Cleaning bus.

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chris kennedy

chris kennedy

Senior Member
Location
Miami Fla.
Occupation
60 yr old tool twisting electrician
I have two load center bus's that were exposed to sewer gases. I tried some WD40 on a soft rag and it hardly put a dent in it. Any ideas to try before replacement? Non-abrasive copper cleaner maybe? 110.12(B) compliant suggestions only please.:grin:

As always, thanks.


VPAHBus.jpg
 
I have used steel wool very lightly before on a single buss section but never on the whole thing. Try it but my bet is it is not just on the surface.
 
Try an ordinary rubber eraser. Non-conductive and will not abrade the surface.

And frankly I would only worry about cleaning the contact stabs and not worry about the rest of the bus..as cleaning it would only re-expose the surface to further damage.

And a tiny amount of N0-Lox (or perhaps electrical silicone grease) on the stabs to protect against a repeat performance.
 
mxslick said:
And frankly I would only worry about cleaning the contact stabs and not worry about the rest of the bus..as cleaning it would only re-expose the surface to further damage.
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Unless I knew that the agent on the buss would not affect te copper any further I would want the entire thing cleaned.

What about copper polishers????
 
Dennis Alwon said:
I have used steel wool very lightly before on a single buss section but never on the whole thing. Try it but my bet is it is not just on the surface.
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I wouldn't recommend steel wool for two reasons: The pieces of steel wool that break off and shed during cleaning are conductive, and also they will rust over time and make a mess.

If you need something abrasive like steel wool, use green Scotch Brite instead. If you want something that is not abrasive, use the blue Scotch Brite.
 
Jon456 said:
If you need something abrasive like steel wool, use green Scotch Brite instead. If you want something that is not abrasive, use the blue Scotch Brite.
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Abrasives are out of the question IMO.

110.12(B) Integrity of Electrical Equipment and Connections.

Internal parts of electrical equipment, including busbars, wiring terminals, insulators, and other surfaces, shall not be damaged or contaminated by foreign materials such as paint, plaster, cleaners, abrasives, or corrosive residues. There shall be no damaged parts that may adversely affect safe operation or mechanical strength of the equipment such as parts that are broken; bent; cut; or deteriorated by corrosion, chemical action, or overheating.
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Dennis Alwon said:
Can't you just buy another panel and replace the buss and not the whole panel.
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These are 225A 3? load centers, I need two. If I could safety clean them the customer will be a couple hundred ahead of the game.
 
110.12(B) Integrity of Electrical Equipment and Connections.

Internal parts of electrical equipment, including busbars, wiring terminals, insulators, and other surfaces, shall not be damaged or contaminated by foreign materials such as paint, plaster, cleaners, abrasives, or corrosive residues. There shall be no damaged parts that may adversely affect safe operation or mechanical strength of the equipment such as parts that are broken; bent; cut; or deteriorated by corrosion, chemical action, or overheating.
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If you are going by the letter of the law, then you've already committed yourself to replacing the panels according to the part highlighted in red.

BTW, green Scotch Brite is no more abrasive than fine steel wool. If you think the Scotch Brite is excluded, then you must exclude all steel wool as well. And all metal polishing agents like Brasso or even red rouge (as a polish is nothing more than a very very fine abrasive). In fact, the blue Scotch Brite, while not containing any embedded abrasive grit, does have a scrubbing action by virtue of its polymer fibers. How shall we define abrasive?

I think the key to section 110.12(B) is the part I highlighted in blue. Now we have to decide and define what is considered "damaged".
 
sameguy said:
how bout "TarnX" it works for my wife, she is clean and shinny
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My concern about products like Tarn-X is that they may be corrosive. I don't think it's a issue for the short time the part is being treated, but could cause long-term problems if any residual chemical were to remain in the panel. Which would mean you'd need to disassemble and remove the busbar from the panel to properly clean it, RINSE it, and dry it.

I tried removing a busbar from a panel once. It was NOT easy. Clearly the manufacturer intended it to stay "put-together" after it left the factory.
 
1) The bussing has already been exposed to an un-known chemical ( sewer gas) there are several things that could have been in that. You have no way of knowing how they are going to keep reacting, even if you did clean off the evidence of the original exposure.

2) unless the manufacturer approves it, you can't use anything to clean the buss. And we know they are going to say replaces it because they don't want the liability, why would you?

3) if replacing the bussing is a few hundred dollars whats the problem? Your saving them money and buying your self the liability if you don't replace.
 
acrwc10 said:
1) The bussing has already been exposed to an un-known chemical ( sewer gas) there are several things that could have been in that. You have no way of knowing how they are going to keep reacting, even if you did clean off the evidence of the original exposure.

2) unless the manufacturer approves it, you can't use anything to clean the buss. And we know they are going to say replaces it because they don't want the liability, why would you?

3) if replacing the bussing is a few hundred dollars whats the problem? Your saving them money and buying your self the liability if you don't replace.
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I was going to say, just paint it all black and the just scratch where you need the copper, That was until I read this and I tend to agree with #1 because that's what I was really going to say.
 
It is simply not worth the risk of arcing that in a few minutes could destroy every breaker and maybe the wires. Nothing is approved as a cleaner because the mfgr would rather sell new guts.
Had this happen once with a painter, he learned a costly lesson.
Do the smart thing and change them and cover your behind.
 
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