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Re: [Amps] SB-220 Submerged

To: amps@contesting.com
Subject: Re: [Amps] SB-220 Submerged
From: "Will Matney" <craxd1@verizon.net>
Reply-to: craxd1@verizon.net
Date: Thu, 04 Aug 2005 07:50:36 -0400
List-post: <mailto:amps@contesting.com>
Pete,

That's one of the safest ways to do it. Another way I've done if to turn the 
amp up on it's side where the chassis is open, and set a 1500 watt electric 
space heater about a foot away from it. Just let it set for a day on each side 
and it'll be good and dry. Using a heat gun, you stand a chance of melting 
insulation off hookup wire if you get too close. I had a bunch of TV's come in 
once for repair that had been in a flood. First I took a water hose and washed 
out the chassis using a small steam. Then used a space heater on them. They 
played all right with no complaints or any came back. That was back in the good 
old module days too.

Best,

Will

*********** REPLY SEPARATOR  ***********

On 8/4/05 at 7:33 AM Pete Smith wrote:

>Let me just add my encouragement.  12-13 years ago, a window well filled
>up 
>and caused many gallons of water to pour down directly on the top of my 
>TS-930 in the basement shack.  The good news was that it did not stay 
>submerged for long.  Many hours with a hairdryer top and bottom, then 
>turned it on and ...  I'm still using it today.
>
>73, Pete
>
>At 07:56 PM 8/3/2005, Paul Whatton wrote:
>>Hi Bill
>>
>>An amateur friend of mine has a business hiring out PMR radios. As you
>>can imagine they sometimes come back from hire in a terrible mess having
>>been dropped into everything you might imagine, the least of which is
>>dirty water. His solution is to drop them into an industrial ultrasonic
>>cleaning bath and then, as Gary suggested, oven bake them dry. Over the
>>years he has "subjected" hundreds of radios to this treatment and,
>>without fail, if it is done carefully, they work fine afterwards. The
>>ultrasonic cleaning bath is filled with tap water and a splash of some
>>commercial additive is added. I can find out what it is if you want.
>>
>>One day he suggested I might want to clean my transceivers by dropping
>>them in the bath. I was very reluctant but, what the hell, I trusted
>>this old friend. I did remove the mains transformers for reasons which
>>will become clear but otherwise I dropped whole rigs in the bath and
>>then oven dried them. Bingo! Not only did these radios work but they
>>worked better because the ultrasonic cleaner had got to all the contact
>>surfaces in the plugs, relays etc. The front panels sparkle like they
>>are new.
>>
>>The only reason I removed the mains transformers was drying time. When
>>water gets inside the windings it is difficult to dry out.
>>
>>What have I learnt from this? Water itself, even tap water, isn't a
>>problem provided that the radio is FULLY dried out. Dirty water, the
>>kind you have experienced is a problem because the impurities make it
>>conductive. Even if it is dried out you may experience problems from
>>conductive deposits and/or corrosion.
>>
>>What to do? In my opinion you should wash the SB-220 very thoroughy. I
>>think that means taking it out into the yard and very thoroughly hosing
>>it down. There is nothing to loose by doing this, it already has dirty
>>water in it. If you can find someone with a big enough industrial
>>ultrasonic cleaner then put the whole amp in it. Then dry it. And then
>>dry it again. It will take hours and hours., days and days. By all means
>>oven bake it or use the hot Sun. Total drying is vital. Last week I
>>dropped a friend's 2m mast-head preamp which was badly corroded and, he
>>thought, a write off, into the ultrasonic cleaner for 20 minutes. After
>>3 hours oven baking there was still sufficient moisture inside the tuned
>>circuits to de-tune it. After a week in the hot Sun in my shed it worked
>>perfectly. Thorough drying is crucial.
>>
>>Good luck! With patience I am sure you can save the amp.
>>
>>Paul G4DCV
>>
>>Bill Smith wrote:
>>
>>Other than the obvious "dry it out" what should a guy
>>do to get a SB-220 back on after having been submerged
>>in a basement for over a week?
>>
>>A friend of mine was away when a very bad storm
>>flooded his basement.  The water flowed up the stairs
>>and out the front door!!  So much for living at the
>>bottom of the hill and having no check valve on his
>>sump pump connection to the city sewer!!  Against city
>>rules many people had connected their sump pumps to
>>the city sewer.  That in turn over loaded the system
>>as well as the water coming down the street filled a
>>lot of basements.
>>73,
>>Bill
>>
>>Bill Smith KO4NR
>>
>>
>> >
>> >
>>
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>
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