Water in the motor compartment

**Alastair** · April 11th, 2006, 03:53 PM

Hi All,

If a Gavin should suffer some salt water ingress into the motor compartment - what's the process for sorting it out?

The scooter still works and we are talking about a very minor amount of water. Battery compartment was dry which made me wonder if it was the seal?

Thanks in advance
Al

davy · April 11th, 2006, 04:41 PM

yes, probably it's the seal...
Have you had the scooter standing upright on a rought surface?
the shaft is pretty vulnerable when something pushes against it, popping of the little snap rings and making the seal leak a bit while the scooter is floating on the surface... at depth it isn't a problem because of the pressure.

take it apart and put it back into place.
usually they just pop back into position if you hit the trigger a couple of times before you put the scooter in the water, but not always...

I only got fresh water in my motor compartment which just involved drying it out.
I guess salt water would require a thourough checkup to avoid corrosion buildup on the brushes etc.

**Alastair** · April 12th, 2006, 12:13 AM

Quote: (Originally Posted by davy)

yes, probably it's the seal...
Have you had the scooter standing upright on a rought surface?
the shaft is pretty vulnerable when something pushes against it, popping of the little snap rings and making the seal leak a bit while the scooter is floating on the surface... at depth it isn't a problem because of the pressure.

take it apart and put it back into place.
usually they just pop back into position if you hit the trigger a couple of times before you put the scooter in the water, but not always...

I only got fresh water in my motor compartment which just involved drying it out.
I guess salt water would require a thourough checkup to avoid corrosion buildup on the brushes etc.

I've been careful with it so far but it's possible it took a knock at some point. I've not taken the shaft apart before so I've had a quick chat with Rich Walker (UK Gavin distributor) who is trying to meet up with me to go through it. I've dried the motor compartment out and it doesn't look too bad with the exception of the relay:

**jb2cool** · April 12th, 2006, 12:18 AM

bugga.

Give it a good scrub with a nail brush and warm water and see if most of it comes off. I don't know if that board gets warm in use but if not you could try some PCB laquer as that will waterproof the board.

***Bob Cooper*** · April 12th, 2006, 12:23 AM

Al

They can often leak through the seal at the surface. Once you get a bit of depth, the pressure will close the seal and they won't leak.

In salt water, this can be a problem. I don't know if it actually makes any difference but I try not to put my scooters in the water without running the motor for a few seconds. I think this might help the seal prior to descending and letting the external pressure close it properly.

Also, like Davy said, if you put the scooter down and the hub takes a knock this can distort the circlip on the shaft and allow the seal to leak a little.

If you have got salt water in the motor, you really need to flush it out with fresh water. If you leave it alone it will only do more damage in the future.

That corrosion on the relay board is just superficial, the damage will be on the brushboard which you can't see unless you remove the motor.

Sorry it's not good news, but like I said to Clare tonight "welcome to scooterland...!"

Bob

**Alastair** · April 12th, 2006, 06:42 PM

Quote: (Originally Posted by Bob Cooper)

Al

They can often leak through the seal at the surface. Once you get a bit of depth, the pressure will close the seal and they won't leak.

In salt water, this can be a problem. I don't know if it actually makes any difference but I try not to put my scooters in the water without running the motor for a few seconds. I think this might help the seal prior to descending and letting the external pressure close it properly.

Also, like Davy said, if you put the scooter down and the hub takes a knock this can distort the circlip on the shaft and allow the seal to leak a little.

If you have got salt water in the motor, you really need to flush it out with fresh water. If you leave it alone it will only do more damage in the future.

That corrosion on the relay board is just superficial, the damage will be on the brushboard which you can't see unless you remove the motor.

Sorry it's not good news, but like I said to Clare tonight "welcome to scooterland...!"

Bob

Thanks for the info Bob - interestingly I didn't run the motor before immersion. It was only going in the water for me to get the salt water weighting sorted so I didn't bother to check that it ran - previously I've done that before every dive (i.e. to check I plugged the battery in).

I'll get Rich to take a look if we manage sort schedules out - if not I might ask you and Andy come DIR-UK in May if that's ok?

Cheers
Al

graham_hk · April 13th, 2006, 03:10 AM

It is always messing around a the surface that this happens - since as Bob says once you desend pressure acts upon the seal closing it. GI has advocated pushing the back end in at the surface before you desend.

Also normally this happens when the scooter has taken a knock (or been stood on the pitch adjustment screw (happens on uneven surfaces) and the c-clip that holds the shaft rigid (in an up and down direction) bends a little. As the motor wobbles (transporting) the seal unseats a little and you get a drible of water into the motor compartment. You can check this if there is any play in the shaft. If there is you need to re-shim it and replace the bent clip.

You may also have salt crystals - but you wouldn't have those unless you hadn't been spraying with WD40 as soon as possible after each sea dive.

You need to have the motor stripped as if you relay looks like this the inner workings will be worse and will only get worse over time until it doesn't work any more (you might try washing in distilled water as an interim measure).

Bottom line on things like this is - ask George

Graham

April 11th, 2006, 03:53 PM	#1 (permalink)
Alastair(Offline) DIRX Supporter Join Date: Nov 2005 Location: UK Posts: 693	Water in the motor compartment Hi All, If a Gavin should suffer some salt water ingress into the motor compartment - what's the process for sorting it out? The scooter still works and we are talking about a very minor amount of water. Battery compartment was dry which made me wonder if it was the seal? Thanks in advance Al __________________ Helium is our friend - GI3

April 12th, 2006, 12:13 AM	#3 (permalink)
Alastair(Offline) DIRX Supporter Join Date: Nov 2005 Location: UK Posts: 693	Quote: (Originally Posted by davy) yes, probably it's the seal... Have you had the scooter standing upright on a rought surface? the shaft is pretty vulnerable when something pushes against it, popping of the little snap rings and making the seal leak a bit while the scooter is floating on the surface... at depth it isn't a problem because of the pressure. take it apart and put it back into place. usually they just pop back into position if you hit the trigger a couple of times before you put the scooter in the water, but not always... I only got fresh water in my motor compartment which just involved drying it out. I guess salt water would require a thourough checkup to avoid corrosion buildup on the brushes etc. I've been careful with it so far but it's possible it took a knock at some point. I've not taken the shaft apart before so I've had a quick chat with Rich Walker (UK Gavin distributor) who is trying to meet up with me to go through it. I've dried the motor compartment out and it doesn't look too bad with the exception of the relay: __________________ Helium is our friend - GI3

April 12th, 2006, 12:18 AM	#4 (permalink)
jb2cool(Offline) Padawan learner Join Date: Nov 2005 Location: Bracknell, Berkshire Posts: 797	bugga. Give it a good scrub with a nail brush and warm water and see if most of it comes off. I don't know if that board gets warm in use but if not you could try some PCB laquer as that will waterproof the board. __________________ http://jb2cool.bulldoghome.com

April 12th, 2006, 06:42 PM	#6 (permalink)
Alastair(Offline) DIRX Supporter Join Date: Nov 2005 Location: UK Posts: 693	Quote: (Originally Posted by Bob Cooper) Al They can often leak through the seal at the surface. Once you get a bit of depth, the pressure will close the seal and they won't leak. In salt water, this can be a problem. I don't know if it actually makes any difference but I try not to put my scooters in the water without running the motor for a few seconds. I think this might help the seal prior to descending and letting the external pressure close it properly. Also, like Davy said, if you put the scooter down and the hub takes a knock this can distort the circlip on the shaft and allow the seal to leak a little. If you have got salt water in the motor, you really need to flush it out with fresh water. If you leave it alone it will only do more damage in the future. That corrosion on the relay board is just superficial, the damage will be on the brushboard which you can't see unless you remove the motor. Sorry it's not good news, but like I said to Clare tonight "welcome to scooterland...!" Bob Thanks for the info Bob - interestingly I didn't run the motor before immersion. It was only going in the water for me to get the salt water weighting sorted so I didn't bother to check that it ran - previously I've done that before every dive (i.e. to check I plugged the battery in). I'll get Rich to take a look if we manage sort schedules out - if not I might ask you and Andy come DIR-UK in May if that's ok? Cheers Al __________________ Helium is our friend - GI3

April 11th, 2006, 04:41 PM	#2 (permalink)
davy(Offline) DIveR Join Date: Nov 2005 Location: Belgium Posts: 275	yes, probably it's the seal... Have you had the scooter standing upright on a rought surface? the shaft is pretty vulnerable when something pushes against it, popping of the little snap rings and making the seal leak a bit while the scooter is floating on the surface... at depth it isn't a problem because of the pressure. take it apart and put it back into place. usually they just pop back into position if you hit the trigger a couple of times before you put the scooter in the water, but not always... I only got fresh water in my motor compartment which just involved drying it out. I guess salt water would require a thourough checkup to avoid corrosion buildup on the brushes etc.

April 12th, 2006, 12:23 AM	#5 (permalink)
*Bob Cooper*(Offline) Moderator - "Don't stop me now!" Join Date: Nov 2005 Location: South East London, UK Posts: 680	Al They can often leak through the seal at the surface. Once you get a bit of depth, the pressure will close the seal and they won't leak. In salt water, this can be a problem. I don't know if it actually makes any difference but I try not to put my scooters in the water without running the motor for a few seconds. I think this might help the seal prior to descending and letting the external pressure close it properly. Also, like Davy said, if you put the scooter down and the hub takes a knock this can distort the circlip on the shaft and allow the seal to leak a little. If you have got salt water in the motor, you really need to flush it out with fresh water. If you leave it alone it will only do more damage in the future. That corrosion on the relay board is just superficial, the damage will be on the brushboard which you can't see unless you remove the motor. Sorry it's not good news, but like I said to Clare tonight "welcome to scooterland...!" Bob

April 13th, 2006, 03:10 AM	#7 (permalink)
graham_hk(Offline) Pinoy ako pinoy Join Date: Nov 2005 Location: here, there and everywhere Posts: 779	It is always messing around a the surface that this happens - since as Bob says once you desend pressure acts upon the seal closing it. GI has advocated pushing the back end in at the surface before you desend. Also normally this happens when the scooter has taken a knock (or been stood on the pitch adjustment screw (happens on uneven surfaces) and the c-clip that holds the shaft rigid (in an up and down direction) bends a little. As the motor wobbles (transporting) the seal unseats a little and you get a drible of water into the motor compartment. You can check this if there is any play in the shaft. If there is you need to re-shim it and replace the bent clip. You may also have salt crystals - but you wouldn't have those unless you hadn't been spraying with WD40 as soon as possible after each sea dive. You need to have the motor stripped as if you relay looks like this the inner workings will be worse and will only get worse over time until it doesn't work any more (you might try washing in distilled water as an interim measure). Bottom line on things like this is - ask George Graham