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Author Topic: Static problems Alex Grasic Film Handler Posts: 90 From: Toronto, ON, Canada Registered: Jul 2002 posted 12-12-2002 12:40 AM                     I need as much input as possible on my little problem. I have a bad problem with static on my film which has caused quite a few brain wraps lately. Anyone have any good advice for getting rid of the static?? I picked up a humidifier for a small part of the booth to see if it makes any impact. I think it may be the way to go...that is...picking up a few of these for the booth...any other tips?  |  IP: Logged John Westlund Expert Film Handler Posts: 204 From: Burney, CA, USA Registered: Jun 2001 posted 12-12-2002 12:47 AM                     Try and keep the humidity around 50%. The best thing that you can do for static is to get a media cleaner and some film guard. But if you dont have a media cleaner and cant get one I would still get the film guard. You can spray it on a rag and wipe down the edge of the print. Then you can take up the film once with the soundtrack down and wipe that side of the print. This should eliminate the static and a lot of shedding. John  |  IP: Logged Joe Redifer You need a beating today Posts: 12859 From: Denver, Colorado Registered: May 99 posted 12-12-2002 01:01 AM                        Yes. FilmGuard. Nothing works better or faster against static. Click on the spectacularly designed "Filmguard" button on the left (underneath the incredibly designed "Forums" button). After you awe in the excellent crafstmanship required to make these buttons, you can read more about Filmguard and what it can do for you.  |  IP: Logged Mathew Molloy Master Film Handler Posts: 357 From: The Santa Cruz Mountains Registered: Nov 2000 posted 12-12-2002 02:05 AM                     When we first took over operations of the theatre I manage now, static was our #1 foe. We had wrap after wrap after wrap. I spent half my time in the booth sitting next to the platter making sure it wouldn't wrap (and we tried all kinds of things like humidifiers, fabric softeners, etc). A couple months later when we remodeled and upgraded we bought a Kelmar cleaner and Filmguard. Not a single static-induced wrap nor even a hint of one in ten months. If you can convince those who need convincing that for the quarter of the cost of a replacement print you'll do away with wraps and have the added benefit of clean prints and gates.  |  IP: Logged Michael Schaffer "Where is the Boardwalk Hotel?" Posts: 4143 From: Boston, MA Registered: Apr 2002 posted 12-12-2002 05:11 AM                        Shouldn`t static be no problem with properly grounded platters? In my experience, the sticking of prints which leads to brain wraps is often caused by prints that haven`t been properly processed in the lab, so that the top layer of the print peels off to reveal the colour layers below which make the print stick to itself. This problem often occured 2-3 days after the print had started in our theater.  |  IP: Logged John Pytlak Film God Posts: 9987 From: Rochester, NY 14650-1922 Registered: Jan 2000 posted 12-12-2002 07:35 AM                        "Static Cling" was first widely reported in 1995, with prints of "The American President". Pytlak "Film Notes" Article to Help with Static Cling on "American President" Since the introduction of the improved KODAK VISION Color Print films which have a conductive antistatic backing layer, incidents of "static cling" have been greatly reduced, if not completely eliminated. Optimum humidity for projection rooms is between 50 and 60 percent relative humidity. Accurate, low cost digital humidity gauges are available, and should be used to monitor humidity: Holmes Humidity Gauge Radio Shack Gauge 1013 Radio Shack Gauge 1036 With winter heating sometimes reducing the relative humidity to "bone dry" levels below 30% RH, additional moisture sometimes needs to be added to minimize film curl and control static buildup. Most HVAC systems include humidification, but may need to be adjusted for the dry winter months. For localized humidification in the projection room, Kodak recommends evaporative humidifiers that add moisture by blowing the air through a wet media or filter material. Do NOT use humidifiers or vaporizers that actually spray water droplets or mist into the air, as any minerals in the water will dry and deposit themselves as a white salty powder (not good for electronics and optics), and the mist may actually condense on film or electronic components. Steam humidifiers/vaporizers are very expensive to operate, and have limited capacity. Simply leaving buckets of water around is ineffective. Here are some high capacity evaporative humidifiers: Evaporative Humidifier Bemis Humidifier Bemis High Capacity Humidifier Even though KODAK VISION Color Print film is conductive, any static buildup needs a path to ground to discharge. Platters and projection equipment should be properly grounded. Non-conductive painted or anodized platter surfaces tend to have more static issues than conductive metal ones. Non-conductive platters and plastic rollers can be treated with conductive antistatic products: Static Guard ESD Antistats ACL Antistats Here's some good technical information on static control: Static Control Article "Static Cling" is more likely in the last reel or two of long features, when the film is peeling off the inside of the roll at a very shallow angle, allowing even a tiny amount of static charge to cause the film to stick to itself. Correct platter timing and restraining the outside of the roll are important to reduce the risk of the outside laps shifting, causing "platter fling". Sometimes, changing the winding orientation of the film (soundtrack up vs. soundtrack down) will allow the natural curl of the film to resist the tendency to pull inward. Treatment of the film itself with an antistatic is not usually necessary for Kodak film, but can be done in severe cases, when the other factors cannot be controlled. Many here on Film-Tech have reported success using FilmGuard. I am interested in following-up on any chronic instances of "static cling". Let me know the feature title, and magenta edgeprint codes of any prints that are especially prone to "static cling" (e-mail is fine). Provide information on platter type, relative humidity measurement, etc. A small sample of the leader from the affected reels will allow measurement of the processed film conductivity.  |  IP: Logged Michael Schaffer "Where is the Boardwalk Hotel?" Posts: 4143 From: Boston, MA Registered: Apr 2002 posted 12-12-2002 08:46 AM                        John, what can you tell us about the sticking problem I have described?  |  IP: Logged John Pytlak Film God Posts: 9987 From: Rochester, NY 14650-1922 Registered: Jan 2000 posted 12-12-2002 09:12 AM                        Michael Schaffer wrote: "In my experience, the sticking of prints which leads to brain wraps is often caused by prints that haven`t been properly processed in the lab, so that the top layer of the print peels off to reveal the colour layers below which make the print stick to itself. This problem often occured 2-3 days after the print had started in our theater. " If the film is physically sticking to itself (rather than just "static cling" attraction), it may be that the gelatin emulsion was too wet. Obviously, if the lab did not dry the film completely after processing, it could wind up sticky. Sometimes film gets damp during shipping. Or your projection room humidity may be too high. Optimum relative humidity is 50 to 60 percent RH. Anything above 70 percent RH risks having the gelatin emulsion get softer, and maybe even sticky. Make sure water has not leaked onto the film. If you receive a new print that is sticking as badly as you describe, replacement reels should be requested. Here's some articles I wrote a few years ago: Platter Patter Cinema Notes: All that Sticks is not Static  |  IP: Logged Tom Wurz Film Handler Posts: 17 From: Highland,CA USA Registered: Jun 99 posted 12-12-2002 10:07 AM                     Here's one for you. Our Head Projectionist sprays our prints with WD-40.  |  IP: Logged John Pytlak Film God Posts: 9987 From: Rochester, NY 14650-1922 Registered: Jan 2000 posted 12-12-2002 10:15 AM                        Tom Wurz wrote: "Here's one for you. Our Head Projectionist sprays our prints with WD-40." NO!!! "Film Done Wrong" in the First Degree! The oils in WD-40 can leach the oil-soluble dyes from color films, especially if there is any abrasion of the protective gelatin layer over the dye-containing imaging layers. You may start to see tiny green or yellow spots in the image as the dyes are removed from the abraded areas. The oily print will also be more prone to pick up dirt, and may get physically sticky or wind unevenly. If you wipe the oily WD-40 off the print emulsion with a white tissue, I bet you find a slight pink color --- that's the magenta dye being leached out of the print! Do NOT treat a print with oil or WD-40!  |  IP: Logged Tom Wurz Film Handler Posts: 17 From: Highland,CA USA Registered: Jun 99 posted 12-12-2002 11:24 AM                     He really does this......I hope everyone detected my sarcasm when I posted that. Tom P.S. Isn't WD-40 a 2 or 3 on the Hazardous Material Identification flammability scale?  |  IP: Logged John Pytlak Film God Posts: 9987 From: Rochester, NY 14650-1922 Registered: Jan 2000 posted 12-12-2002 11:29 AM                        Tom --- hopefully you can influence your Head Projectionist to stop the bad practice of spraying WD-40 on film. Does he/she read Film-Tech? BTW, here is the MSDS for WD-40: http://www.wd40.com/Brands/pdfs/msds-wd40_aerosol.us.pdf  |  IP: Logged Tom Wurz Film Handler Posts: 17 From: Highland,CA USA Registered: Jun 99 posted 12-12-2002 11:45 AM                     Not on a regular basis. I will show him your post.  |  IP: Logged Joe Redifer You need a beating today Posts: 12859 From: Denver, Colorado Registered: May 99 posted 12-12-2002 02:48 PM                        I am curious where he "learned" this WD-40 technique?  |  IP: Logged Daniel Boisson Expert Film Handler Posts: 157 From: Buffalo, NY, USA Registered: Oct 2001 posted 12-12-2002 08:36 PM                     How about those rubber strips you put on stairs for traction? Thats what my old theatre uses in several of the houses.  |  IP: Logged

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