Im redoing somethings on our boat trailer and the wire size is 14 guage. I bought some tubing for 10 to 18 guage wire. Got to shrink it down and the thing wont shrink anymore. Doesnt even seal the connection. Did i do something wrong? Maybe ill just buy the tubing for 20 guage cause that would work perfectly.

Rob. graemlins/beers.gif

May try a dab of RTV over your solder joint before you slide the tubing over it. Let it dry first. The shink tubing won't give you a good seal in a marine environment. Yes, some brands of tubing shrink better than others.

I use Panduit shrink tubing on the rig. It works great in a marine environment. I've used it on everything from 1000MCM down to 12 gauge.

The trick with this particular brand is to apply heat until the clear goo oozes out from both ends. Says so right in the directions. Makes a great watertight seal. Check with your local electrical supply.

thanks for the info

Yeah, use the shrink with adheasive in it. Seals out the elements.

How did you shrink it? While it will shrink with body heat, a blow drier, flame, or the heat of a soldering iron works best.

And if you use a lighter, stick the wire with the shrink tube right down in the base of the flame where it's nice and blue. This will prevent the shrink tube from scorching or catching fire. I didn't believe it till I tried it, but wow! My favorite new trick! smile.gif

I've had good luck with the shrink tube from Sears Hardware, I think it's made by GB (gardner bender?) It's by the light switches and junction boxes. I don't like the smooth cheap stuff from the parts store, the black rubber lookin stuff seems to shrink better.

chris

Actually, that GB stuff is what I have. I tried a lighter first, and then a hair drier. It shrunk to about 1mm over the wire but no more. How long does it take to shrink completely? I waited like 1 minute and still nothing.

Rob. graemlins/beers.gif

It usually only takes a few seconds to shrink up. I bought all the different sizes I could find, and I use the smallest diameter piece that will fit over the joint to be protected. If you pick one size bigger, it might not shrink far enough.

Chads right, in my opinion the best is panduit. I use propane torches to shrink it.