silicone for electronics?

On 11 Apr 2006 09:08:37 -0700, snipped-for-privacy@videotron.ca Gave us:

The problem is that you want less than a teaspoon of the stuff, and the industry doesn't typically sell kits that small.

Your best choice would then be a trip to home depot or the like to get some liquid nails (if you really do want it to harden, however it will be NON serviceable from that point on), or you could use a soft setting media like standard window and awning sealer silicone. They both come in tubes.

All of the various silicone RTV (room temperature vulcanizing) sealants I have used over the past 35 years reeked of acetic acid (vinegar), which probably might not be good for metal things, in the long run.

With that in mind, I tackled weather-proofing the soldered connections to a temperature sensor that would live outdoors (but not submerged). After cleaning off all flux, I sprayed the wires/device leads/solder connections with clear Krylon and let it dry (did that twice). That should have been better protection than nothing at all, but I went a big step further and encapsulated the sensor in the plastic barrel of a defunct BIC pen stuffed with RTV. After allowing RTV to cure for about a week, I mounted it outdoors. That was November 1999. That sensor has been outdoors ever since, and it still functions, reporting temperature every 5 minutes. I almost can't wait for it to fail because I am curious to find out if the device itself dies a natural death before corrosion gets to the electrical connections.

Now that's scary!

Were these metal Molly's or plastic?

My recent "hangings" into plaster have used the self-drilling nylon screw-insert type. Since I have real plaster walls I have to drill a pilot hole to get them started... they cope with drywall OK, but a hard Santa Fe plaster surface stops them dead.

When I hung that TV wall unit a while back, I chiseled out the stucco until I got down to a stud, added a wood shim even with the surface, then lag bolts.

...Jim Thompson

Hello Jim,

Nylon, supposedly. The good stuff, not something from a Dollar store.

With these you had to drill the full diameter and they were meant for concrete anchoring jobs. Switch to hammer drill mode and lean into it. Hit a pebble, see the expensive bit smoke out, try to suppress cussing, buy a new bit, drill again.

You should see how wall mount toilets were sometimes mounted .

Regards, Joerg

Keep some water in a squeeze bottle handy to cool the bit when you have to drill through a rock. I've drilled lots of 7/8" holes though six inches of poured concrete floors with the same bit by doing this.

Hmmmm? In hammer drill mode I've had carbide concrete bits (1/4") last for years. I use the 1/4" pound-in-style lead anchors all the time.

...Jim Thompson

Hello Jim,

In regular concrete, yes. I have bits that are half as old as I am and still good. But sometimes there are pebble stones of the impenetrable kind in there and it hits them at just the right angle to smoke it out. I cool the bits the same way Terry does but depending what it hits that doesn't help.

We have some impressively strong pebbles in this area. After all, this is the gold rush county. Unfortunately we also find lots of asbestos in the ground :-(

Regards, Joerg

Do you have to report it to the EPA and have it "abated?" :)

On Thu, 13 Apr 2006 03:22:39 GMT, Carl Smith Gave us:

That's Dabateable! (yes, I know)

Watch out Roy! The "Pun Police" are right behind you! ;-)

Hello Carl,

No, it's natural stuff. But we had the EPA on the school grounds, doing a mock basketball game in bunny suits and measuring the asbestos contents of kicked-up dust.

Sometimes things are a bit over-blown. I remember living in a house in Aberdeen (Scotland), built like a fortress. The rocks of the walls were radiating and I was told way beyond safety limits. That's just how they come out of the ground there. The guy who told me was about 85 and totally healthy. To stay with Roy's pun line, I guess many houses there could be considered nucular ;-)

Regards, Joerg