On 14 Jan 2014 at 12:41, Michael Ross wrote: > I never found anything about how to use NoAlOx at the Ideal Industries > website - can you direct me to that info?
Look here for a photo of the instruction label from the back of the bottle.: http://naturevaper.com/image/cache/data/products/Noalux%202_600x450- 500x500.jpg http://tinyurl.com/kt9yz9m Apparently folks use this stuff on electronic cigarettes now! What a world we live in. :-\ The label says : <quote> NOALOX reduces galling and seizing. Promotes good ground continuity. INSTRUCTIONS 1. Coat wires with compound and work in with emery cloth or wire brush. 2. Fill contact surface of connector with compound and apply per connector manufacturer's instructions. 3. Wipe off excess material from insulation. CAUTION Do not use wire brush or abrasive on connectors. Temp. range -40 deg C to +150 deg C; voltage rating 600 volts. </quote> Over the years I've done a fair bit of electrical wiring, including installing subpanels and splicing large AL conductors with split bolts. Although I seem to recall using either Noalox or GB's similar glop a time or two, I've used Penetrox A on most of the AL connections. In fact I still have the bottle that I bought in 1984 when I installed my first subpanel (there's plenty left in it). Here are the instructions from that bottle. They're a little different, and maybe a bit more exhaustive. Note though that it's 30 years later, and current instructions may be different. <quote> Recommended for use on aluminum to aluminum and aluminum to copper connectors, on bare conductors, and on bus bars, all voltages and on insulated conductors rated 90 deg C or less, at 600 volts or less. Assures high conductivity joint by sealing out air and moisture to prevent corrosion and reformation of oxide film. 1. Abrade conductor with wire brush or emery cloth. 2. Abrade aluminum conductor if not prefitted with Penetrox A. Do not abrade plated connectors. 3. Apply Penetrox A liberally to both connector and conductor. 4. Assemble joint. 5. Wipe off excess material from insulation. Penetrox A also lubricates and insures continuity of ground on aluminum conduit threads. </quote> Instruction points 1 and 2 above seem a bit confusing. My guess is that they should really have been just one step, indicating that it's necessary to abrade the conductor only if it wasn't glopped up at the factory. Here the instructions are reversed from Noalox's - abrade the conductor, THEN apply Penetrox. It seems to me that the Noalox instructions would be more consistent with better oxidation prevention. The Penetrox instructions would leave the cleaned conductor exposed to air, if only for a few seconds. The Noalox approach is the way I've usually done it - grease up, then wirebrush. I must have read that somewhere (on a Noalox bottle?), although technically that would probably be a code violation (not exactly following installation directions) with Penetrox. I will say that none of the AL connections I've made over the years has yet failed, including a couple in environmentaly somewhat hostile locations. Make of that what you will. As an addendum, I recall a debate several years ago, on one of the electricians' web forums, about which kind of AL connection glop was best. Several people made quite a noise about the fact that Noalox is flammable, and Penetrox supposedly isn't. I haven't tested this myself, but here's a Youtube video clip showing an outrageously huge amount of Noalox (way more than one would ever use on a connection) sustaining combustion. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hlhJPjQxA-Q FWIW, YMMV, etc. PS : To keep this rigorously on topic, I've never used Noalox or Penetrox on any copper to copper connections, including EV cables with crimped lugs. However, I recall Mike Brown and possibly Bob Batson suggesting Noalox. I even have a late 1980s EA catalog from EA that lists it for sale from them. David Roden - Akron, Ohio, USA EVDL Administrator = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = EVDL Information: http://www.evdl.org/help/ = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = Note: mail sent to "evpost" and "etpost" addresses will not reach me. To send a private message, please obtain my email address from the webpage http://www.evdl.org/help/ . = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = _______________________________________________ UNSUBSCRIBE: http://www.evdl.org/help/index.html#usub http://lists.evdl.org/listinfo.cgi/ev-evdl.org For EV drag racing discussion, please use NEDRA (http://groups.yahoo.com/group/NEDRA)
