Electro Cleaners Series - Part 2

Would you look at the set up in THAT tank!  Talk about a well designed assembly that builds quality in and makes maintenance easy!  Okay… Just because I built it I do really like it but… It was built with intention and purpose and there are some features built into this set up that makes is better.  

But 1st…
Did you read Electro-Cleaning Part 1?
Click here if you missed it!
 

In Part 1 we emphasized the importance of the electro-cleaner not being the place to take off oil, that's what the soak cleaner is for.  And do not to use the tank as an anode.  Too hard to clean and you'll "blind" the parts from getting current.  

Moving on to the bus bar, when you look at the picture above what do you notice 1st?  That shiny piece of copper of course and you probably thought to yourself it looks good but…  It'll be a patina and caustic coated mess before too long.  And you'd be right. Right except…  

Look at the end of the bus bar.  You see those 2 holes with the stainless hardware in them?  Did you notice the end where the bolt heads and washers are is actually flat?  
 

The contact surface of the bus is milled flat, as is where the long piece intersects with the cross piece, so that when we mount the lugs from the cables onto the bus bar we have nice, flat, tight contacts.  

All mounting surfaces need to be flat and kept clean. That flat contact surface assures good contact with limited chance for oxidation to build up under the lug causing you to lose contact.  

And if you lose contact you're either not getting the current you think you are, or not getting the current where you think you are.  This can cause burning in some areas and a complete lack of electro-cleaning on others.  
 

This design, including where the main bus bar intersects with the short piece is a flat surface on flat surface.  They make better contact and stay cleaner longer reducing maintenance as you improve quality.  

You can clean the middle of the bus bar easy enough as you hang the racks or parts off of it.  Give it a quick Scotch Brite.  But those contact points where the lugs are mounted is a tough place to keep clean and maintain contact.  Build quality in and do something like this.  You may have your own design or preference and that's great.  But do something.  

And for bonus points…  You should be connecting the bus from each end back to the rectifier on cables that are all the same length.  A direct cable from the rectifier to each end of the bus ensures good contact and even current to both ends.  And daisy chaining the bus bars with short cables going from one end to the other or across from side to side is better, but not as effective as wiring to each end.  

So what's next?  See the anode bars in the pic above?  
Wait til you hear about those!

Be well! Be smart!  Stay safe!  Thinking of you and yours.  
  
And if you need anything…  Call me.  I'm around.