I have a Hunter 26 which was previously owned and sailed in the ocean. I noticed that some of mast lights weren't lighting so I sanded the prongs on the connector thinking that it was a little bit of corrosion. It worked for a while. I then noticed after checking my lights before going sailing one night that the mast lights were off again. I spit on the prongs and reconnected the fitting a lo and behold it lit. I bought some electrical contact cleaner to spray on the contacts and in the receptacle. Didn't work. Had to spit on them to get lights to go on. My question is do I need to replace or is there something I can insert in the receptacle to clean out any corrosion?
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Dippidy doo
Hello Paul Clean the contacts on the receptical and the bulb,( don't forget the base ground) then put a dab of vaseline on everything. Don't worry, you can't use too much. Good luck red
Hello Paul Clean the contacts on the receptical and the bulb,( don't forget the base ground) then put a dab of vaseline on everything. Don't worry, you can't use too much. Good luck red
use dialectric grease
There is a product made called dialectric grease, it should be used on all electrical connections, it works great! It comes in tubes available in small to large sizes. Try it it works, Dean
There is a product made called dialectric grease, it should be used on all electrical connections, it works great! It comes in tubes available in small to large sizes. Try it it works, Dean
Try Lithium Greese
Heh, see if I can spell Lithium... Anyway go to your local auto parts store and pick up some Lithium greese, or what not. Do not use vasoline/patrolium jelly.
Heh, see if I can spell Lithium... Anyway go to your local auto parts store and pick up some Lithium greese, or what not. Do not use vasoline/patrolium jelly.
Corrosion
There is a product called Corrosion X that works great on electrical connectors and just about any electronic application. It is a liquid and comes in a spray can. It is pricy but works well. There is an automotive type, aviation and marine type. I have used the aviation type (simply because I am in that business) on my Catalina 30 with great success. Use a fine grit crocus cloth to polish up the connectors, spray with Corrosion X and make sure that the connectors are snug and not prone to vibrate. You could even seal the connector with marine grade Goop (TM) which dries fast, seals well but is easy to remove should you need to.
There is a product called Corrosion X that works great on electrical connectors and just about any electronic application. It is a liquid and comes in a spray can. It is pricy but works well. There is an automotive type, aviation and marine type. I have used the aviation type (simply because I am in that business) on my Catalina 30 with great success. Use a fine grit crocus cloth to polish up the connectors, spray with Corrosion X and make sure that the connectors are snug and not prone to vibrate. You could even seal the connector with marine grade Goop (TM) which dries fast, seals well but is easy to remove should you need to.
Kevin, why not vaseline?
I am curious about your comment to not use vaseline, as I have been doing so for a long time. But, if there is a better way, I would sure appreciate knowing what and why! Thanks.
I am curious about your comment to not use vaseline, as I have been doing so for a long time. But, if there is a better way, I would sure appreciate knowing what and why! Thanks.
Tim
Petroleum Jelly. It will work fine until there is a problem. It's kind of a safty issue, kind of an expense issue, and kind of a performance issue. Petroleum Jelly will melt at approximatly 46 degrees C. Where a gounded wire will heat up way past that, and a wire holding a heavy load will also heat up past that. Causing the Jelly to burn off and could even start a fire (unlikely). Petroleum Jelly will not last as long as Lithium Grease. You will have to continue to apply it. And the number one reason, PJ has a huge resistance compared to Lithium Grease. So your lights will be dimmer, and if it's an important wire, could even cause more sever problems. So yes PJ will work, but it's not the best selection for this application. It used to be, 10 years ago. Now there is better stuff on the market. Did this help?
Petroleum Jelly. It will work fine until there is a problem. It's kind of a safty issue, kind of an expense issue, and kind of a performance issue. Petroleum Jelly will melt at approximatly 46 degrees C. Where a gounded wire will heat up way past that, and a wire holding a heavy load will also heat up past that. Causing the Jelly to burn off and could even start a fire (unlikely). Petroleum Jelly will not last as long as Lithium Grease. You will have to continue to apply it. And the number one reason, PJ has a huge resistance compared to Lithium Grease. So your lights will be dimmer, and if it's an important wire, could even cause more sever problems. So yes PJ will work, but it's not the best selection for this application. It used to be, 10 years ago. Now there is better stuff on the market. Did this help?
Thanks Kevin
for your comments on the advisability of lithium grease. Your remark about the resistance was particularly interesting, since, I have used vaseline on battery posts, which obviously carry the full load, whether charging or discharging. Interesting. Now, I have to scour Baja for some Lithium grease. Nuts!
for your comments on the advisability of lithium grease. Your remark about the resistance was particularly interesting, since, I have used vaseline on battery posts, which obviously carry the full load, whether charging or discharging. Interesting. Now, I have to scour Baja for some Lithium grease. Nuts!
Vaseline Resistance
Hay Tim, A battery, normally above 400 cranking amps, with vaseline on is like a toothpick in place of the Hoover dam. There is so much power from the battery it won't matter. Lithium Grease conducts the electricity better, it's like removing the toothpick
. Now apply that to an LED indicator on a dash. Using some .25mA and 5V of power. Vaseline (sorry I can't find the actual resistance numbers) will force the LED to run off of .20mA at 4.90V where the Lithium will allow say .24mA at 4.95V. Did this clearify the resistance part? basically the Lithium grease is better, but vaseline would work.
Hay Tim, A battery, normally above 400 cranking amps, with vaseline on is like a toothpick in place of the Hoover dam. There is so much power from the battery it won't matter. Lithium Grease conducts the electricity better, it's like removing the toothpick
. Now apply that to an LED indicator on a dash. Using some .25mA and 5V of power. Vaseline (sorry I can't find the actual resistance numbers) will force the LED to run off of .20mA at 4.90V where the Lithium will allow say .24mA at 4.95V. Did this clearify the resistance part? basically the Lithium grease is better, but vaseline would work.Some Resistance?
I just took my ohm-meter to the shop and checked. The dielectric grease (NO-OX), the Lithium grease (white), and Vaseline all read infinite resistance. Conductivity isn't how they work. The dielectric grease has a peculiar odor, like carbolic acid. They all seal out the air/water/salt and prevent corrosion to some extent. I'll stick with the dielectric grease! Ken S/V WouffHong
I just took my ohm-meter to the shop and checked. The dielectric grease (NO-OX), the Lithium grease (white), and Vaseline all read infinite resistance. Conductivity isn't how they work. The dielectric grease has a peculiar odor, like carbolic acid. They all seal out the air/water/salt and prevent corrosion to some extent. I'll stick with the dielectric grease! Ken S/V WouffHong
How did you run your test?
The greases cannot have infinite resistance. That would mean they don't conduct electricity, which I beleive you said. How did you perform your test? This is how I would do it. Take two wires, and tie them togeather. Measure the resistance. Then untie them and coat the ends in grease and tie them togeather again and measure resistance agian. Then with a new set of 2 wires repeat for each grease type. Is this what you did?
The greases cannot have infinite resistance. That would mean they don't conduct electricity, which I beleive you said. How did you perform your test? This is how I would do it. Take two wires, and tie them togeather. Measure the resistance. Then untie them and coat the ends in grease and tie them togeather again and measure resistance agian. Then with a new set of 2 wires repeat for each grease type. Is this what you did?
Won't work
That won't work because there is too much resistance involved. You are only going to be crossing a thin layer of grease, not a blob.
That won't work because there is too much resistance involved. You are only going to be crossing a thin layer of grease, not a blob.
Try Sears..
I'm late on seeing this post but I saw a light bulb "receptacle lube" at Sears Hardware electrical sectioon just today. I think that it should protect the surface yet allow for electrical thruput. Jim McCue
I'm late on seeing this post but I saw a light bulb "receptacle lube" at Sears Hardware electrical sectioon just today. I think that it should protect the surface yet allow for electrical thruput. Jim McCue
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