[TowerTalk] sealing connectors

[Steve Gehring]

I'll second Steve's suggestion.  

If for some reason you cannot find butyl rubber vapor wrap, try what, I
believe, is something similar -- Scotch 70.  It is a self-fusing, rubber
tape is easy to cut and split when it needs to be removed.

Another Steve, NL7W, 
Palmer, Alaska

-----Original Message-----
From: towertalk-bounces at contesting.com
[mailto:towertalk-bounces at contesting.com] On Behalf Of K7LXC at aol.com
Sent: Friday, June 11, 2004 8:44 AM
To: ky1k at pivot.net; towertalk at contesting.com
Subject: Re: [TowerTalk] sealing connectors

In a message dated 6/11/04 5:37:43 AM Pacific Daylight Time, ky1k at pivot.net 
writes:

> I went into my local Home Depot store and expected to find liquid 
>  plastic/plastic in a can, but they didn't carry it.
>  
>  I'm trying to seal some connectors that are going to be put up outside
and 
>  don't want to use silicone sealer.
>  
>  This stuff comes in small cans and you dip your tool handles in it to
coat 
>  them with plastic or paint it on the connector to be sealed and let it
set 
> up.
>  
>  Anyway, I'm not quite sure of the name of the product/manufacturer and
not 
>  sure where else to look for it, which probably means I'll have to mail 
>  order it?!
>  
>  Any suggestions?

    Sure - skip the plastic coating. It's been my experience that even the 
ones that say they're UV resistant AREN'T - they dry out and flake off in
spite 
of the manufacturing claims.

    Why don't you use the old tried-and-true method used on thousands 
(probably millions) of outdoor commercial joints like those at commercial
and 
cellular sites? A couple of layers of Scotch 33 or 88, a layer of butyl
rubber vapor 
wrap, and then a couple more layers of tape. The result is a pretty
bombproof 
joint. If you want, you can put your plastic stuff on the top (where you can

watch it eventually blow away) or many installers use clear acrylic spray
paint 
for the top coating. In any case it's the old belt-and-suspenders approach.

Cheers,
Steve     K7LXC
TOWER TECH -
Professional tower services for commercial and amateur 
888-833-3104
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