Electronics in the Cold

[cbadmin]

From: Blackfinn (Original Message) Sent: 2/27/2003 6:16 PM
Howdy,
I'd appreciate hearing opinions and/or experiences on the need to remove electronics from a boat during winter storage. And I'm not talking banana-belt storage here, but temperatures that can reach -30 to -40F. God's Country, they call it up here in northern MN!

I've always taken as much stuff out as I can, and yet one of my boats had an LCD depth display that was not removable and it seemed to suffer no ill effects. And certainly there's a lot of similar stuff in automobiles that survive the cold.

What do you think?

Al

From: 2nd Byte Sent: 2/27/2003 8:51 PM
For the most part I leave my stuff in the boat. I have had no problem with the electronics whatsoever. That is no detectable problems. The exception is that this year I pulled the GPS/Sounder unit out and stored it in a nice dry spot in the house. Why.........just on a whim. If it doesn't work when I put it back in the boat this spring I'll assume, cold good, warm bad. We get some serious cold weather here in Fairbanks but it is normally a pretty dry cold.

Mark

From: Chuck S Sent: 2/28/2003 4:20 AM
Liquid crystal displays (LCD) are -- liquid -- and can freeze rupturing the indiviual cells. I've seen these instruments ruined over an Ohio winter and lost a laptop screen the same way when it was shipped as hold baggage on a airplace. That was a few years ago.

LCDs have gotten better since then, but there should be an operating temperature range for each device as well as a storage or shipping temperature. Check your manual(s). -40° is -40° and darn cold.

Nice to know Fairbanks is a "dry cold." I feel better already.

-- Chuck



From: 2nd Byte Sent: 2/28/2003 10:11 AM
Anything to oblige. Glad you're feeling better Chuck.

Mark

From: Blackfinn Sent: 2/28/2003 2:06 PM
Thanks, Mark. Yours was exactly the kind of response I was looking for. If anyone can match our temperatures in International Falls, it would be Fairbanks. And the "dry cold" thing is just something we tell people so they don't think we're quite so crazy living where we do. Right?
Regards,
Al


From: 2nd Byte Sent: 2/28/2003 6:15 PM
You got it Al, it's more of an addendum that tends to bridge the netherland of sanity to insanity.

I really don't "know" whether, or what, electronics should be removed for extreme cold situations. Rather I was just reflecting my personal experience w/o any recommendation one way or the other. Greg, aka/Red Fox will probably weigh in on this subject when he gets a chance. At any rate I'm sure there will be more thoughts pending.

Have a super day!

Mark

From: C-DOG_Ken Sent: 2/28/2003 6:59 PM
Hi, All

From everything I've read, extreme cold conditions generally don't cause a problem (although it does slow down the response time for an LCD screen).

The bigger problem is extreme temperature changes. For example, pulling an instrument from a very cold environment and bringing it into a warm, moist environment (such as a house), will cause condensation on the components. Given the right conditions, that could ultimately cause corrosion. Operating electronics where a lot of condensation is occurring, can also cause problems.

Moisture, rather than cold, is probably the bigger enemy.

Ken

From: C-DOG_Ken Sent: 2/28/2003 7:20 PM
Hi, Chuck,

Great info in the Selective Availability of GPS. That really puts things in the (less emotional) perspective.

I recently came across something that stated LCDs should be good between -50º C and 80º C. All I know is that the LCD on my Raytheon L470 Fishfinder sure slows down well above -50. In fact, it gets a little logey around 0º C.

Ken

From: Chuck S Sent: 3/1/2003 5:54 AM
For more information of GPS error see the note I posted under that subject,

-- Chuck

From: Sawdust Sent: 3/1/2003 9:13 AM
Thanks for the link -- interesting site, Chuck. Because of the short baseline for DGPS here (where I shrimp), the accuracy is great. Certainly not survey-grade, but I can return to a shrimp pot buoy still visible under water and usually get a grapple on it! That was with the Garmin, and haven't tried the RayNav yet...

Dusty

From: Sawdust Sent: 3/1/2003 9:18 AM
It NEVER gets that cold here, but moist it gets! I've had to send three units back to the factory for condensation in the screens. Finally got a special bag (silica gel, or some such) and ended up taking the units off the boat in the winter and storing at home in the bags. Worked okay. It is a pain taking them back and forth, but cheaper.

Dusty

From: Blackfinn Sent: 3/1/2003 10:32 AM
One thing I would suggest taking out if your winters are severe is the liquid-filled compass. I talked to Ritchie some years ago and they advised that, while the liquid won't freeze, it does contract. And when it does, it can suck air and eventually create a bubble. Of course, I then thought it was a pain taking the compass out, so I didn't do it, and darned if they weren't right!
Al

From: Redƒox Sent: 3/5/2003 12:25 AM
I can add one thing here... Don't leave your cabin door open in that really cold stuff. It can heavily frost the inside of the cabin and make a mess!
As for problems with cold and electronics.... nope!

Greg