[TowerTalk] RTV? What Kind?

[Michael Keane K1MK]

At 02:26 PM 2/4/2008, DENNIS BRICKEY wrote:
>It calls for sealing of the connections with 
>RTV.  What kind of RTV is recommended by the masses.

You definitely want to use a non-corrosive type of RTV.

The general purpose RTV you'll find at the local 
hardware store is most likely to be an acetoxy 
cure RTV which releases acetic acid as a 
by-product. The sniff test is that a corrosive 
RTV will smell like vinegar while curing.

You want to use an RTV that is intended to be 
used on electronics, one that has an oxime cure 
or alkoxy cure.  Most manufacturers offer both 
general purpose (corrosive) and electronics 
(non-corrosive) RTV sealants, you just have to 
look a bit harder to find a non-corrosive RTV. At 
work we use the Dow-Corning line of RTVs which are non=corrosive.

The other thing about using RTV is that RTV needs 
to be exposed to moisture to cure. So you don't 
want to cover up RTV with anything like tape or 
other sealants at least until the full cure time 
of the RTV, otherwise the RTV will never fully harden but rather remain tacky.

73,
Mike K1MK

Michael Keane K1MK
k1mk at alum.mit.edu