Repairing a remote with non/poor-functioning buttons

TheShanMan · Post by **TheShanMan** » Sun Feb 05, 2012 2:53 pm

How well does that work/last?

zaphod7501 · Post by **zaphod7501** » Sun Feb 05, 2012 3:29 pm

The reason for repairs to be short term is that the original conductive surface is not painted, but impregnated into the rubber.

Failure is more likely (in my opinion) to be caused by contamination from the oils on your skin soaking through the rubber. Rubber contact pads protected by plastic covers seem to last forever.

I have taken buttons from other remotes and fit them in place of the originals and have sliced the conductive portion from a good pad and replaced the old conductive bit. (carefully)

TheShanMan · Post by **TheShanMan** » Sun Feb 05, 2012 4:01 pm

Ah, very interesting. I have several remotes thrown in a closet that were abandoned because of button failure. This of course was before it dawned on me that there ought to be a solution for this failure. They would be perfect choices for button donors.

I appreciate all the feedback!

Post by **The Robman** » Sun Feb 05, 2012 6:09 pm

My advice though, is before you start doing anything to the buttons, made sure you thoroughly clean the PCB using an electrical cleaner like this...

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00006LVEU/

zaphod7501 · Post by **zaphod7501** » Sun Feb 05, 2012 7:58 pm

The Robman wrote:My advice though, is before you start doing anything to the buttons, made sure you thoroughly clean the PCB using an electrical cleaner like this...

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00006LVEU/

Definitely clean first.

Practice swaps on spare remotes before messing with the essential ones.
Its not always easy to do.

gardavis · Post by **gardavis** » Sat Mar 17, 2012 10:48 am

I have an old RS-1994 I'd like to get working again. I can get it appart and have tried using a conductive paint from ebay which solves the problem for a few minutes.

The paint is applied to the rubber button surface with a syringe. However, it does not stick to the buttons for long and then the paint flake gets stuck to the contacts rendering the remote useless.

As an alternative, I tried sanding down a few of the buttons but that did not work. I did not try the paint on the sanded buttons, maybe that will let the paint adhere better.

Also, I've read that superglueing a bit of aluminum foil may work.

Anyone else have any luck with this project?

Thanks,
Gary Davis
Webguild.com

Post by **The Robman** » Sat Mar 17, 2012 10:55 am

Before you started doing anything to the buttons themselves, did you first thoroughly clean the button areas of the PCB because gunk can build up there. Personally I use electrical contact cleaner to clean the PCB.

Given what you've already tried, I would give the superglue/tin foil trick a try next. Just try it on one button to see how well it works before trying others.

eferz · Post by **eferz** » Sat Mar 17, 2012 11:02 am

The Robman wrote:Before you started doing anything to the buttons themselves, did you first thoroughly clean the button areas of the PCB because gunk can build up there. Personally I use electrical contact cleaner to clean the PCB.

Given what you've already tried, I would give the superglue/tin foil trick a try next. Just try it on one button to see how well it works before trying others.

I agree.

gardavis · Post by **gardavis** » Sat Mar 17, 2012 1:00 pm

Thanks for the comments. I will try the foil idea and report back.

Also, thanks for combining my posting with the other related thread.

Gary

streetskater · Post by **streetskater** » Tue Mar 20, 2012 8:13 pm

The Robman wrote:There's also the poor man's fix, which is to just superglue aluminum tin foil to the bottom on the buttons.

Yup that's the route I go when 2B pencil lead just isn't cutting it anymore. It seems like it should be a pretty permanent fix, but I've found that with years old buttons, they don't take all that well to superglue.

With patience, a steady hand, and a HOT hot glue gun, that can work--but...by the time I'm on that path I know I that remote is heading for spare parts.

I lucked onto 3, still in original bubblewrap, 15-2117's on Ebay a few weeks ago. I've looked for years and never seen this remote for sale. So now (having moved from the 1994 to the 1995 and happy with the 2117, I have nearly a dozen RF receivers which I have no use for at all.

I progressed from my JP1 beginnings under Rob's tutelage---which necessarily meant starting with and and getting very used to the 15-1994 layout, the 15-2117 remains my favorite remote, hands down. Eventually I'll need more memory and functionality but I think I'm good till the end of the next Presidential term.

andyfras · Post by **andyfras** » Thu Apr 02, 2015 4:02 am

Running a hot soldering iron across the (non) conductive contacts burns off the oiliness and restores conductivity. It doesn't melt the silicon membrane.

argellix · Post by **argellix** » Mon Jan 25, 2016 10:49 pm

I want to keep my beloved URC 9910 running forever so when buttons failed here are some experiences I can share.
(I don't make or sell any of these products; find equivalents at your favorite retailer).

None of these three conductive paints worked well for me directly on the button. They tend to flake off quickly (1 week or less) and make remote go nuts.

- Wire Glue found on ebay
- Rear defogger kit also found at auto parts
- I can't remember the other brand, designed for this very purpose.

Self sticky foil from Home D or Lowes worked for a few months but my concern with putting metal on the button side is that it may wear off the circuit side which I wouldn't want. Pieces eventually fell off too.

Now I'm back to Wire Glue mentioned above, but instead of painting the button directly I first glued a little piece of medical tape to receive the paint:

- The glue: Marine adhesive from hardware store (Home D and Lowes have it) (Amazing Goop and super Glue didn't cut it for me) This is easy to apply w/ toothpick, plenty of time to re-position the little thing, no need to apply pressure, and cures fairly quickly (I waited overnight, but it may be ready sooner)
- The tape: 3M White Transpore Must be the white one... the clear one doesn't seem to have the texture to hold the paint. I have nurse in the family, but check eBay or drugstore. First I thought of plain paper, but this tape seems of a synthetic material that may last longer
- 1/8" Punch hole came in handy to cut the pieces. Tons of shapes and sizes available on ebBay.

I just finished all buttons and the remote is working great but it is too soon to report on durability. I'm optimistic about it, paint doesn't scratch off easily and glue holds very well; maybe one day I'll come back and provide an update. If it fails I might go back to foil tape, but this time I'll use this marine adhesive.

Jim978 · Post by **Jim978** » Mon Feb 01, 2016 7:02 am

I've been experimenting with another "poor man's" fix for non-working remote buttons (in my case it's more like a cheap man's fix).

I decided to create a substitute for the liquid mixture found in commercial rear defroster repair kits. The recipe is simple. Mix powdered graphite (the kind used to lubricate locks) with a small amount of glue. In my case I used white glue, the kind young students use at school, since I had that on hand. After thoroughly cleaning the silicone pad with soap and water, I painted this mixture onto the non-working contacts.

The good news is that it's cheap and it works. The bad news is that the non-working keys are always the ones most used. So, the repair seems to last for just a few weeks before frequent use causes the mixture to flake off.

Clearly, I need to use a more durable glue. I'll probably try wood glue next (I also have that on hand). It's stronger than white glue, which may make it more durable. I'm sure there are other glues that might be even better. I've consider Super Glue, but it dries so fast it may be hard to work with, especially if one needs to repair multiple keys in one sitting.

Anyone have an idea of what the ideal glue might be?

Thanks!

tranx · Post by **tranx** » Mon Feb 01, 2016 8:20 am

Many epoxy resin glues remain a little flexible, especially the fast setting '5 minute' types, which might help. Araldite is also a bit like this but sets harder if warmed up during the curing process.

I am not sure if graphite particles are intended to bridge or make electrical contact, in which case I suppose epoxy or any glue might insulate the graphite particles?

argellix · Post by **argellix** » Fri Feb 05, 2016 11:24 pm

I once saw these instructions http://www.instructables.com/id/Make-Co ... a-Circuit/ but I haven't tried them myself. The Marine Adhesive I mentioned sticks very well to the button, is easy to work with and it remains flexible, but I haven't tried it for conductive glue