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I did an electric repair with the help of the forum and afterwords went ahead and over-zealously put dielectric grease in all connectors. The process I used was taking a GLOB at a time with a toothpick and placing it on each male tab inside each connector before putting it back together. Now I've read that dielectric grease will NOT help cool down my connections but will aid in them getting dirty!! Oh NO!!

What's a good way to clean up this mess up without destroying the integrity of the connector and get back on track? I've read about Ox-Gard, DeOxIt and PreserveIt but don't have -anything currently except WD40. I also don't have an air compressor but can go buy a can of compressed air if needed.

Thanks all,

badelman

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I don't know if it will clear out the grease, but in your place I'd use spray electrical contact cleaner first. If I could contain overspray in the area, I'd also consider spray brake cleaner.

As you've noted, dielectric grease is not to be used on contacts. I understand it should be used to seal the backs/sides of plastic connectors to keep water out of the connector.

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I've never seen brake cleaner melt connectors, but I have seen PJ-1 Super Cleaner strip paint off of some surfaces!

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Common solvents for silicone grease are Xylene, Toluene and Naptha. Most people don't have those around, but a more common one though maybe a lesser solvent I've seen listed is mineral spirits (enamel paint thinner). Q-Tips would be good for swabbing the excess out of the connector bodies and then they can be used with some solvent on the male side of the blades themselves. For the female side, some toothpicks can be used maybe with some thin cotton cloth soaked with solvent to clean them out. Mineral spirits should not harm the plastic of the connector. If you try brake cleaner, test it on a dab of grease on a surface first to see if it dissolves the grease. Same for other things you might have on hand - contact cleaner, WD40, etc. If the grease does not dissolve in it, there's not much point in using it. Once finished, some Oxgard can probably help with getting things back in shape.

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You might be able to find naphtha at a paint store. It's used for cleaning paint rollers. Test it on both the grease (to see if it dissolves) and on the outside of the plastic connector (so make sure it doesn't mar or soften the plastic).

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What makes electrical connections hot? High resistance across the electrical connection.

What causes high resistance? Oxidation.

What causes oxidation? Oxygen and moisture from the atmosphere interacting with the metal.

How do you keep moisture and oxygen from attacking electrical connections? Dielectric grease.

A good, mechanical fit between the male and female parts of the electrical connection will displace the grease at the point of contact. Many an all-weather motorcyclist has their switch gear and electrical connections packed with dielectric grease. (including myself)

You are correct that dielectric grease will not help cool down bad electrical connections. You need to have a shiny, clean, mechanically strong, low-resistance connection to begin with. Dielectric grease will only help to keep a good connection from going bad over time by keeping moisture and oxygen from coming in contact with the metal surfaces of your electrical connections.

If you are not having any electrical problems, leave the grease there. If you were already having electrical problems and thought dielectric grease would be the cure, you were wrong. Find the root cause, fix it, then re-pack with grease. Most likely the root cause is a poor mechanical fit or existing oxidation.

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Thank you all for the thoughts, feedback, experience and wisdom! At the very least I am watching, monitoring and caring after the beast and now I have some more knowledge thanks to you!

badelman

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What makes electrical connections hot? High resistance across the electrical connection.

What causes high resistance? Oxidation.

What causes oxidation? Oxygen and moisture from the atmosphere interacting with the metal.

How do you keep moisture and oxygen from attacking electrical connections? Dielectric grease.

A good, mechanical fit between the male and female parts of the electrical connection will displace the grease at the point of contact. Many an all-weather motorcyclist has their switch gear and electrical connections packed with dielectric grease. (including myself)

You are correct that dielectric grease will not help cool down bad electrical connections. You need to have a shiny, clean, mechanically strong, low-resistance connection to begin with. Dielectric grease will only help to keep a good connection from going bad over time by keeping moisture and oxygen from coming in contact with the metal surfaces of your electrical connections.

If you are not having any electrical problems, leave the grease there. If you were already having electrical problems and thought dielectric grease would be the cure, you were wrong. Find the root cause, fix it, then re-pack with grease. Most likely the root cause is a poor mechanical fit or existing oxidation.

Agree 1000%. Great explanation.

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