Since our cars seem to be more prone to rust than a salt mining truck, I am considering installing a Counteract electronic rust prevention system. Any thoughts or experiences???

Never seen an electronic anode. Sacrificial zinc anodes have been around for years. Always wondered why they were never put on cars.

From Wiklipedia:

In cathodic protection, a metal anode that is more reactive to the corrosive environment of the system to be protected is electrically linked to the protected system, and partially corrodes or dissolves, which protects the metal of the system it is connected to. As an example, an iron or steel ship's hull may be protected by a zinc sacrificial anode, which will dissolve into the seawater and prevent the hull from being corroded. Sacrificial anodes are particularly needed for systems where a static charge is generated by the action of flowing liquids, such as pipelines and watercraft.

Check out their web site for all the information at Counteract.com

Because cars usually don't float in salt water ...

If you take proper precautions after replacing the rusted sheetmetal and use a sealed battery the 914 will last much longer than the first time around but it will still rust because it's pretty old and some places are rusted that you can't see or get too. After spending a ton of money trying to put the car back together you can try the counteract for piece of mind. Getting as much of the metal clean on both sides and using a good epoxy or zinc coating will be the best start. Just adding the counteract won't help much on a unrestored car in my opinion.

I think AIR flow over a car in motion will also create a static charge.(free radicals electrical charges?( )... can you recall the hindenburg incident?.

large modern ships no longer use sacrificial anodes. now they use a vairiable current compensation system. electrolisys corrodes metals due to a current flow between them, electrons changing places. computers control these currents now

Hi Guys,
In order for IC (Impressed Current) systems to work you need an anode, cathode, electrolyte , a metalic path and a power source.The vehicle is the Cathode or the part you want to protect. Does the kit come with an Anode? If not, the vehicle gets to be the Anode too or at least parts of it do. Metallic path is covered. The only thing missing is an Electrolyte and as it turns out, Air is a terrible Electrolyte. That's why California and Arizona cars don't rust. No Electrolyte (dirty water)

The reason most old cars rust is because they where poorly coated. when galvanizing came into play with the car building process, cars started to stay around a little longer. The Galvanizing (Zinc) a more active metal that Iron (steel)sacrifices it's self in a mini galvanic anode protection system. Bla Bla Bla

The short answer is (IC) impressed current systems don't work on vehicles.(unless you dig a hole,drive them in and cover them over in dirt or submerge them in salt water) not recommended!

CP/IC (Cathodic Protection/Impressed Current) is my day job at the gas utility I work for.

SW

Go to the web site and it explains how it works! I tried to upload the page from their web site but it did not work

There was a company selling those type of units up here, they got shut down for making claims they couldn't prove.

Seems like every few years one of these company's pop up.... then disappear.

This is tech that has been around for ages, and that several people have tried to adapt to the automotive industry.

If it worked, it would be in use.

You are right Zach. The industry would have been all over it if it worked. Instead the industry chose hi tech coatings and better surface prep. acic etching , zinc dipping and tougher top coats. All in an effort seperate the electrolyte (water)from the metal surface. The zinc is there to be sacrificed if the coating gets a holiday or damaged.

SW

Is there a laymans explanation for impressed current?

"Impressed Current"
Direct current supplied by an external power source in a cathodic protection installation.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cathodic_prot...ssed_current_CP

Andy

So does that mean that a 24vdc vehicle has better corrosion protection than a 12vdc vehicle?

No. That means that none of the stuff mentioned above works on a car unless you submerge it in a swimming pool filled with salt water. Or snake oil. Your choice ...

Andy

Ya, what Andy said. Sorry I'm just post whoring

It works off an electrostatic process, not impressed current. All you science geeks, check out the web site, Counteract.com, read how it works then make comments. The company has been in business for 20 years. If this thing will slow down the rust process, I'm in. Otherwise buy stock in Mig wire!

Snake oil...oil= no rust. I have an idea..

I did read their websites ... Still smells like Snakeoil ...

If i could get the smell out of the snake oil then maybe ??

It's friday.

Maybe if you hook up a saltwater snake to your battery?

That ought to produce some oil ...
Andy

...the steel unibody is used as the ground plane.

If the body could be isolated from current flow using isolated ground bus bars, strapped together from say...
front trunk (G1a), (G1b); cabin (G2), (G3a); engine bay (G3b), (G3c), and trunk, (G4)...

It would look something like this:

(G1a) Left side: lighting; brake circuit; ground bus...
(G1b) Right side: lighting; fuel pump; ground bus...

(G2) fuse bus; power distribution; lighting; ground bus...

(G3a) Left side: Power distribution; relay board; ground bus...
(G3b) Ignition; Engine block; transaxle; ground bus...
(G3c) Charging system; ground bus...

(G4) Brake; Lighting; ground bus...

(G1b)---- ..................----(G3c)---
------------|--(G2)----|----(G3b)---|-------(G4)
(G1a)---- .................----(G3a)---
lights ........instru.........engine........transaxle/ lights

power distribution layout would look similar, but carries with it
a whole slew of requirements....isolatation of ignition....
isolation of power distribution for lighting/radio/ancillaries...
It would eliminate cross over, but one would have to use shielding
to keep some of the wiring from becoming an antenna, and those shields
would be grounded as well.
It could be made into seven trees...
have I gone off center with this...?

No Andy, I think that would produce some STATIC with the PITA folks

Seriously, no amount of static is going to change the millions of galvanic corrosion cells happening on a piece of bare metal. It's all happening at an intergranular level. Your only hope is to remove one component of the corrosion cel. (the electrolyte) this is done with coatings. If the metal can't touch the electrolyte then the FE++ ions can't transfer through it. don't even get me going on the anode cathode relationship.
If this magic thing has been around for 20+ years it's because there really is a sucker born every minute.
SW

I know anodes are in use in the gas industry for pipe runs. I use them in my day job in the electric industry. We use anodes for direct buried cable. They are also in use on outboards, and oil/water coolers. But yeah, I suppose it wouldn't work on a car unless you drove in a ground rod and ran an extension cord.

Absolutely right. Without an electrolyte impressed current systems do not work. Moist soil plays the role of an electrolyte for pipelines. And even there the first line of defense against corrosion is the pipe coating. The impressed current travels along the pipeline through the electrolyte trying to find a path to ground back through the pipeline. As it does complete the circuit, the anode corrodes instead of the steel.

I am holding out for the fuel magnet that aligns my fuel molecules so that I can get 200% more fuel mileage.