Date: Wed, 14 Jun 2023 15:41:36 -0700
Reply-To: Mike Miller <mwmiller6@ATT.NET>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: Mike Miller <mwmiller6@ATT.NET>
Subject: Re: Microscopic corrosion on electrical contacts
In-Reply-To: <CACvdLxN+qwO5W07mdjaaZ=+c2prJEudmKuv8whcM_GMcpL8s4g@mail.gmail.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=utf-8
Different name?
Sent from my iPhone
> On Jun 14, 2023, at 3:36 PM, David McNeely <davmcneely40@gmail.com> wrote:
>
> Thanks Richard. I still don't know how it is different, though. mcneely
>
>> On Wed, Jun 14, 2023 at 3:33 PM Richard Koerner <rjkinpb@sbcglobal.net>
>> wrote:
>>
>> Dielectric grease would work just fine. Maybe better.
>>
>> On Wednesday, June 14, 2023 at 03:27:43 PM PDT, David McNeely <
>> davmcneely40@gmail.com> wrote:
>>
>>
>> So why not dialectric grease? I know the price would be greatly
>> different, but the dg is made for the purpose. So, why vaseline? How is
>> the DG different from vaseline?
>>
>> On Wed, Jun 14, 2023 at 12:41 PM Richard Koerner <rjkinpb@sbcglobal.net>
>> wrote:
>>
>> I've recently been discussing microscopic corrosion that occurs on metal
>> electrical contacts (with 2 engineer buddies, one at Apple, one at H/P).
>> You know how sometimes something funky and unexpected happens to something
>> electrical in your Vanagon? Might be a light bulb, might be a spade
>> connector, might be a speaker connection, might be a door switch, might be
>> an Emergency Flasher switch. I boldly surmise that in general, the
>> component itself is not the problem.....it's getting electricity back and
>> forth from it. Why? Microscopic surface corrosion....and it doesn't take
>> much. When building a car or some electronic device, everything is bright
>> shiny new, just attach things and everything works just fine. Over time,
>> humidity in air and even worse when near an ocean, starts to attack this
>> nice shiny metal. Corrosion. Increased resistance at best, failed
>> connection at worst. Now, given that things need to be built quickly and
>> most cost effectively, there is no corrosion prevention applied. Mostly,
>> these situations are very easy to deal with; you clean them up, with
>> varying degrees of intensity, and then apply a nice protective coating
>> before connecting again.
>>
>>
>> Vaseline. A most marvelous thing. Just a tiny smooth wipe.
>>
>>
>> Yes, I've taken fuses out one by one and used steel wool to shiny up and
>> then a very thin wipe of Vaseline on contacts and they glide right back
>> into position. Every time I deal with some spade or barrel connector I do
>> the same. Light bulbs?...yes, same treatment. Worried about shorting
>> something out with grease?; nope, has never happened, and I just recently
>> did similar corrosion fix on my Samsung smartphone battery and also HDMI
>> connections on back of TV. I mean, I used a toothpick and magnification,
>> didn't slather it on, but it fixed things immediately. Flashlights,
>> battery operated wall clocks, remote controls, room thermostat....you name
>> it.
>>
>>
>> In cases like the Emergency Flasher Switch....well, you can't readily get
>> inside....but spray Electrical Contact Cleaner and 50 times exercising does
>> the job. Similar with other enclosed things.
>>
>> This is my opinion, and I'd love to hear comments pro or con. I'm a big
>> believer in preventative maintenance; even if something isn't broken, if
>> I'm in the nearby area I do everything I can to preserve it's life. It's
>> always so easy to do at home, and always so discouraging to try to fix when
>> on the road.
>>
>>
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