[TowerTalk] sealing goop

[JMLTINC at aol.com]

Hi Art,
 
We have all suffered the woes of water penetration. I certainly  have 
suffered my fair share. There are four schools of thought on this  subject:
1) Use a product to keep water out. These products include  Coax-Seal and 
tape. I have some old-timer friends who seal the outside of their  connections 
with a silicone product called Welder's Cement available at Walmart.  Although a 
bit messy, it is easy to apply and takes considerably longer than  
conventional silicone sealant to set-up; so you can work it. They just smear it  all 
over, and around the connection. IMO it is better that tape, as tape has  
microscopic holes, shrinks, and peels. Coax-Seal, is difficult to work with,  dries 
hard as a rock, and is nearly impossible to  remove. 
 
2) Give the water no place to go. The popular product is Stuf.  Dielectric 
grease is another option. Stuf dries over time and shrinks, which  creates a 
vacuum within the connector sucking in moisture.
 
3) A combination of the two above.
 
4) Do Nothing
 
I have tried them all. IMO, and have decided that there is no way  to fight 
physics and keep the water out. That leaves out # 1 & 3. It is a  waste of time 
in most cases. My philosophy is to give the water no where to go,  and if it 
does get into the connector, give it an escape route. That means   # 2.
 
I use dielectric grease as it does not shrink (although it is very  icky on 
the hands). I apply a liberal dose dielectric grease inside  the connector and 
do not try to seal the outside. It has been 4 years  since I have had a water 
problem with any connector (which I suffered from  regularly for a long time 
with the other methods). The dielectric grease is good  for use at least, 
through 70 cm.
 
-John, N9RF
 
 
 
 



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