To start off: I was explaining to my friend that I don’t have a grounding point in my house (plumbing is PVC, outlets are gcfi protected only, not allowed to drive a grounding rod into the ground, etc…) and that I’ve just been handling sensitive electronics with just luck and preparation (humidity, moisturizer, no synthetic clothing, etc…) all this time. He told me to just wire myself to a good, multimeter tested, grounding point in a car and that will discharge any built-up static electricity. I’m not smart enough to argue with him on this subject but that doesnt seem the safest. Would that work or should I just keep doing my method? My understanding is that chassis grounding is essentially replacing wires with the frame so the outcome would just be connecting myself to the negative terminal of a car battery.

Tldr: I’m explaining my lack of a grounding point at home for sensitive electronics and is advised by my friend to wire myself to a grounded point in a car to discharge built-up static electricity. However, I’m uncertain about the safety of this suggestion and questions whether my current method of handling electronics with precautions is sufficient.

Edit: lmao people are really getting hung up on the no grounded outlet part. Umm my best explanation I guess is that its an older house that had 2 prong outlets and was “updated” with gfci protected outlets afterwards think the breakers as well. My understanding is that its up to code but I’m not an electrician. As for the plumbing I’m sure there’s still copper somewhere but the majority has been updated to pvc over the years. Again it’s not my house I don’t want to go biting the hand that feeds me. Thank you though, haha

Edit #2: thank you all so much for the helpful advice, I really appreciate all of you!

  • snooggums
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    310 months ago

    Ground is the entirely wrong term but people will argue it up and down because it has always been called ground.

    It serves the same purpose so they kept the existing name that hasn’t been literal for a very, very long time.

    • @[email protected]
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      510 months ago

      In schematics, we use different type of GND symbols depending on what kind it is (analog, digital, chassis, etc)

    • @XeroxCool
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      310 months ago

      It doesn’t serve the same purpose. You ground in a car chassis to get power. You don’t get power from a ground in house wiring, you use ground for faults

      • snooggums
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        10 months ago

        You can use ground in a car to complete the circuit, such as when using jumper cables, but the frame is the ground and you aren’t getting power from the frame.

        Maybe you are thinking of negative and positive wire markings being the opposite?

        • @XeroxCool
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          110 months ago

          Completing the circuit is what I’m calling “getting power”. Breaki g either side, regardless of positive or negative, regardless of connecting to the posts or the frame, breaks the circuit and power is “lost”. Not to mention electrons flow from the negative terminal to the positive. “Getting power” is a casual term. A positive-common chassis wouldn’t provide power in a circuit any more than a negative-common chassis