Path: utzoo!attcan!uunet!clyde.concordia.ca!cidsv01.cid.aes.doe.CA!ycrigan
From: ycrigan@cid.aes.doe.CA (Greg Neill)
Newsgroups: sci.electronics
Subject: Grease attack on powercord
Message-ID: <1990Feb7.145848.13497@cid.aes.doe.CA>
Date: 7 Feb 90 14:58:48 GMT
Reply-To: ycrigan@cid.aes.doe.CA ()
Organization: Environment Canada
Lines: 37

Hello,

  I have recently had the pleasure of cleaning off the grease buildup
from a stove hood vent.  It seems that the vent was operated for a
good portion of its life without the benefit of the appropriate 
filter being in place, and as a result the fan motor and wiring
bore the full brunt of the slimy mess (rented house -- not my fault).

  I removed the motor from its mounting in order to gain access to
the inner reaches of the vent duct, as well as to clean up the motor.
I was amazed to find that a portion of the power cord insulation had
literally dissolved away leaving bear wire exposed.  The plug on the
end of the cord was converted to a mushy mass as well.  Talk about a
fire/shock hazard!

  I stripped down the motor and thoroughly cleaned it up inside and
out, checked for shorted windings, etc., to be sure that it hadn't 
been damaged.

  The power cord for this motor is a short length of zip-cord of 
the type one would use for a water kettle or the like.  
It seems to me that even with the appropriate filter in place, some
small amount of grease will always get through to this part, and so a
new power cord would likely suffer the same fate eventually.

  My question is, is there a particular type of wire/plug I could use
for this application, or failing that, if I were to replace them with
identical materials, is there something I can coat these parts with
in order to prevent them from degrading in the future?  I don't want
to spend a fortune on esoteric wiring technology.

Many thanks.  
-- 
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