Dialectic grease on ebike battery contacts

[Tiny]

Is it OK to use dialectic grease on ebike battery contacts to avoid corrosion?

 

[Anton]

Yes! Dialectric grease will help prevent corrosion on your ebikes battery terminals. You can apply it liberally before plugging the connector then wipe the excess off. Dust may stick to the outside of the grease, but this wont affect the performance. Without dialectric grease your ebike will still work but the connectors will tend to corrode and they may then play up and only work intermittently.

 

[Tiny]

Thank you, that’s what I thought.
I am taking the bike toFlorida next year and we will be close to the ocean and beach.
I‘m just trying to get prepared.

 

[alaskawet]

If it wasnt for dialectric grease nothing im my state would last long. I wouldn't use it on anything that produces heat. By heat i mean high amperage draw under constant load. Maybe over 150 degrees? Smells bad,makes a mess and could catch fire eventually. My 2 cents. Get those studded tires out! Winters coming!

 

[Anton]

Dialectric grease is basically a silicone grease which may seem odd because silicone is actually insulating. The fact is that you can still apply it liberally and directly to electrical contacts because the grease is actually pushed out of the way when the metal contacts come together. (Kind of like air is pushed out of the way when the metal contacts come together.)

So what you get when using dialectric grease is a perfect electrical connection, without no resistance and the connection is also fully insulated from the outside elements.

Here's a good post about it on a motorcycle forum:

The Proper Use of Dielectric Grease?

Can anyone comment on it's proper use/application? I assumed you'd use it to spray electrical plugs/contacts before reassembly to prevent oxidation....

advrider.com

@alaskawet I think it depends on the type of dialectric grease but I think most of it can withstand very high temperatures since it is made from silicone. It can also be used on spark plugs in car engines, so I don't think it would ever catch fire.

Here's is what I found on Wikipedia about silicone grease a.k.a. dialectric grease:

Electrical utilities use silicone grease to lubricate separable elbows on lines that must endure high temperatures. Silicone greases generally have an operating temperature range of approximately −40 to 200 °C (−40 to 392 °F) with some high-temperature versions extending this range slightly.

Silicone grease - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

 

[alaskawet]

I agree. But it will change thickness and move around at high temps. At least common permetex stuff. Which could cause running onto hotter parts or at least make a mess. Used them on spark plugs for years. Plus anything else with an electrical plug. sil-glyde from napa works great for everthing. Not cheap but impressive stuff. I would shy away from conductive electrical grease. Might be easy to confuse the 2.

 

[Anton]

That's right, conductive electrical grease is the opposite to dialectric grease. It might short out an ebike battery if applied to the battery terminals. Don't get the two mixed up @Tiny !

Also worth noting is that dialectric grease wont improve connectivity if your terminals are already dirty or corroded. You must make sure the terminals are clean before applying.

 

[Lone Ranger]

I use Super Lube 92003 Silicone Lubricating Grease for my ebike connector plugs, it's silicone based not oil, synthetic and die-electric. US $9 a 3oz tube and it goes a long way. No i don't work for them.

Super Lube 92003 Silicone Lubricating Grease with PTFE, 3 oz Tube, Translucent White 1 Pack: Amazon.com: Industrial & Scientific

Super Lube 92003 Silicone Lubricating Grease with PTFE, 3 oz Tube, Translucent White 1 Pack: Amazon.com: Industrial & Scientific

www.amazon.com