Learn How to Make Your Electronics Waterproof

Keep electronics away from water, right? That’s pretty good advice, but sometimes you don’t have a choice. If you’re building an underwater ROV (remotely operated vehicle), for example, you’re going to need to find some way to deal with water. Fortunately, there is someone with a great deal of experience in that arena and he made a video to share all of his best waterproofing secrets.

Manafish ROV's video goes over several different methods for making electronics waterproof — or at least some level of water-resistant. Some of them will keep components completely dry, even at extreme depths. Others are more suitable for protection from spills and light rain.

In the video, methods are divided into either permanent or non-permanent. The first permanent method is a hydrophobic spray coating. That causes water to bead off, because it doesn’t have any surface tension with the PCB or components. Great for something like a keyboard that needs to resist oopsies, but not actually waterproof.

The next is a light coating using either nail polish or liquid electrical tape. That creates a physical barrier to keep out water and is effective, but there is always a risk that you might miss a spot and that can be disastrous.

The third permanent method is tried-and-true: potting. You completely encase the board and components in potting compound, creating a solid block. If you do it right, it should be completely waterproof and impervious to pressure at any depth. The downside is that you’ll never get to those components again, so you need to be sure of your design.

On the non-permanent front, there are several techniques for enclosing electronic components in waterproof containers. This is the conventional submersible hull approach, but it comes with many challenges. That’s especially true when you go deep, where the pressure differential becomes tremendous.

The video explains ways to design and construct hulls, including both sealed and openable types. It also demonstrates how to safely route cables through the hull, which is important for motors and floating tethers.

So if you have any desire to mix your electronics with water, this is the video to save as a reference.