MM 210 welder got some water.

[stinkity stoink]

Hey everyone.. we are having more rain here than ever and I forgot about my shop while taking care of other things. My Miller MM210 took some water in the bottom. Probably about 6” up the cabinet. Anyone have any advice or good luck with something like that.
my hypertherm plasma also got a little wet. I’m almost thinking that’s done . It’s a cut master 30

 

[Walkers]

Pull the tin of and air dry them, just park a fan in front of them. They will be fine.

 

[stinkity stoink]

Thanks, I appreciate the info .
Dave

 

[brownbagg]

i do alot of work at the shipyard, weather on the coast is almost daily, yes these are commerical unit but they leave them running 24/7 rain, no sleet or snow but you get the idea.

they might be tougher than you think, i guess if it not broken dont mess with it

 

[The Cobbler]

just be sure they're totally dry before you try them .

 

[PoorUB]

Set them out in the sun for a few days, set a fan blowing on them. Dry them out, I doubt they are hurt.

I freaked out my boss. We sold chemicals and pumps with electronic controls. Once in a while a circuit board would get chemical on it and short it out. I would toss the board in a five gallon bucket of hot water, then air dry it for a few days. fix the fried components and put the board back in service. My boss didn't like the water wash. I asked him if i should just throw the $500 circuit board in the garbage?

 

[stinkity stoink]

Thanks for the info. I’m hopeful that they will be ok.
Thanks again !
Dave

 

[nadogail]

I have rinsed electronic equipment that had been immersed in salt water with fresh water and dried it in a oven at low heat, mechanical parts were treated with Water Displacer.

 

[PCustoms]

My boss didn't like the water wash. I asked him if i should just throw the $500 circuit board in the garbage?

Most boards go through a wash process as a final step in manufacturing.

 

[pcmeiners]

I have rinsed electronic equipment that had been immersed in salt water with fresh water and dried it in a oven at low heat, mechanical parts were treated with Water Displacer.

Same issue during Sandy, Evert-hing was in salt water, flushed everything with fresh water, most survived.
With Sandy I created a tent out of a tarpaulin, placed motors/electronics in it, then placed a torch inside for about 10 hours.
With fresh water/rain , there are only tiny amounts of dissolved chemicals so it is only an issue of drying out stuff before use .
As to the plasma cutter, it likely has transformers in it, if only on the control board, it needs to be thoroughly dried.
You are so lucky it is rain water, salt water is much harder to deal with.

 

[stinkity stoink]

Well I took some stuff apart and have it baking in the sun. I don’t plan on using any of it for at least a week.
Thanks
Dave

 

[pcmeiners]

Just thought, do you have some vehicles with some interior room to place stuff to dry out? or maybe an attic?

 

[jhelrey]

Put them in white rice for a few days...

 

[stinkity stoink]

Put them in white rice for a few days...

my bride said the same thing. Lol

 

[haveissues]

If it were me I would take it apart and dry it out real good. If any circuit board got wet you could dry them with a heat gun and then I would wash them with alcohol. The higher the percentage the better - I keep some 99% around for just this purpose. The same 6 inches of rain found us also and flooded our basement for the first time. Good times.

 

[pcmeiners]

"I keep some 99% around for just this purpose."

An excellent idea for boards with transformers, relays, reactors or other devices with enclosed spaces in them. I have some Everclear but just searched and found cheaper 99% Isopropyl. For the price, it would pay to use 99% even on motors.

 

[haveissues]

Yeah, Isopropyl is what I use. I think the stuff I have is actually 99.9%. A client in the medial field was nice enough to order me some with one of their orders and it was very inexpensive.

 

[rburke65]

I would think that some air circulation, and sunshine will cure them

 

[stinkity stoink]

Just want to thank everyone for the advice. I took the machines apart and let them dry for over a week. Usually I would get impatient, but I kept myself from turning them on. They both worked , woo hoo !! Thanks for the advice !!