Dielectric grease on connection ends

As a long-time audiophile and a general building contractor, I have fixed lots of electrical problems and installed lots of electrical circuits.
I thought I would share a few observations:

1. 110 volts seems to cut right through oxidation, except in extreme cases.

2. The alloys used in outlets and switches, which appear to be variations of brass, generally oxidize little. Light bulb sockets often use aluminum which does not work as well as brass. It is softer and it oxidizes.

3. Loose outlet connections do cause problems. One actor was having trouble with noise in his home studio equipment (I think it was hum, I don't remember). The outlets were old and worn out - so loose plugs. I replaced the outlets and the problem went away.

4. Arcing and/or overheating can be caused by loose power connections anywhere. Besides outlets, can be inside a wire nut that was not real tight on every wire in it, a bulb loose in a socket, etc.
I pull firmly on every wire after tightening a wire nut.

4. Protective coatings like from Caig / Deoxit:
You have to evaluate whether to use a protective coating against your local climate, as well as the voltages involved and metals used in the plugs, jacks, etc. In Los Angeles County, within about 5 miles of the West shore, there is frequent fog, low clouds or just humidity, that is salt-laced to some degree. So building materials take a beating, especially aluminum and other metals. So a long-lasting non-harmful, non-hardening coating may help a lot, especially on lower voltage connections. Further inland the oxidation is much slower, but does occur. Plugging and unplugging 5 - 10 times often fixes the oxidation.

5. WD-40 is a decent anti-oxidant coating and I use it often. It also is good in volume pots. It is thin enough that I have never had a conductivity problem. Get the connection working well before you use the WD-40, unless it is crud or grease, which WD-40 will dissolve, that is the problem. It evaporates away outdoors, works better long-term indoors.

WD-40 is also good in light sockets that have too-tight bulbs, especially if ceramic bases. (Apply lightly to socket with power off and bulb out.)

5. Conductive Anti-Oxidant Compound:
A couple customers had 12VAC hanging lights that kept chewing through bulbs or the bulbs were good but wouldn't power up. The bulbs were bi-pin halogen about like this: http://www.homedepot.com/p/Philips-20-Watt-Halogen-T3-12-Volt-G4-Capsule-Dimmable-Light-Bulb-2-Pack-...

I figured it out this far: it was inferior bulb pin material or bad socket material and oxidized readily. So I coated the pins with Deoxit and I think I squirted it into the socket as well, then plugged and unplugged the bulb several times.

When dry (not long) I coated the pins with Ox-Gard Anti-Oxidant Compound Part # OX-800 and worked that into the socket. Results: no more trouble.
It is grease plus zinc and it is designed for high power applications, per the manufacturer. It is widely available. It needs pressure.
http://www.gardnerbender.com/en/ox-800

This guy makes a good summary of it: http://www.olypen.com/craigh/oxgard.htm

So I would not try Ox-Gard on line-level stuff except as an experiment, and it might cross-conduct in multi-conductor jacks or plugs. It might work well on speaker connections - IF you are having a problem - but again that would be an experiment.
It would probably clean off of wires and connectors well, but you may have to try different cleaners, such as a strong detergent, a spray cleaner, ammonia, WD-40, alcohol, whatever works best.

Would I put it in all my outlets? Not unless I had a proven problem that was not worn-out outlets (which I'd replace). I have never needed to.

6. To clean oxidation on RCA jacks I send it out for sand blasting.
No, not really.
I made a tool by soldering a cheap metal RCA plug onto a bright (not chromed) 3/16" steel rod that fit into the end. The rod is about 6" long and bent in the middle at 90 degrees. If needed you can tighten the plug by squeezing the tabs - gently - and seeing how it plugs in. You want it to have just a little resistance so it will polish the jack. You just plug it in and carefully spin it around several times. You don't want it to remove plating, just polish the jack. Don't lubricate it. You can spray the jack after it's clean.

This is a summary of a LOT of experience, find which part applies to your situation.  Good luck.

Brandon

Update: Ox-gard and low voltage.

I have a situation with a furnace where I need to prevent oxidation in contacts that see only a few tenths of a volt.

I tested GB Ox-gard to see how much pressure it needed to conduct. Without pressure it will not conduct. I put a dab on the OUTSIDE of alligator clips that are shiny, and attached to leads. Then I touched the outsides together, to complete the circuit to the ohm setting on my testing meter. It did not take much pressure. I measured it on a postal scale.

The results are much better than I expected. It took only 2-3 ounces of pressure to conduct (reading 0.0 ohms), most of the time.

The pressure inside of 1/4" push-on terminals (spade plus female connectors that crimp onto the wires) is greater than 2-3 ounces at the contact points.

I tested my voltage out of the ohmeter with a another voltmeter, and got about 0.4 volts,  in the ballpark of the furnace. So this was an ideal test.

Next question: What is the high temperature limit? I found a 2015 Material Safety Data Sheet for Ox-Gard OX-100B that said the melting point is over 138 C / 280 F. I would prefer higher but time will tell if it is good enough. The location (the overheat switch) is not near the furnace flame but does get hot.

I am going to try it. I won't know if it is an improvement for months, as the furnace ran for a month before the pilot went out again. If it is worse I will find out much sooner.