Advice on Static Eliminators.

[Helcio J Tagliolatto]

After many years of dust fighting I’ll buy a “static eliminator” for cleaning negatives just prior to enlarging.
I would appreciate some advice on Kodak Static Eliminator, Clean Air Plus, Simco or any other.
Are they really efective? I’ve never saw one operating.
Many thanks.

Helcio.

[aduncanson]

I have a Kinetronic StaticVac for negatives and a Milty Zerostat for film holders, negatives in holders and miscellany. Both seem to help with recalcitrant dust particles. I certainly would not pay the retail price for a new StaticVac.

I also have an air purifier with an ion generator capability. I guess that I really don't want to be bothered with dust.

[Helcio J Tagliolatto]

Thanks, Alan.

[Sideshow Bob]

This is what I use for film and my scanner drums. Works great.
Gale

[ic-racer]

I recently bought a Kinetronics 281 11" anti-static brush from B&H but it has not arrived yet (drop shipped from Mfg?) I'll report on it when I get it. I bought it for dusting my 10x10 glass negative carrier.

[Helcio J Tagliolatto]

This is what I use for film and my scanner drums. Works great.
Gale

This is the pinnacle of portable air ionizing cleaning system!!

[Renato Tonelli]

I have:
a static-master brush
an air purifier
an anti-static brush thingy once marketed by Zone VI
an air compressor

Maybe they helps - it's hard to tell - I still get dust. Naturally I like to make my life more difficult by using a glass negative carrier...

Now I'm waiting on a Kinetronics brush.

[Oren Grad]

I have a selection of the Kinetronics brushes in different sizes in my darkroom and upstairs by my scanners. I like them - they're useful as soft-bristled brushes that can be used safely on negatives and on glass carriers and scanner beds. But their purported anti-static magic is not always apparent.

[IanMazursky]

I have an 8 gallon oil lubricated air compressor from Harbor Freight.
All air is routed through an air water separator and a separate desiccator unit that uses a color changing desiccant.
This is important as they usually send out slightly wet air and occasionally some oil. This takes care of it.
The desiccator i have is from McMaster Carr and was around $60. The desiccant can be regenerated in a toaster.

I made a few manifolds that route the air around the shop with a bunch of shutoff valves (all fittings from McMaster Carr).
Shutoff valves are a good idea to section off areas of tubing that aren’t being used. It helps to keep air loss to a minimum.
I bought a roll of 500’ of PE .040 ¼” tubing from US Plastics. Its a lot of tubing but that was the minimum i could get.
It fits into the ¼” plastic fittings from McMaster and a few inexpensive air guns.
I have attached a lot of the ¼” plastic fittings to metal quick release fittings. It makes it easier to change air guns.

For film, i use a Simco top gun 3 air ionizer attached to the compressor manifold and an Exair 6” air knife w/ion bar to blow off the scanner drums.
I also have an overhead air ionizer with 3 fans. I bought Simco’s and Exair off of ebay, they weren’t new just needed a little cleaning.

One really cool thing i have is a DCR Pad & Roller. When you roll the roller across the sticky pad, it creates a static charge.
Then you roll it over film holders, tables, prints before dry mounting….and all of the dust and hair sticks to it.
Roll it back on the pad and you’d be amazed what comes off. Especially from film holders, I use it a lot on my 12x20 holders to clean them.

[banjo]

I have a Omega sticbuster BUT any thing like a Ionibrezze or a Living Air well help
just leave them run all the time
Now just so you know I am in SW KS. & SE CO. and the winds all the time If I just use
my Omega I turn it on 2 days be for I go in the darkroom to get rid of all the stic in my darkroom & other close rooms

[Drew Wiley]

My airline comes off a high quality oilless compressor, then is triple filtered with submicron filters. An optional antistaticn (negative ion) low-pressure gun is available on a branch line. But mainly I depend on a big old industrial air cleaner which actually
develops a static charge on an internal bank of copper plates to attract dust, then
removes the charge on the air out. A different principle than most current air cleaners,
more effective, and probably too expensive to market nowadays given the price of copper.