Proper Use of Di-electric Grease

[Courtney]

OK, can someone who really knows (like the fellow who rebuilds our rectifiers or some such electrical wizard) tell us how to REALLY use Di-electric grease? I've got all my connectors apart, and I don't want to screw this up by insulating the connectors from each other instead of protecting them from corrosion and water!

[baltimorenick]

The purpose of dielectric grease is too keep water out of the connector and prevent the pins inside from corroding. I put the grease on the male side of the connector and then reconnect. You should see a little bit of the grease seep out from the seem between the two connectors. Putting it on the male side ensures that you don't get any of it on the conductive parts of the connectors.

[crazy steve]

The idea is to keep out moisture or any other 'stuff' that can cause corrosion. You don't want it on the metal contacts (remember, this stuff is non-conducting), so applying some to the plug housings to seal the two halves is good. Once assembled, then pack it into the housings where the wires enter to finish the 'seal'...

[natemoen]

The idea is to keep out moisture or any other 'stuff' that can cause corrosion. You don't want it on the metal contacts (remember, this stuff is non-conducting), so applying some to the plug housings to seal the two halves is good. Once assembled, then pack it into the housings where the wires enter to finish the 'seal'...

There shouldn't be a problem getting the grease on the metal contacts (feel it is helpful cause then it actually protects the metal better).

BUT if the metal contacts are iffy and don't connect firmly then it could inhibit the connection. The point when the 2 separate contacts make contact and start to slide across each other they should remove the grease that is on the needed contact area, then leaving all the other metal still coated and protected.

I did pack both ends of all the male and female connectors and have not had any problems.

[CaptonZap]

There shouldn't be a problem getting the grease on the metal contacts (feel it is helpful cause then it actually protects the metal better).

BUT if the metal contacts are iffy and don't connect firmly then it could inhibit the connection. The point when the 2 separate contacts make contact and start to slide across each other they should remove the grease that is on the needed contact area, then leaving all the other metal still coated and protected.

I did pack both ends of all the male and female connectors and have not had any problems.

I'm with Nate on this one. As a thought exercise, think about putting a thin coat of paint on the male and female connectors. Then push them together. Then take them apart, and look at the paint. Wherever there was metal to metal contact, the paint is gone, and the metal to metal contact necessary for electrical conduction is made. The grease protects the freshly abraded metal from new corrosion.
CZ

[TADracer]

Most of this stuff is considered low voltage (except for the plug wires) so I don't gunk it on. Just a bit over the female holes in the plug before I slip the plug together seems to work well. I also wipe some over the hole in my spark plug boots before slipping them onto the plug. There it has the effect of making the path to ground longer on the outside of the porcelain.

On the low-voltage plugs I always make sure the connection is clean. WD-40 works well for this as it is actually a light solvent.

[clcorbin]

Let's get to how the CONTACTS work and then add the grease. When you have two proper fitting contact (male/female) and you plug them together, the female part will scrap against the male part in several locations (exactly were depends on the type of contact). This scraping action is designed to scrap off any oxide and "other" crap off the contacts and provide a low resistance connection.

Very simple.

Now we add dielectric grease to the mix: Coat those contacts and the inside of the plastic shell. When you assemble the connector, the contacts SCRAP the grease off the actual contact surface. That leave the grease packed around the contact point but no actual grease between the male and female pins at the contact point. The connection is low resistance (as it must be to function correctly) AND it is protected against moisture and oxygen in the air so it doesn't corrode nearly as quickly as a "dry" connector. But the actual contact location IS dry.

So don't fear it. I squirt a bit down each of the female contacts, put a bit on the end of each of the male contracts and put a bit around the connector shell to seal it up. No problems with high current or low current connectors. And no problems with rain or car washes either.

I also use it on spark plug boots. I bit on the terminal in the boot and a bit around the opening of the boot. When the boot is pressed on, the grease on the opening of the boot is smeared down the side of the plug and the inside of the boot. The grease on the terminal seals that up. The nice thing is it is always easy to pull the boots (they don't stick to the plugs), I don't have any corrosion on the terminals or spark plugs AND it keeps water out of the boot which helps to prevent misfires.

If you have a "bad" connection when you use dielectric grease but a "good" connection when you clean it off, then you have a BAD connection! PERIOD. That means the female terminal is worn out and is no longer scraping the surface of the male terminal. It needs to be replaced. There is a reason that connectors all have a connect/unconnect life cycle rating.

[sparkfly88]

I think my 89 Jeep wrangler is held together with more tubes of Di-electric grease than normal people would use....

I have loaded all my plug connections with it, and every other connection I can get ahold of


It sees water/mud/lakes....alot...