Reviving Test Equipment After A Long Storage Period
On Feb 3, 2:53*am, Robert Baer wrote:
D from BC wrote:
In article bdc9a0c2-ac56-49a4-9ca1-2d058e3c0fe6
@t1g2000vbq.googlegroups.com, says...
I have a number of pieces of test equipment (HP, Tek, Fluke...digital/
analog/RF) that have been sitting in storage for a decade.
Time to apply the power and see if they work.
What is the recommended procedure to bring test equipment that has
been stored for a long period?
Also is there a MIL document that relates to this subject?
Thanks for what info you can offer.
TMT
Here's my guesses ..
1) Blow dust off the electronics (human skin,pollen,pollution,drywall
dust from renovations). Remove dead insects and mice/rat hair or pet
hair or mice/rat urine or feces. Check if something leaked onto the
electronics ex roof leak..
2) Don't test it..Just play dumb. You don't know what it is and don't
know how to test it and sell as is on ebay with no return.
3) If it self destructs, so what.... 10 years imo approaches totally
useless.
4) Maybe plug it in and turn it on outside in case the smoke is toxic.
+10 year old tek hmmm...ok it might be a bit heavy to move around.
5) RogerN(sed poster) might say 'Pray to God'. If it still blows up, you
didn't pray hard enough. Or God has a plan for its failure. Or Satan is
to blame for the electrolytics failing. Either way it's God's plan and
his capriousness is to be taken an example of extreme power.
6) Don't bother. Life's short. Have fun and let it be someone else's
problem.
7) Drop it off at a shop that deals with restoring and selling test
equipment. Pay.
* *Well, i disagree on the 10 year statement.
* *Have carefully powered up old Tek 517 scopes 8-15 years after
manufacture and all worked and near spec (in one case had to replace a
few power supply electrolytics).
* *I bet one could still do that today even after all this time.
* *THere were some damn fast ANALOG scopes with beyond 1GHz secs that
displayed fast rise pulses (mercury wetted reed pulsers) with better
resolution and fidelity than 1S1 plugins in those daze.
* *Single-shot pulse displays are in the long dim past.- Hide quoted text -
- Show quoted text -
I agree.
There is LOTS of older equipment out there working.
TMT
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