Professional penetrators
Do it yourself waterproofing
Waterproofing
 Creating a waterproof canister is not difficult.
 Creating a waterproof canister and then drilling holes
in it for wires, creates a number of complications.
Water pressure, even at depths found in MATE Competition pools, will
push water through pipe threads, openings, holes, or weak spots.
This can leave your canister flooded and your
electronics inoperative.
Professional penetrators
If you are spending thousands of dollars to construct a
vehicle, spending a few hundred on a professional
penetrator may be cost effective.
What is the value of your watertight electronics?
Subconn:
www.subconn.com/
Sea Con:
http://seaconworldwide.com/products/penetrators/
SeaCon underwater penetrator
Teledyne Impulse
www.teledyneimpulse.com
SOURIAU:
www.souriau.com/underwater/accueil.html
Underwatersystems.com:
www.underwatersystems.com
Teledyne Impulse penetrator
Do it yourself
Creating your own waterproof penetration through your
canister
Example:
www.homebuiltrovs.com/howtosealingwireexits.html
This website shows a method we have been using
at the MATE Center workshops for the last few
years.
One alteration is to stagger the location of the
wire stripping
Basic Epoxy Seal
 Drill a hole through your
canister
 Insert wire through hole
 Use epoxy to seal the
hole so no water can get
through
Leakage
 If you get a hole or
break in the wire
sheath, water will
penetrate into your
canister through the
sheath, or even
between the copper
wire and the insulator.
Strip each wire
 Strip a section of each individual
wire.
 Stagger your wire stripping so
that bare wires will not touch
one another and cause a short
or other electrical problem.
Sealed
 Water cannot
penetrate through
the seals. Even if
water is moving
down between the
wire and insulator,
it will not get past
the stripped and
sealed portion.
Close up view
Epoxy