I have had my OpenEVSE kit mounted on the wall for a few weeks now and I have done a good number of successful charges with it. I bought an ESP32 Ethernet Gateway upgrade and was about to install it but after opening the OpenEVSE up, I was a bit distressed to discover water inside and some of the components were showing signs of corrosion / rust.
In another post, I mentioned that I wanted to use rear cable entry. It is very hard to work out where water has come in - some of it looked like it had evaporated and condensed again. But my instinct is that it didn’t come in through the rear - which had a lot of silicon sealant round it.
I am wondering if it came in around the LCD window. I removed the LCD and screwed it back on again, and tightened it as best I can - but the instructions do say to not over-tighten. How tight is tight-enough and how tight is too-tight? Since I tightened it, is has rained again and no-more water seems to have got in but it does worry me.
The LCD is mounted on the inside of the case - there should be no way for the water to get in that way, the outside is just a sheet of plastic. Unless there is damage.
When it rains I have seen water collecting on the ridge of the LCD screen opening - seems an obvious route for water to then get into the case. I am starting to think that this is why the case design changed
Importing a new official enclosure from openevse.com would be ÂŁ72.00. I am wondering about rebuilding it in a generic IP rated enclosure with a clear front instead.
Ah, sorry, I mistook you for someone who bought a kit recently.
Is there a bit of clear plastic above the screen? I seem to recall it coming with one, perhaps I am mistaken. I can’t quite make it out in your photo. That cover could then be beaded into place with silicone.
Fwiw don’t use acetoxy silicone for sealing electronics.
Thanks Marko! Sadly some parts are looking pretty corroded due to water damage.
Can you recommend an alternative flexible sealant? Neutral Cure Silicone?
Just a followup to say that I think the natural cure silicone sealant has been successful.
I put a bead around the edge of the screen, the button, screw holes and screw heads. The small tube/nozzle made application pretty easy:
I have opened the enclosure up a couple of times since and not found any water in it since then
The corrosion is basically just in two places:
On the push button
On the 40A mains contactor
I am not sure it is bad enough to need replacing but it is fortunate that both of these are relatively cheap components. I have added a 100g bag of silica gel to absorb any moisture trapped in there.
Hopefully the problem is now solved but still considering replacing with a different enclosure.
