Help need a way to waterproof a board

There is a difference between waterproofing and water resistance. Check https://waterproofingelectronics.com/ which says water proofing, but when I read further it is resistance against accidental water. Oops, do not completely stick into water! Good luck craigst and read carefully...

thank you yea water leaked in to my beacon bar when it rains they fail completely till it stops , so going to clean - reseal and all extra protecting to prevent it failing need my beacons or I die

Hi Craig,

When they really want to protect electronics they POT the circuit which is basically encasing the whole thing in epoxy or some other substance like acrylic. This is often done for automotive electronics and anything that has to stay out in the weather. The down side to Potting is you will not be able to repair the circuit if something goes wrong and if you have components that need to dissipate heat they will need a heat channel out of the potting material.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Potting_(electronics)

John

craigst potting SUCKS we used it in the military :{

why not just get a small waterproof box with a latching lid, I have on for my ultrasonic parking detection thing just under my front bumper. No-Fuss, No-Muss!

They come in all sizes and sometimes you score them at tradeshows (free) they hold biz cards. (low)

I would but its the beacon unit its self no much room as 2 inchs thick im going to try seal it from water but want to see if there's a liquid spray or paste I can add to stop water shorting it out

You could paint it with several coats of conformal coating, check out Humiseal. Farnell have quite a range of other products. (Watch out, many use toxic solvents.)

Pick the one that suits your device best.

You need it to stick to the thing you are coating - so to start with your boards must be clean (chemically clean that is, not just looks OK).

Wires are a big problem !

For true waterproofing put it in a sealed box with a drain, conformally coat the board, pray.

In production you can substitute a lot of testing of many samples of parts and process for the praying.

For a home brew 1 off, CH is right, the box may leak but you can get at the works to fix things.

MK

I agree with several of the previous comments, use several approaches if you want this beacon to last a long time outdoors.

Surprisingly after opting for a waterproof box, unless you buy very high quality IP68 rated connectors (which can cost a lot of money), you will need an open drain hole in the bottom of the enclosure.

Continuous cycling of heat/cold during day/night and differing air humidity will bring moisture into your enclosure. You could heat the board with a resistive load off the PSU but the moisture will still condense in certain conditions in the case and puddle...hence the drain.

I've often used twin-tube syringe expoxy resin to coat a PCB and the components successfully, particularly useful in keeping moisture out of my LED strings on LED Firework Suite - the details

which without the epoxy soon managed to attract moisture, the timing went and the LED pixels started to malfunction.

craigst

ok, what are the dimensions?? Small boxes are cheap!

A few projects ago I had to waterproof my project. Watch the attached links.

Spray

Water Test

Dale W