hose

pgrbff

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Joined
Feb 8, 2016
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19
I'm sure this is a daft question, but I have to buy everything online.
What is the difference between grey and green hose?
 
The green hose is anti-static while the grey hose is not. You need the green hose if you are using a tool which is fitted with a plugit cable as these are not earthed and you will be shocked by static electricity build up on the tool. This also assumes that you are using a CT extractor as these have an anti-static hose fitting. If you are using the kapex or OF2200 router these are earthed thru the power cable and you can get away with a grey hose.
 
I don't think the earthing of the power cable of the tool has any influence.

Static builds up in the hose when the dust particles pass through it. The green hose is conductive so the static electricity can flow away through the vacuum cleaner's earthed power lead.

The grey hose is not conductive so the static charge stays in place. When you touch the hose it can shock you because the charge wants to go to the ground through you.

Static build up seems to be very dependent on circumstances. Some people get it all the time, others never. I have two green 27 mm hoses and a grey 36 mm hose. I experienced static only once in 8 years and it was with a green hose.
 
Is static more of a problem with european 220 standard than 110, or is it just the physics of the dust?  I've never experienced static discharge prior to getting Festool stuff, though on a couple of occasions when I was running the router for hours on end I did notice electrically charged dust build-up on the router table hose.
 
Edward A Reno III said:
Is static more of a problem with european 220 standard than 110, or is it just the physics of the dust?  I've never experienced static discharge prior to getting Festool stuff, though on a couple of occasions when I was running the router for hours on end I did notice electrically charged dust build-up on the router table hose.

It has nothing to do with the tools themselves or their voltage.

It is purely the physics of dust. Static electricity is formed when you rub two materials together. It happens constantly in real life, but in most cases the electric charge is immediately released because it flows away through a conductive surface. Only in some cases, when a material does not conduct electricity (= an isolator), a static charge will build up. Vac hoses are mostly made out of plastic, which is an isolator. 

From what I've read here on the forum, especially people in very dry areas seem to have the most problems with static. Water is a conductor. I myself live near the coast, where air humidity is pretty high, and thats probably why I never have a problem with static electricity.
 
From an American perspective, everyone in our country lives close to the coast.

I never had a problem with static dust, except maybe one time with the grey Precisio Y-hose. Can't really remember. The longer hoses I have are all green. I paid extra to get the 36mm in green as part of some cleaning set.
 
Alex said:
It is purely the physics of dust. Static electricity is formed when you rub two materials together. It happens constantly in real life, but in most cases the electric charge is immediately released because it flows away through a conductive surface. Only in some cases, when a material does not conduct electricity (= an isolator), a static charge will build up. Vac hoses are mostly made out of plastic, which is an isolator. 

Agreed...
I had the same issue with some 4" plastic convoluted tubing that is hooked up to my dust collector. I just used the internal spring wire inside the hose, to conduct the electrical charge to the ground strap on the DC.

With that minor modification, I went from a non-conductive hose to a conductive hose.  [big grin]
 
I'd guess that for small systems like the Fesool, static is not a problem for most users. A big system has a lot of surface area to build a larger charge on.

Besides the annoyance of getting zapped, you don't want to get zapped when using a power tool and risk injury from the tool.

My hoses are all AS so I haven't had an issue with my Festools to pass along. But, I have seen dust clumping together on other tools, like the dust box under a table saw, because of static.
 
I never have any static build up with my festool hoses and all mine are grey hoses. I sold all my green hoses i hate how stiff they are.  I like flexible hose.

I do often get a static shock from my dust extractor when i remove the hose to suck up alot of dust in a short space of time of my cnc bed.  Makes me jump every time.   
 
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