Do you know why there are rubber strips hanging from truck bumpers?

Chances are you've noticed thin rubber strips or chains hanging from the rear bumpers of cars and trucks. Basically, they hang out on relatively old models. Have you ever wondered why they are there?

A quick Google search for "rubber strips" on bumpers turns up mostly mudguards. These are protective screens made of plastic or rubber, mounted on the wheel arches of cars. They help prevent dirt, stones and water from getting on the body and windows while driving.

And here everything is clear - these details even have a name that speaks. But what can a strip a couple of centimeters wide protect against?

From static electricity. Well, at least in theory.

Strips with a thin wire cable inside or, in some cases, bare metal chains hanging from bumpers are the so-called grounding belts.

The fact is that while driving a car can accumulate static charge from friction of the body against the air, especially in dry weather. And this creates a fair amount of inconvenience.

Firstly, if you hold the handle of the car, and you are shocked, the sensations are at least unpleasant. Second, static in theory can cause potentially dangerous situations. For example, it can disable a passenger's pacemaker or create a spark during refueling.

Antistatic agents, in theory, should prevent accumulation of charge on the car and ensure its safe discharge. Therefore, they are hung just in case, you never know. Especially on trucks carrying combustible materials, where sparks are especially undesirable.

There's just a little problem: these things don't work. In the 1980s, trade standards officials in Britain brought a company that made anti-static strips to justice. They did research and figured outthat car tires ground the car much better. The wheels have a corny larger area of ​​​​contact with the surface than a thin wire.

Rubber in tires, however, is an insulator, but the carbon contained in them, on the contrary, is an excellent conductor of current. This means it releases static electricity. Therefore, the use of "amulets" - antistatic agents does not make sense.