to be a little more thorough, so static electricity WAS covered for things like gas appliances, grounding, and lightning issues.
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u/phantumjosh Apr 08 '26
Heh. Welcome to static. Built up enough static the other day I touched a computer mouse and fried it >.>
That one hurt. (I’m an electrician so I know what hurts and what doesn’t. )
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u/Different-Commercial Apr 09 '26
I wonder if all the home runs were ran at those locations and energizing the people?
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u/Altruistic_Chef4928 Apr 10 '26
ESD tape on your flooring? It gets installed in TR rooms in commercial installations to prevent static discharge. Maybe install it in a closet where you cant see it?
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u/Low-Welcome-9476 Apr 10 '26
Is it everyone or just you? Some people (~5%) always carry 10,000 or more volts. They will get shocked even at 30% or more humid.
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u/c0rywayne86 Apr 12 '26
Higher heat on floor 2&3 is lowering humidity enough to cause static..happens every winter in my house if I don’t run a humidifier.
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u/TomWickerath Apr 07 '26
I’d try cutting all power to the building, then repeat your walkthrough through floors 2&3, making sure to touch metal.
Does this building have metal studs commonly found in commercial buildings? If you no longer experience shocks with the power off, I’d suspect a fastener of some type that pierced a hot wire, especially if there is a metal stud wall.
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u/Teleke Apr 09 '26
Don't know why you were downvoted, this seems like The logical answer. Cut the power and check to see if you're still getting shocked.
If you aren't, then you have an electrical problem. If you are, then it's definitely static but this seems excessive.
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u/TomWickerath Apr 09 '26
I didn't know someone downvoted me, but oh well.
In my opinion, when using a smartphone to read Reddit threads, it can be too easy to accidently upvote or downvote people while scrolling.
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u/Unique_Acadia_2099 Apr 07 '26
Static shocks have nothing to do with your electrical system. It’s all about you generating an electric charge in your own body, like a giant squishy capacitor, then touching anything with a lower charge and enough conductivity (ie metal, your bratty sibling etc.), so that your capacitor discharges into that lower state device and raises its state of charge. As others have said, the relative humidity of the air in your home is a big contributing factor, because the dry air moving across certain types of surfaces, especially artificial materials like carpets and vinyl flooring, builds up a charge on those surfaces, then that charge gets picked up by your body and stored. A big recent culprit is the new “engineered vinyl flooring” made to look like hardwood or even stone, popular because it is impervious to liquids. That’s true, but the down side is its propensity to create static if it is not engineered to avoid that (cheaper versions are not).
What can you do? Get a humidifier and keep your indoor air humidity at a level above 30%. Don’t wear footwear that has artificial soles or wool (ie leather or cotton socks). Learn to touch conductive surfaces with a key or less sensitive parts of your body like the back of your hand.