iPad charging failed - corrosion?

[Jojob1982]

Hello all – I'm new to this forum so apologies if my question seems rather naive and slightly odd…

My husband is currently rowing the Atlantic and is experiencing problems with charging up lots of his equipment, mainly his iPad which is one of his few connections with the outside world. Has anybody else experienced this as a result of seawater corrosion? Does anybody have any tips on how to sort this out?

Please ignore asked me to remove this message if not appropriate.

Thanks in advance
Jo

[CarstenWL]

Hi Jo,

welcome to CF. If your husband is 'rowing the Atlantic' I would expect the iPad to be in a waterproof case with waterproof charging port?

Has he isolated the problem to be the charing port of the iPad? Could it also be 'the battery side'?

Regards,

Carsten

[Jojob1982]

Originally Posted by CarstenWL

Hi Jo,

welcome to CF. If your husband is 'rowing the Atlantic' I would expect the iPad to be in a waterproof case with waterproof charging port?

Has he isolated the problem to be the charing port of the iPad? Could it also be 'the battery side'?

Regards,

Carsten

Thanks for responding so quickly Carsten - I believe they have waterproof casing but unsure... There are two iPads and two different leads but unsure as to which 'side' is the issue... What are your thoughts?

[donradcliffe]

If he is also having trouble charging other equipment, the problem is probably on the battery side.

[Jojob1982]

Thank you for replying. I will check now but believe it to be affecting two ipad chargers specifically.

If battery side are there any quick fixes?

[CarstenWL]

... try to find out how the 'system' looks like ...

A: 12V Battery -- small inverter (12V --> 110/220V) -- iPad power supply with USB lead

B: 12V Battery - 12v female car cigarette lighter socket - usb cigarette lighter adapter - USB lead

C: ?

Regards,

Carsten

[nigel1]

Welcome to the forum Jo,

Is he using the same charger to charge the other equipment?
I presume the boat has a few batteries, and the main batteries are being kept charged by solar?
Are the main batteries well charged?

If using the one charger for ipad and other equipment, and all are failing to charge, it could be corrosion on the charger adapter, or possibly the boats main batteries are not charged.

BTW, the only current Atlantic row I know of is the Talisker Challenge, is this the one your husband is taking part in?, I applaud his and team mates effort, good on them, and I did donate

Happy new year

[Jojob1982]

Carsten - I'm just checking on what type of charger they are using...

Nigel - thanks for your message too. Yes it's the Talisker race, they are about halfway now but really want to resolve this for the, otherwise three weeks without email, e-books, music etc might get a little miserable... Thank you for donating!

Yes they do have solar panels and believe that they are charging properly but I will check if it's corrosion on the charger adapter are there any ways of fixing this?

Appreciate your help!

[nigel1]

Hi Jo

Seems that corrosion on the ipad charger plug is quite common, and on a boat, it's not going to be easy to prevent the corrosion.
If you google "corrosion on ipad charger" you'll get a lot responses. If they have any electrical contact cleaner onboard, they might be able to clean up the charger plug and the socket on the ipads.

Sorry, not much help really. Only other point, is if its due to low main battery voltage, try charging the ipads at midday when the solar panels will be at their best.

[reed1v]

Just a note to say transmissions from any floating platform that is 4 feet or less above the ocean surface is iffy at best. Most of the time your boat will be lower than the average seas and even with sat. com. its difficult to get a good fix as you bob around. Good news is that not much is happening in the Atlantic so they probably will have a good time of it(if rowing across the pond is a good time). He is going to be one tired camper at the end of that row.

[monte]

Originally Posted by reed1v

Good news is that not much is happening in the Atlantic so they probably will have a good time of it(if rowing across the pond is a good time). He is going to be one tired camper at the end of that row.

Except of course that little pesky hurricane...

[reed1v]

Originally Posted by monte

Except of course that little pesky hurricane...

Hurricanes this far out of season usually die out quickly or head north.

[neophytecruiser]

Is the IPad charging problem a new development or has it been a chronic issue from the start? Unlike many other electronic devices, the IPad requires 10W to charge. Many USB type plug-in chargers do not deliver the wattage required to charge the IPad. The factory charger for the IPad delivers 10W; the output is 5VDC at 2A.

Being an electronic neophyte, I had installed a standard 12VDC plug-in charger in my boat to charge my IPad using a USB adapter to make the connection and found that the IPad did not take a charge. It wasn't until I looked into the specifications of the IPad charger that I discovered the discrepancy in output that was the source of the problem.

[seasick]

You mention that your husband has two IPads not charging... The problem is most likely corrosion on the Lightening Cable (see photo)

I recommend he use a pencil eraser and gently clean the contacts with isopropyl alcohol if he has any in his medical kit.

[Jojob1982]

Thank you all for your advice and suggestions. The problem seems to be fixed... I'm not sure what worked but really appreciate your help!