Hold onto the car door when getting out to avoid getting an electric shock

THE dry spell has been bad for potato growers – and motorists.

Well, no one is going to dispute that drought is bad for growers, but what was that about motorists?

A colleague explained to me just the other day what the problem was. He said that every time he gets out of his car and closes the door, when the air is dry as a bone he receives a severe electric shock.

The discharge of static electricity is sometimes so violent that there is an audible crack and a visible flash. He added that he had become almost phobic about shutting his car door and had taken to doing so with his foot.

But even that isn’t foolproof. Having used the foot trick the other day, he went immediately to use a cashpoint machine, and as soon as his finger approached the keypad there was that familiar crack and flash as the accumulated charge on his body earthed itself on the metal.

Unfortunately, the machine did not go into spasm and start spewing out £20 notes.

He has also received shocks at the entrance of a shop and from his own front door, yelping embarrassingly on both occasions.

Now my colleague and anyone else plagued by static charges in this way should know this: there is a reliable way of avoiding the dreaded shocking experience.

All you have to do is firmly grasp the edge of your car door after you have opened it but while you are still in your seat.

Then, when you step out, the static charge will dissipate easily and painlessly as your foot touches the ground.

The problem with getting out and then touching the car door is that as your hand nears the door, the charge abruptly arcs across the gap before your hand makes contact, resulting in the unpleasant shock.

So now you know.