Galvanic Corrosion in Action - Small Time

[spartonboat1]

So this a real time story of Galvanic Corrosion in action, and is small time, if a garden hose end counts as small time.

I had one of those "shrinks way down", garden/boat/whatever use. However, they advertise some type of special grade of Alu-min-eum ends, i.e. the threaded component.

Thereby is my "I knew better" story. I hooked up one of those hoses to my homes exterior hose bibs. They are good grade. Short story I left it hooked up for several months (6+?). Bad move.

A couple weeks ago, I "attempted" to remove it, unscrew you know. Well, that baby is absolutely not budging! So time to apply some good ole' Liquid Wrench "Super Penetrant". And I do. Several times over a couple weeks.

Well, toothed jaws Channel Locks are no good. So I upgrade to some big jaw Vise Grips. Apply lots of effort, sub-bad-back, since mine is broken. But I am actully good to go, the Surgeon says, short of over-doing it.

Next out comes one of my deal breakers, a 5-6' pipe that will slide over the Vise Grips. I am still hitting the fitting with WD-40 and LW. Vise Grips slips. Up the ante and I can barely get it close, but it does. Back on goes the pipe. No go. Out comes a good size hammer. Now some more loading, well over 100' #'s and I started to hit the Vise Grips with the load applied.

Voila! I feel it break free I think! It "yelps!" Yup., a few more pulls and she is moving. I release the Vise Grips and reset. Apply some more WD-40; now we are moving, but not easily! After about 3 full turns she releases good, as only one thread left.

Off she comes. Not pretty. The bib fitting looks ok, but the Aluminum, not so much. For Fun I will post a photo.

So I will get some quick disconnects, preferable plastic, and if the hose fitting still works, she won't directly connect to the bib again, or on the boat outlet, since I have such a hose on the boat.

End of Story. Galvanic Corrosion is for real and can be a real pain!!

 

[wpc691]

Been there, done it. Any kind of aluminum hose fitting should be outlawed.

 

[SKYCHENEY]

And I was waiting for him to say, "and then I figured out I was tightening it"

 

[oscarvan]

I was waiting for it to snap off clean......

I also like mr propane wrench. Things expand at different rates, tends to break bonds. The hit it with the PB blaster when it's nice and hot and it sucks way in there..... Done a few shaft couplings this way.

 

[Jammin']

Same thing happened to me a couple of weeks ago. The tenant left the aluminum hose end on the brass barb over the winter. I tried PB Blaster and a torch. No luck. I ended up cutting it off.

 

[rsmith]

I coat all my metal hose ends with dielectric grease. Never is a problem. I also got sick of double A batteries ruining everything I started coating them with dielectric and the battery compartments. Haven’t had one leak in a couple years.

 

[Briankinley2004]

All the so called commercial grade or "good hoses" now days seem to have the aluminum ends, which are worthless unless you have plastic bibs or sprayers, etc. I now have to use tef-gel on my hose ends to keep them from sticking. I bought a cheaper hose recently just because of this. I hate fighting the kinking vinyl but I don't have to fight the connectors and it was much cheaper.