Re: Electrical system

[David Buchner <Buchner@wcta.net>]

SFreihof said:
>Although designing ambient dry, I want the electrical system to be a wet
>submergence design (hell, flooding is always a possibility).  Does anybody
>have hints, suggestions or references for submersible electrical systems..
>including oil bath designs?
>
>Most importantly, does anyone know of supply sources for submersible
>connectors, meters, switches, relays, etc.?

My dad has a hot tub, and to prevent zapped-bather-syndrome, its electrical
controls aren't electrical at all but little air hoses which run from the
buttons (plungers) to wherever the actual switches are. If you used such a
system, non-waterproof components could be mounted in a very sealed strong
box with a gasketed lid, and the pass-thru's for the hoses could be
securely glued. So, try a hot tub store. To make it even cruder, how would
you feel about a row of color-coded squeeze bulbs hanging in front of you.
Squeeze this one to turn on the blower, this one to turn it off, this one
for half-speed, this one for reverse. . . . or maybe syringes?. . . .   :-p

What I wonder about is a battery enclosure. This list has convinced me I'll
be buying a gel type battery (which can double as the starter battery for
the boat, so I can keep up the illusion of not spending any real money on
my toy sub) -- so I guess I don't have to vent it. But I still wonder how
to make a watertight compartment for it, to keep the terminals from getting
wet if the compartment floods, which can be easily opened, and which allows
the cables to run through and be sealed tightly.

What about just having one waterproofed component: a big master shutoff
switch which renders everything else safe. You could switch it off right
before escape out the bottom hatch, and it would at least keep the battery
from getting wrecked by discharging through the water.

>A HEARTY ROUND OF APPLAUSE TO:
>Jonathan Wallace
>Ray Keefer
>Martin Sanderse
>THANK YOU GUYS FOR YOUR TIME AND DEVOTION!

Ditto this! This is certainly the most consistently fun email I get. Much
more engaging than all the dreary political stuff I've mostly unsubscribed
from now.

David
buchner@wcta.net
Osage, Minnesota (that's a state in the USA)