[time-nuts] wwvb weak on east coast especially when the pre-amps under wa...
GandalfG8 at aol.com
GandalfG8 at aol.com
Mon May 14 23:01:55 UTC 2012
The other option of course is to pressurise the box with dry air to ensure
a positive pressure differential, such that the net flow is always outwards
at all points, but it's probably easier just to provide a drain hole:-)
However, whilst a drain hole will prevent the build up of a lake inside the
enclosure it still doesn't prevent condensation forming on circuit boards,
and powered circuit boards and condensation don't really go well together.
As per earlier comments, it's quite difficult to keep any externally
mounted enclosure totally moisture free, so it's much easier to accept the
inevitable and allow for it.
In a past life I designed quite a few circuit boards that were required to
be fitted in externally mounted vented enclosures, so not a great deal of
pressurisation there then:-), and I usually specified that both sides
should be sprayed with a plastic coating following final test.
I can't remember now exactly what this stuff was called, but it was
readily available in the UK from both RS and Farnell as an aerosol plastic spray
that provided a good barrier but was a bit more flexible than the usual MOD
spec conformal coatings.
It melted easily under a soldering iron, albeit with a foul pong:-), so
reworking was no problem, and resisted moisture remarkably well.....
problem solved:-)
Nigel
GM8PZR
In a message dated 14/05/2012 23:10:30 GMT Daylight Time,
arnold.tibus at gmx.de writes:
The only solutions I think:
Apply air pressure tight boxes having a breathing hole an the bottom,
mount the
box that no rain and water can penetrate from the top or sides. If the
hole is big enough,
eg. 2mm, no pressure difference is possible and no pumping effect will
occur.
(If the hole is too wide, small animals may penetrate).
Or,
when using a pressure tight box, it must be stiff and sealed to
withstand under all
temperature conditions more then 1 bar/ 100 kPa. Do not forget that all
feed
throughs must be of real hermetic type, normal coaxial connectors are
not tight!
Don't route cables directly in, because no cable braid or mesh is vapor
tight.
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