My shop floor “sweats” real bad sometimes. I’m sure there are others with this problem. Question is, can this wetness wreck havoc on the sensitive electronics on this machine? I’ve been reading this forum for about 20 hrs now since I ordered my Pro table and have not come across this concern yet. Surely someone has asked this question before? Thanks to everyone on this forum who have responded to all my questions.
Condensation can absolutely cause issues with electronics, but may or may not be a concern inside your controller for a number of reasons. If you do feel it’s a concern, cover the controller cabinet with a cut and taped Reflectix cover and add any tiny heat source, from a small light bulb, to just leaving the USB powered on so the controller generates a tiny amount of heat. That heat should keep it warm enough to prevent condensation.
Great idea, I really don’t know if it is a concern, thus my question. My shop floor sometimes gets real wet, my building was build in the 50’s or 60’s, they didn’t put a moisture barrier back then. Problem is, I don’t know when it will be wet, most of the time its dry, then the very next day wet, must be Texas Humidity? I just dont want this wetness to be a issue. Thanks for the tip and the reply. Anyone else have this issue?
I had never heard of it. Sounds like drying your air for the plasma may be harder than it is for others in your area though.
The key thing is to make sure your electronics never falls below the dew point - this will create condensation and ruin your electronics. Lots of ways of doing that, some obvious, some not. But, if there is any risk, keeping the inside of the enclosureS (note that I said plural as you probably have several) warmer than the ambient air will work. Low power lamps (could be LED in the right circumstances) are the easiest to implement. Just be sure the lamp doesn’t create too much heat.
So, Tom, if i tap a hole in the electronics box and run a small led light constantly and possibly cover the cabinet as MrH, suggested, I should be ok? Am I being overly concerned?
brownfox, you never heard of a concrete floor sweating or never heard of it causing a problem? My current plasma, a Cutmaster 52 has no problem with condensation.
I’d like someone from L.S. to chime in and shed some light on this subject.
To do that all you need to do is click your heels together three times AND include @langmuirsystems in your post.
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Thanks, Tom. Forgive me for I not know
My floor sweats with wild temperature swings during heavy rains everything in my shop has condensation on it. I open the doors and turn on the fans hasn’t caused a problem so far. The power supply should generate a little heat.
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I have had sweaty floors in sudden transitions from cold winter weather to a suddenly warm spring day. Would only be an issue if I forgot to switch the heat pump to dehumidify and the ambient temps hovered around system set temps and it wasn’t cycling enough. In an unconditioned space it would be commonplace in spring (and sometimes in summer and fall) in much of eastern Nebraska.
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The question about preventing electronics erosion in humid environments reminded me of my ‘dalliances’ in various outdoor monitoring systems. I found that the BEST, BY FAR, solution to protecting electronics from moisture is a treatment called Corrosion X. I have painted this stuff on a piece of electronics that was housed in a crappy ‘water tight’ enclosure and discovered, to my delight, that, even though this circuit, with WiFi radio, etc, was still working as designed with the entire circuit board completely submerged in condensed water.
IF you’re seriously concerned about erosion of electronics, get this stuff! Corrosion X. Forget the spray, it doesn’t spray very well. Get the liquid and literally paint it on EVERYTHING! Connectors, circuit boards, your dog, anything that can get wet.
Just sayin’…
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@WeldinRod1 I also suffer from the sweaty garage, mostly winter time western PA weather swings is like a woman’s mood swing. My shop at home is 30x24. I use a Rigid blower fan and have it set on a simple light timer to run 30 min 4 times a day. It keeps it bone dry in there. Sometimes I’ll bump up the times if I have something wet in there. Also went with the Rigid brand because of the lifetime warranty. Blew threw a few fans already, no pun intended).
I know this wasn’t your question but figured it would help.
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Interesting that just getting air movement is solving your sweaty floor issue. Is your shop insulated and fairly air tight? I assume if it fixes the floor wetness it also prevents it on any metal you have laying around?
I just run a dehumidifier in my shop that keeps it around 50% RH. But I’m only 600sqft so it’s easy. I did have major condensation issues prior to and this resolved it. I’m in NH, I suspect there are far greater humidity and temp swings here than in TX.
What RH are you measuring?
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I had never heard of a floor sweating before, I had to google it. So weird.
It’s just condensation. A cold can of your beverage of choice does the same thing on a warm day. Concrete has a lot of thermal mass, plus is somewhat isolated inside a shop space. It can still be quite cold when warm humid air rolls in, and it sweats, just like a pop can.
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My shop is a metal 40’ x 40’ x 18’ peak building, it would take a pretty good dehumidifier to keep it dry. Plus its not insulated. I plan on having a custom cover built to cover the entire table to keep dirt / grinding dust etc… off of it, maybe just keep a light bulb enclosed in the cover during the sweating time. I like the corrosion x idea, I use it on my boats. Am I being overly paranoid about this?
My shop is 40x40 with the bubble wrap “insulation”. I have metal trusses and it’s 22 feet to the ridge so all my heat’s up there. I use blowers out of hvac units for fans so it doesn’t take long to dry things out. They’re a lot quieter than a regular fan.
I got a cover from Amazon for a lawn tractor that fits great. Beat the cost of a custom cover for me.
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I’d sure love it if you shared what you bought. A lot of guys do woodworking and other random dirty hobbies in their shops, and I bet more than one could use an easy cover to keep the dust off when not running the machine.