Water Damage - Contact Corrosion
Dealing with contact corrosion.
Earpiece and headphone contacts on any radio, even waterproof radios, can suffer corrosion if they have been wetted with salt water or any fluid other than pure water. For instance soft drinks are very corrosive. This corrosion is accelerated when power is flowing through a contact so battery terminals are very prone to damage.
If contacts do get wet then flush and immediatly clean all the contacts with a cloth moistened with potable (drinking) water then dry with a tissue.
If contact are already suffering corrosion I suggest you follow this procedure.
1. Brush of any encrusted corrosion with a dry toothbrush
2. Wipe all the contacts several times with a damp sponge cloth moistened with drinking water to remove any remaining salt deposits.
3. Wipe all the contacts several times with a damp sponge cloth moistened with pure alcohol (methylated spirits) to remove any grease.
4. Gently polish all the contacts with dry writing paper. Don't use anything more abrasive.
