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Vacucoating?

Posted: Wed Apr 30, 2003 8:34 pm
by geewiz
Greetings all.<p>Supercircuits( a vendor of surveillance cameras, etc) offers rubberized sealing of their open-board cameras as an added service. See link below for description. I'm looking for info or source of products that would allow me to do this myself to some of my cameras and other open-board projects. Any info greatly appreciated. TIA <p>http://www.supercircuits.com/STORE/prod ... 9&mitem=40

Re: Vacucoating?

Posted: Thu May 01, 2003 8:48 am
by Dave Dixon
Hi there,
This coating looks a lot like the stuff you can
buy at any hardware store to coat tool handles for
insulation. The brand I used before was called "Dip
It", but I'm sure there are several other brands.
If I remember it was only about $5 US .. Cheap
enough to experiment with on a spare PCB!
Good Luck,
Dave (N0QOF)

Re: Vacucoating?

Posted: Thu May 01, 2003 3:24 pm
by haklesup
What you want is called "Potting Compound" search for it or "Silicone Potting Compound" on the web and you will find many references. <p>For electronics you want one with low electrical conductivity (some RTV like the tool dip may have additives that might increase leakage)and high thermal conductivity. There are epoxies and silicone compounds, Select one for the mechanical properties you want. <p>I suspect that plain latex molding compound would probably work just fine. It is usually a two part mix and you can get it at hardware stores, art supply and plastic specialty shops. You could probably also use most types of Silicone RTV but be aware that some may be (slightly) electrically conductive due to additives like pigments. Plain white is probably your best bet here. <p>You should use a conformal board coating before potting the assembly. It will reduce surface leakage due to trapped contaminants and may aid in removal of the material if you ever need to repair the board. After cleaning the board and before coating it, give it an hour in a low temp oven to drive out moisture. You don't want anything to cause premature failure since the board will be inaccessable to repair after potting.<p>[edit] well maybe you don't need to clean and coat it since it is a commercial product and that should have already have been done.<p>[ May 01, 2003: Message edited by: haklesup ]</p>

Re: Vacucoating?

Posted: Fri May 02, 2003 9:14 am
by geewiz
Thanks all. dip-it was mentioned and considered but got a buddy in the film industry (currently on Spiderman2 here in nyc) who'll give me the latex solution to try.

Re: Vacucoating?

Posted: Mon May 12, 2003 2:07 pm
by Dave Dixon
I just ran across an ad for INSULCAST Potting Compounds. Check out www.insulcast.com Their ad
mentions that they offer a free sample!!
Dave

Re: Vacucoating?

Posted: Mon May 12, 2003 2:25 pm
by Chris Smith
Spray Varathane is the old and simple solution.