DiyLightAnimation
Hardware => Lynx Express => Topic started by: Christmasaddict on November 23, 2010,
-
I have searched the board and have not found anything on this topic. How weathertight are these cases? Do I need to do something to make them more watertight? I have built stands to hold the LE's vertically with the wires coming out the bottom so I am not concerned about water coming in around the wires. Just not too sure about the seal around the lid. I thought about putting a 5 gallon bucket on them upside down but the LE is just a little too large for the bucket to fit over it.
-
This is my first year doing this. I have had 4 LEs in my yard for 2 weeks of steady rain and no water has gotten in the enclosures. I was thinking about putting a trash bag over the top.
John
-
I don't know if I'd worry about keeping it out so much as not keeping it in.
Make sure any moisure can get out is my motto now. Seattle area gives us
plenty of moisure and I can't keep it all out but if it gets in I let it drain out
the bottom. The Lynx enclosure will work just fine.
My buddy up north covers all his enclosures with black garbage bags just to
be sure. I'll probably do that too this year.
Good Luck!
-
I would suggest NOT putting trash bags over the enclosures. They can trap moisture in the enclosure and help cause the corrosion we are trying to avoid. These enclosures are designed for outdoor use and if the enclosure is mounted properly they will keep water off of the board.
-
We get some heavy winter winds usually with rain here so what I did for my free-standing controllers in the middle of the yard was to put a 2-gallon zip-loc bag (these can be harder to find than the regular 1-gallon versions) over them and partially zipped it up. This prevents a big gust from possibly opening the door up and keeps any water out. The opening of the bag which is pointing down to the ground, is still open enough for everything to breath. I usually pull out one block of foam from the CG enclosures to ensure it breaths as well. For anything mounted to a wall or tree, I don't bother with any bagging and just zip-tie the enclosure lock to keep out inquisitive hands...
-
What about putting some of that "stuff", they ship with electronics, in the enclosure. The little bags of "stuff". I cant remember what its called
-
The bags of "Do Not Eat"?
Actually, they are desiccant packages.
/mike
-
I cover my enclosure with plastic drop clothes.....BUT like said, do not make it air tight. You want the boxes to breathe so any moisture that you get from condensation will evaporate. I just use the plastic to keep the rain/snow, sleet, ice, we get off.
-
This is the first year I have a unit in the yard. I followed someone's example here on the board and vertically attached a 3/4" PVC pipe to the back of the case. I pounded a 1/2" rebar into the ground and slid the pipe over that. The pipe is long enough so the plugs on the bottom clear the ground. I have a black storage tub I got from Walmart, flipped it over so it covers the unit and by a fortunate set of coincidences, the edge of the tub is about 4"-6" above the ground. Earlier I was considering making a frame out of PVC and building a small roof on that. But this seems to work ok so far.
I also sprayed the front and back of the circuitboard with Corrosion X before mounting it in the case. If you cannot find it in your area, try gun stores and fishing stores. Use the red can, not the blue "HD" Heavy Duty stuff.
-
The bags of "Do Not Eat"?
Actually, they are desiccant packages.
/mike
I thought those were Chiclets (http://www.caitsnow.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/tiny-chicklets.jpg)