Egmont

Maybe we, that live near the shore, should have another look.

RobRussell

When i bought my JK last month, my dealership sold me on a similar system made by Diamond Kote. Their website has some info on it.

AFAIK, all boats with a motor (I/O, outboard or inboard) whether used in fresh or salt water have a sacrificial anode. I can attest to the fact that they work in fresh water. I removed mine on my I/O due to it interfering with my new 4 blade prop, and for the next two years, my outdrive deterioted significantly, lost a lot of paint and the metal begin to develop some pitting.

I then installed a new anode that didn't interfere with the prop and the deterioration seems to have stopped.

the Diamond Kote system is supposed to combine the benefits of the anode with the protection that voltage provides. I seem to recall reading somewhere that while vehicles are running, the current that flows through the body and chassis prevents any rust from forming, and that a vehicle only rusts when the ignition is off. I don't know if this is true or not, but seems plausible.

The anodic principle certainly works, and even though i bought the Diamond Kote system, I am not yet entirely convinced that a vehicle, that is not in a body of water, will benefit from this process.

Egmont

First let me say I am a marine electrician for the better part of 25 years and marine corrosion and prevention is a big part of my activities.

The first time I heard about a unit like this was here and I am not sure, but I will keep an open mind.

You cannot compare these two systems as they do two different thing, one prevents rust in a more or less dry environment while the other prevents corrosion in a submerged environment.

I can’t speak for the first, but I know the second. A boat in the water acts like a battery, the boat is the anode and cathode. By them self, nothing happens, but when you submerge them in water, that’s when the battery effect starts. Saltwater is a fantastic conductor, fresh water has very little conductivity. Of the ladder of nobility, where gold is on the top and zinc and magnesium on the bottom, zinc is used as the sacrificial anode in this “battery”. These anodes are designed to prevent incidental corrosion, not rust, in the marine environment.

This brings me to the reason for this longwinded explanation, Rob, your statement is not quite right, boats shipped to lake, freshwater, regions do not have or need zincs. I do not doubt that you have what you described, but the reason for this corrosion is a severe electrical problem on your boat.

If my boat would be in this condition, I would go, no run, to a qualified marine electrician, not a car or household electrician, but a marine electrician that is trained in the marine environment. Also, if you have 110v service on board, I would not physically touch your boat unless it is unplugged.

I did not mean to hijack the thread, but I think it is important to know why things happen.

Just my 2 ct worth.

fraynes1

I got this electrical corrosion control module free when I got the "Master Shield" protection with the Jeep.

Not sure if it will work. I live in Northern Ontario and there is LOTS of salt put on the roads in the winter.

Time will tell I guess.

ps If any panel of my Jeep rusts or has a rust spon on it, they will fix and replace it for nothing.

it was included in the master shield price so it's a good deal for me I guess

Machster50

Hi Folks:

As promised, here are a few pics of the install... given my limited mechanical or electrical skills, it took me about 3 hours to install including clean up and figuring out the best options for routing wires and installing the unit and 'couplers'.

As far as previous comments, quite interesting - seems that such units are relatively new and limited experience is out there.

Here goes... hope the pics load up automatically for you... guess I need to learn how to do that...



The best spot I could find for the unit was between the battery and fuse box...

Machster50

here is a pic of the unit, with the wire harness attached. the wires need to be fed through the rubber boot first, then the harness is affixed to the unit...

Machster50

the front coupler or electrode has to be installed at least 36" away from the unit according to the instructions, so I picked a spot on the driver side fender well, just below a hole as seen in the photo. the area needs to be cleaned with alcohol for the electrode to stick on properly, then routed a wire to it via a heat-shrunk connector, supplied in the kit ...

also, they advise not to run the vehicle while the install to avoid possible high voltage electrical shock resulting in possible death, hmmm, ok. works for me.

Machster50

the rear coupler or electrode must / should be installed on the opposite side that the front one is as to effect a broader and effective distribution of current, therefore I chose the inside rear, passenger side tail-light as the best location. see attached photo, connection as above install. you will also notice the wire fed through the bottom, in protective casing and siliconed to help keep any dust coming in. no drilling was required there, not sure how good a seal that bottom liner provides...

Machster50

here is the unit installed near the battery location. five wires in total are installed. the red - to red battery terminal via supplied fuse-holder (also serves as quick disconnect). - black wire to the corresponding side on the battery. - green wire goes to ground and a convenient ground exists to the right side of the battery against the firewall, grounding the vehicle hood, or so it appears - the other two wires go to the couplers. one is routed against the firewall, the other I sent to the rear of the vehicle along the top side of the ladder frame, and tie-wrapped it along an existing wire...



Also note, contrary to what was suggested by someone earlier, this unit is ALWAYS sending current to the vehicle body. the connection is direct to the battery and not interrupted by any switch. Hence the manual states that the unit will sense if the vehicle battery ever becomes too discharged, it will shut itself off before killing your battery. they do suggest that the unit should be able to operate a month without requiring charging the battery.


Hope this might be useful, will answer any questions that I can, tks.

borinn

a device of this type has been around since at least 1994 when I bought my 1st jeep. i refused to buy any add-on warranty due to a consumer reports article(i know you guys don't like CR but who else can we trust with these things). The sales manager told me I was "stupid" for not protecting my investment. I only bought the car from the dealership because they were below everyone elses price by hundreds. well, 3 years later when buying my 2nd jeep they tried to sell me underbody coating. Being the a$$ that i am I refused the underbody and said I was considering buying the electric rust preventer system bieng discussed. The same dealer then bashed the electric system, shoulda seen the look on his face when i told him the truth......

they are called stealerships for a reason and I trust consumer reports on this one. the bodies are protected prior to painting and todays paints are better than ever. Jeeps rust easily, but living in the snowbelt they are a great all year car. i've never gotten stuck in my driveway............

borinn