WD40 ok as switch cleaner

[CDRIVE]

Hey, Edison burned up a sh!t load of filaments before he got it right.

 

[Clydeuk]

The problem I found with WD40 for this purpose is that it offers only a short-term solution as it leaves a residue behind which then seems to attract dust. I'll use it as a temp fix to get me out of a jam but only on pots that carry small signals, with a view to replacing the pot in future or stripping and cleaning it if that's possible. We used to use Servisol switch cleaner, I wouldn't say it was that effective long-term either. Replacement is probably the best solution.

 

[KRe8ive]

i live in a high sulphur area, where exposed copper can corrode in a matter of days. We have a constant battle here with scratchy pots. We use Deoxit Contact cleaners and find them great. Altho when we do it we do it in a multistage process, with cleaning, lubing and sealing. After working with a decent cleaner like that, I would never use anything lesser.

 

[davenn]

I disagree with most of the posts here.
I have been using WD-40 for many, many years on electronic parts and this is what I discovered. I used it in a flaky light switch in my living room and the switch spit out so much smoke and sparks I thought my house might burn down. I used it on motor bearings and the motor froze. I used it on volume controls in small transistor radios and the controls started working like brand new. I tried it on toggle switched in small test equipment and got great improvement. So my thinking is that on low voltage, low current circuits with volume controls and switches you should be find. But anything over 50 volts and a few milliamps I would not because of the danger of fire. WD-40 is a water displacement and can help prevent contacts from corroding over and corrosion is a far bigger problem than dust in switches and potentiometers. I work on lots of old equipment and I use it regularly without problems. A volume control typically works with very low voltage and if the WD-40 can be contained within the control there should not be any problem. But if this is part of an ON/OFF switch I would not use it because of fire.

Yeah likewise John .... me too particularly on volume controls,


Dave

 

[KJ6EAD]

Just a note. Never use silicone products on electrical contacts. They form silicates (glasslike insulative material) in the presence of an arc.

 

[KrisBlueNZ]

My two cents: WD-40 and 2-26 are alright for switches, but I wouldn't use them on potentiometers. This is how I clean a potentiometer.

1. Replace it, if possible!
2. If that's impossible or infeasible, open it up and clean it.

Remove the potentiometer. Find the tabs that hold it together and bend them back very gently and by the minimum required amount. Open it up. Clean all accessible surfaces, including the inside of the backshell, with a cotton bud/swab, use a spray cleaner e.g. contact cleaner (that leaves NO residue) to remove any grit. Clean the carbon track with isopropyl alcohol on a cotton bud. Very gently lift and clean the wiper contact(s) (ditto). Apply a thin layer of vaseline to completely cover the carbon surface, turn the wiper from end to end a few times and check the vaseline is still thick enough all over. Reassemble/refit/reconnect.

I once did this to 32 pots on a mixer/amplifier. It took about two hours. I think I must have been crazy! But a replacement set would have cost $160.

This procedure doesn't guarantee that there won't be any dead spots. If a pot stays in one position for a long time, the carbon at the contact position can be damaged. In this case you could try bending the wiper contact(s) slightly inwards or outward so they make contact with the carbon track at a slightly different radius, and avoid the dead spot. I haven't tried this and YMMV.