Dealing with Static on LP palyback

Your explanation for why my meter measures no net charge increase on an LP surface and mine are different in phenomenology but not different in that the net result is no net increase in negative charge on the LP surface after playing a record.  Once again, it is only the results of my experiment that convince me.  You don't seem to realize that you need not give up your conviction that the stylus may give off electrons or negative ions to the LP surface.  I am allowing that maybe this happens, but for some reason the net charge on the surface remains neutral.  I offered one hypothesis to explain that, and you offered another.

You wrote, "Your cheap charge meter stands as much chance of detecting a few electrons as eyeballing a record has of seeing micron-sized dust particles.  You need a scanning electron microscope for the latter!" I cannot contend with such bullheadedness.  Where did I say I see electrons or that it is even possible to see them, even by the way under any electron microscope known to man? The meter measures electrostatic charge.  Electrostatic charge of the magnitude of a few or several thousand Volts is what we are worried about.  That much the meter can do easily and demonstrably does do. Once again, I do not and did not say that diamond does not give off electrons to vinyl; I say only that a resulting negative charge does not accumulate. Neither of us know why that is the case.

@richardbrand I have a Micro Seiki TT, with an external motor in a cast iron base, the TT itself is a 12 lb solid brass platter on a cast iron base.  The base and platter is grounded to earth.  The unit also has a vacuum system that sucks the record onto the brass platter, but unfortunately my ex-wife's cats clawed the gasket sealing material and that is no longer available.  Consequently, I use a TT mat.  I have several that I have used in the past - a thick Sorbathane that sticks to the record and platter, a white acrylic one currently in use, A thinner orange mat made of a soft rubbery substance, very much like Sorbathane but of a different brand.  They all produce static, except when the record was sucked onto the brass platter back when I had the vacuum in use.  

The belt that drives the platter is a single silk thread.  I do plan to upgrade to a different belt.  Silk does generate static for sure, but both ends are earth grounded - the platter and the spindle end.  I doubt the silk thread is a static problem.

I do have carpet in place, although I rarely notice static build up when walking on it and touching a doorknob.  It does happen occasionally, but rarely.  I'm not sure of the carpet material, but I'd bet it is a synthetic.  

@oldaudiophile I've looked for things in the past to make a dust cover.  My favorite idea was making one out of safety glass and using a fish tank type construction.  It was a great idea until I discovered what it would weigh.  I would need counterweights or springs to help lift it!

My current plan is to make one out of 3/8" plexiglass and secure each edge to 1/2" walnut.  I did find some hinges that would work perfectly for it as they will attach to the TT base I made.  I'm pretty sure I can kill a resonance issue by the inherent weight of the plexiglass and having it close on silicon weather stripping. 

The size is 24" x 30", so 3/8" plexiglass should be heavy enough and thick enough to minimize any vibrations.  At least, for now, that is the plan.

It has been my usual preference to stay mum while reading these kinds of discussions in a somewhat bemused manner.  In my profession, which was to prevent or at least mitigate the effects of dust explosions, Triboelectric Effects, were a serious problem.  The reason was that strong static discharge ignitions can and do occur that result in industrial explosions.  In the playing of vinyl records it is an on-again, off-again nuisance, but it is only a nuisance. Nevertheless, I do have credentials in the field so to speak and feel compelled to weigh in here, in an attempt to sort out some of the confusion.  First and foremost I will admit that I am not particularly interested in the root causes for static buildup on records.  I simply accept that sometimes we experience static buildup on our records and it is best to reduce or eliminate it when it occurs.  My reason is simple, the level of static buildup that we experience on our records never reaches dangerous levels.  So my strategy is when I experience static I want to reduce it acceptable levels.  There are a number of ways to do that such as neutralizing guns, mats, arms etc, all have been discussed earlier in this thread.  AFAIK, any would be OK. I will side with Lewm that the simple act of playing our records does not generate significant static.  Perhaps the record brush many of us apply before dropping the needle does generate sufficient static to be worth mention.  To me that is more likely.  I am also not a fan of closing the dust cover during play, but hey it is your turntable and if you live in a dusty house, who am I to tell you what you should do?  Personally, I change the filter in my HVAC system quarterly or more often to keep the house dust load to an acceptable level.  As others have suggested, in cold climates where central heating systems may result in low overall relative humidity, a humidifier could be beneficial and would certainly be worth a try.  The key take aways here are that static is a nuisance, it is not dangerous, when it happens there are any number of devices that work to reduce it - take your pick, and there are things you can do to improve your home environment that will reduce but not eliminate the problem.  I hope some of you find these comments helpful and constructive.

@billstevenson 

I will side with Lewm that the simple act of playing our records does not generate significant static

Bill, thanks for your contribution here!  I tried to stay out of it as long as I could, too.

I agree that playing records does not constitute a significant explosion risk.  As an Aussie, I wish I could say the same about coal dust in a mine, or dust from grains in a silo.

Use of the word "significant" is significant.  To me, static is significant if it causes pops by, in effect, super-gluing dust particles to the groove.  To others, it may only seem significant if there are sparks and kilovolt read outs.  But if you look at the atmosphere, there is almost a kilovolt potential difference between your head and your feet and it is of no significance in everyday life.  Except if you are soldering sensitive components, when you should be using a wrist band to connect yourself to a conductive work surface.

First and foremost I will admit that I am not particularly interested in the root causes for static buildup on records

There we differ, especially when confronted by a blanket statement that it is not caused by the stylus, when all the physics I know says it could be!  That statement has since been slightly softened ...

there are any number of devices that work to reduce it

I know we both miss our Dust Bugs.  Boy, the dust they picked up was phenomenal.  Not sure they did anything about static, though.  But many devices simply don’t work or may make things worse if not used properly.  Zerostats and similar emit positive ions on one stroke, and then negative ions.  You have to somehow reduce the dose to zero, or you will end up with a charged record.

there are things you can do to improve your home environment

Such as centralised heating systems that include electrostatic precipitators to eliminate the smallest dust particles, but only if the dust particles are charged!

On dust covers, I now have one turntable with one, and one without.  To my great surprise, when I measured the effect of opening the lid there was no significant increase in feedback from the speakers.  But obviously, a thousand-fold less air volume is available to supply dust when the lid is closed.

The Holbo air bearing system on the other hand cannot be played with its optional cover in place.  The tonearm bearing has about 10 microns clearance and is reputedly machined to 3 microns tolerance.  There are warnings not to move the arm unless the air supply is on, and a cloth is supplied to protect the bearing when not in use. For comparison, 10 microns seems to be about the smallest particle bothering a record groove.