I too apply medical grade petroleum jelly (i.e. Vaseline brand) to all my
outdoor connectors ever since I read about it in ON4UN's book. On
the common coax connectors I completely fill the space where the braid
is soldered, move the "shell" toward the end, then fill the end of the
shell with
the jelly....THEN screw the connector on the coax fitting, letting the
excess
weep out. If the coax covering has been screwed in tightly (as it would
be
with RG213, etc) IMHO there is no need for any further weatherproofing
unless the connector is hard to get to. I replace the jelly occasionally
during routine maintenance. I've never had a problem with water getting
in the connector or coax.
73,
Charlie, N0TT
On Sun, 23 Sep 2001 17:20:39 -0400 "GB" <blueis@sprintmail.com> writes:
>
>
> Now hear me out BEFORE you laugh... and THEN tell me why this isn't
> a good
> idea!
>
> Ever since the '60s I have used Vaseline on all outdoor antennas.
> This
> obviously includes all nuts and bolts, but also splice connections,
> connectors, etc. If we ASSUME (and ensure!) that we have good
> mechanical
> AND electrical connections, we can apply a liberal amount to
> Vaseline. It
> fills in seams/pores, prevents air AND water from reaching
> components
> (prevents oxidation), is cheap, NEVER solidifies, and is relatively
> easy to
> clean up. A drawback: it collects dirt! Dust and dirt will
> 'stick' to the
> surface of the Vaseline. However, if good M&E connections were made
> PRIOR
> to applying the Vaseline, this is not a problem as this
> contamination
> resides on the surface.
>
> I do not know if this material will present a problem under high
> power. I
> have used up to 200,000 mW without a problem. I have not noticed
> any
> 'migration' of the Vaseline. That is, I have not seen the Vaseline
> migrate
> into a good M&E connection and make it a bad connection.
>
> Aside from the *obvious* uses, has anyone else used it for
> antennas?? I
> have taken a TA-33Jr, dipoles and coax in after being outdoors for
> years...
> no oxidation visible after clean-up, no water/moisture in coax, nuts
> and
> bolts operate as new...
>
> Allright, NOW go ahead and tell me why Vaseline is the worst thing
> to use!!
>
> Gary B
> k3gb
>
>
>
> List Sponsored by AN Wireless: AN Wireless handles Rohn tower
> systems,
> Trylon Titan towers, coax, hardline and more. Also check out our
> self
> supporting towers up to 100 feet for under $1500!!
> http://www.anwireless.com
>
> -----
> FAQ on WWW: http://www.contesting.com/FAQ/towertalk
> Submissions: towertalk@contesting.com
> Administrative requests: towertalk-REQUEST@contesting.com
> Problems: owner-towertalk@contesting.com
>
________________________________________________________________
GET INTERNET ACCESS FROM JUNO!
Juno offers FREE or PREMIUM Internet access for less!
Join Juno today! For your FREE software, visit:
http://dl.www.juno.com/get/tagj.
List Sponsored by AN Wireless: AN Wireless handles Rohn tower systems,
Trylon Titan towers, coax, hardline and more. Also check out our self
supporting towers up to 100 feet for under $1500!! http://www.anwireless.com
-----
FAQ on WWW: http://www.contesting.com/FAQ/towertalk
Submissions: towertalk@contesting.com
Administrative requests: towertalk-REQUEST@contesting.com
Problems: owner-towertalk@contesting.com
|