Garmin Heart Rate Monitor Corrosion

enzo berzot
enzo berzot Posts: 96
edited June 2019 in Road general
Hi All,
I've got a 2 year old Garmin HRM1G heart rate monitor which does a really bad job of keeping the sweat from the battery compartment. The upshot is a corroded battery and also some corrosion inside the battery area.
Is this a common problem?

Comments

  • sungod
    sungod Posts: 16,559
    used one for c. ten years with no problem, gets rinsed under a shower as well

    i'd guess either the seal is faulty, or the cover wasn't fitted correctly
    my bike - faster than god's and twice as shiny
  • redvision
    redvision Posts: 2,958
    sungod wrote:

    i'd guess either the seal is faulty, or the cover wasn't fitted correctly

    This.
  • PhilipPirrip
    PhilipPirrip Posts: 616
    Like others I've used these for years, preferring them for durability over the soft strap.

    As others have said a faulty seal or the cover could be the problem. I did, in my ham-fisted way, manage to break a locking tab off the cover on my first one and once the seal was compromised it was never fully reliable after that.
  • photonic69
    photonic69 Posts: 2,426
    Yup. The seal is a tiny flimsy O ring. Sweaty skin cells build up crud on it and when you open it the seal distorts/breaks and is rendered useless. Clean it up and dry it out. Pop a new battery in. Glob of silicone grease on top. Cover back on and double wrap with electrical tape. Job jobbed.


    Sometimes. Maybe. Possibly.

  • enzo berzot
    enzo berzot Posts: 96
    Thanks. I've lost the seal following my previous clean-up and repair and can't face the ordeal of dealing with Garmin's so called 'customer services' so it will be plan B as mentioned by PhotoNic69.....clean the battery compartment, new battery then seal with silicon sealant and masking tape.
    Appreciate the comments!
  • photonic69
    photonic69 Posts: 2,426
    enzo berzot wrote:
    ...clean the battery compartment, new battery then seal with silicon sealant and masking tape.
    Appreciate the comments!

    No, not silicon sealant. It will set and you'll never get the battery out again. You need silicon grease. This is the cheapest:

    TETROSYL LTD Silicone Grease Multi Purpose Grease Water Repellent Carlube 70g https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B006O7HTDE/ ... 9Cb4XGYHRA

    Also, not masking tape. Electrical insulation tape. Cheap as chips:

    https://www.toolstation.com/insulation-tape/p68110


    Sometimes. Maybe. Possibly.

  • enzo berzot
    enzo berzot Posts: 96
    Ah - cheers.
    I've got silicon grease in the tool box. I used electrical tape the last time but it began to come away due to the excessive heat/ sweat. I'll try again with a triple layer.
  • keef66
    keef66 Posts: 13,123
    I have the opposite problem; the monitor itself is fine and the batteries last for years, but the soft strap itself fails every couple of years.

    Garmin want nearly as much for the strap as for the whole thing, so last time I bought a Polar one which was fine. That's just packed up too.

    I don't understand how they work and what goes wrong when they stop working. Anybody tried the cheapo 2 for £15 ones off Amazon??
  • paul_onabike
    paul_onabike Posts: 194
    keef66 wrote:
    Anybody tried the cheapo 2 for £15 ones off Amazon??

    I have used a couple of the £5 ones of ebay, First lasted 9 months before it had irregular readings, so for me that was on a par with the polar ones. To be honest - at £5 a time I didn't try to eek a bit more life out of it - I just consigned it to the bin. Second one is still going after 5 months.
  • keef66
    keef66 Posts: 13,123
    Ha! Update! It's working again!

    I stumbled on a YouTube clip of somebody rebooting one of the older had plastic Garmin straps by taking out the battery and shorting out the + and - contacts with a safety pin for a few seconds.

    I achieved the same thing by briefly putting the battery in upside down. Reassembled with the battery correctly installed and clipped onto the old Polar strap, search for HRM on the Garmin and bingo!

    Now I'm trying to remember why I wanted to monitor my heart rate...
  • PhilipPirrip
    PhilipPirrip Posts: 616
    Yeah that's the technique that I first heard suggested many moons ago when the battery ran flat in a speed/cadence sensor. Some residual current was preventing the new battery from providing any fresh current.

    I used to use a scrunched up bit of foil to drain any residual current and it's a habit I still use whenever replacing the battery on a wireless sensor.

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