Phillips tips to control, mitigate electrical corrosion

Corroded electrical connection
Phillips Industries

With cold and wet weather seasons ahead, Phillips Industries offers steps to take to help control and mitigate existing corrosion in the electrical system before winter has an opportunity to magnify the problem.

Corrosion is one of the biggest challenges the industry faces regarding vehicle maintenance; it can be a tireless and never-ending battle. No matter how hard you try or how diligent your methods are, one thing is certain: your electrical cables and wiring will corrode.

Humidity, heat, dust, chemicals and moisture all contribute to corrosion in your wires. And with cold and wet weather seasons ahead, it’s best to get ahold of any festering corrosion on your vehicle now before winter hits and magnifies the problem even faster, resulting in costly downtime.

The solution to this inevitable problem is twofold. One, remain vigilant with maintenance and repair, and two, specify products that make maintenance easier and repel contaminants and corrosion, Phillips says.

Maintenance

You can keep electrical components clean and in good working order with vigilant and frequent maintenance. At the first signs of corrosion (green build-up on or around plugs, sockets and terminals), the first thing you can do is clean those connections. There are cleaners, protectants and tools that you can add to your maintenance routine to help keep corrosion to a minimum and avoid pin degradation. These include:

  • Di-electric grease (Creates a barrier that keeps corrosion out for a time)
  • Low-grade acid solutions (See manufacturer’s recommendations)
  • Corrosion inhibitor sprays or washes (Contains chemicals that resist corrosion build-up)
  • Brushes (Wire brushes can physically remove the corrosion build-up in plugs and sockets or on surfaces)

But when corrosion has created a problem beyond surface removal, how do you get a vehicle back in service? By eliminating the affected area of the electrical system in one of two ways: 

  • “Cut out” the corrosion and repair the lines
  • Replace your cables, plugs and sockets

Repair

Although Phillips always suggests replacing with new when corrosion has gone beyond surface removal, it is not the only answer for relief. As a short-term solution, electrical lines can be repaired for damage by cutting out the corrosion and any affected portion of the wiring. Wire and cable repair happens in every repair shop in the country. But there are some basic rules to follow to ensure that your repair is completed correctly and safely to restore electrical integrity to your connection.

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Make Complete Contact: When you replace a terminal or splice wires together, the only way to ensure a solid electrical connection is to ensure that the wires make full contact. When splicing wires, use quality heat shrink terminals for mechanical reliability that seal a connection and prevent wire pull-out and corrosion. Phillips’ line of STA-DRY’ CLEAR-VU CRIMP & SEAL wire terminals allow for visual wire insertion for proper seating.

Clean and Tight Make it Right: Clear both wires of corrosion by cutting back past the corroded wiring and cleaning terminals and connections, adding anti-corrosive material (chemical, grease, etc.) to ensure you have a clean connection. Make sure all connections are tight. Correctly crimping or securing terminals to their posts on the vehicle is critical to maintaining a solid electrical connection.

Note: Refer to the manufacturer’s specifications for torque recommendations for connection points.

Heat Shrink Tubing as a Barrier: Use heat shrink tubing around your repair to create a corrosion-resistant barrier between your wiring and the elements, making corrosion work harder to get in.

Replacement to remove corrosion entirely

When maintenance and repair are not enough, replacing your cables and connections is the most surefire way to guarantee they are corrosion-free. Specifying non-corrosive, sealed products that make maintenance easy alleviates downtime.

While Phillips Industries offers multiple options for repair and replacement, we recommend using over-molded solutions. Over-molded connections are molded over the cable and terminals. The over molding process creates a seal at the back of the connector, making it harder for moisture and debris to enter the back of the connection. Nylon composite and rubberized materials used in the process are just as, or even more, durable than metal connections, with the added benefit of non-corrosive attributes. The bottom line is that corrosion must work much harder to attack these types of connections. 

Phillips Solutions – corrosion inhibiting components

Phillips offers multiple over-molded weather-proof connections:

  • QCP (Quick-Change Plug): Featuring a rigid outer shell and an industry-leading replaceable plug cartridge the QCP is field serviceable in under two minutes, further extending the service life of your electrical cable.
  • M7 Molded Plug: This high-performance composite plug is fully formed around the wire terminals, providing a powerful barrier to corrosive intrusion.
  • WEATHER-TITE M2 Charging Plug: This over-molded plug for liftgate charging systems is a one-of-a-kind solution offering superior protection for the high-amperage charging cables, which are historically a favorite intrusion point for corrosion
  • STA-DRY QCS2 (Available for 7-way, ISO and dual pole applications): Completely sealed connection with molded nylon composite socket that plugs into an over-molded harness boot. 

Unfortunately, the effects of corrosion are unavoidable. Remaining aware and vigilant in your efforts to find and cut back on corrosion can help keep your truck on the road, operating safely, and, most importantly, working for you, Phillips says.

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