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  • Author Author: ntewinkel
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Nail Polish Short-proofing?

ntewinkel

Hi all,

 

I just kind of randomly came across a thread discussing using nail polish to cover electrical connections to avoid shorts, especially for the backs of home made PCBs.

There are commercially available "conformal coatings" you can use, but they are somewhat more pricey, and I guess a fair bit more boring image

 

So I went to the dollar store yesterday and picked me up some of this!

image

 

Only $1.50 (Canadian dollars even!)

I was thinking I might use it on a past or future PCB to coat the back.

 

This is the first time I've ever bought nail polish, which I think explains the conservative colours image

It says "Kozmic Colours", so just imagine the variety available! I thought I'd avoid the sparkly ones though, as I wasn't sure if that might be conductive.

 

Then today I soldered a light resistor onto some wires, and then wished I had remembered to put on some heat shrink tubes. The shrink tubes were aaaalll the way in the workshop and I was being lazy image

Then I realized I could probably use the nail polish for this!

imageimage

 

It looks like it does the trick - as you can see in the pictures, it has fully coated the exposed wires. It's easier than dealing with heat shrink tubing, and can be added as an afterthought. It's not as rugged as heat shrink tubing, but for many of these smaller light-duty cases it's perfect.

 

Next time - red and black!

 

Cheers,

-Nico

 

edit: I just did a quick resistance test, and I can clip the test leads right beside each other on a (coated) pin of the sensor with full resistance.

Parents

  •  

    This is the first time I've ever bought nail polish

    Are you sure ....image

     

     

    For higher power/mains systems

    I can't see it meeting any sort of voltage rating, but for low voltage, if it gets you out of a problem, and it's handy .....

     

     

    Mark

  • in reply to mcb1

    >Are you sure ....image

     

    Absolutely sure... I usually just borrow my wife's nail polish image

     

    Which reminds me, the reason I bought the cheap stuff is because my dearest uses the healthier and much more expensive stuff.

     

    >>For higher power/mains systems

    >I can't see it meeting any sort of voltage rating, but for low voltage, if it gets you out of a problem, and it's handy .....

     

    Oh yes definitely don't be using that on anything serious. I'm thinking only on the low voltage projects. I'm not even sure I would trust it for 12 volt automotive. Maybe paint on a few coats? Maybe try a fancier finish like French tips?

     

    Wasn't there a recent RoadTest to do with testing insulation resistance? This would be an interesting test to add.

     

    -Nico

Comment
  • in reply to mcb1

    >Are you sure ....image

     

    Absolutely sure... I usually just borrow my wife's nail polish image

     

    Which reminds me, the reason I bought the cheap stuff is because my dearest uses the healthier and much more expensive stuff.

     

    >>For higher power/mains systems

    >I can't see it meeting any sort of voltage rating, but for low voltage, if it gets you out of a problem, and it's handy .....

     

    Oh yes definitely don't be using that on anything serious. I'm thinking only on the low voltage projects. I'm not even sure I would trust it for 12 volt automotive. Maybe paint on a few coats? Maybe try a fancier finish like French tips?

     

    Wasn't there a recent RoadTest to do with testing insulation resistance? This would be an interesting test to add.

     

    -Nico

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