Melted wire from laser tube

Hi everyone, i am totally new to this forum (this is my first post) so please give guidance as to where the appropriate section or if I am asking a stupid question.

I have had a 80W china laser for about 3 months. Today I was cutting some wood and my laser stopped working. I checked the tube and to my horror, the wire melted. I've attach a photo here.

My laser machine has water cooling and air assist attached. But based on the situation, i have reason to believe the water pump is not working well? Since the wire melted, i assume it was due to overheating.

My questions are now:

1) Do i have to change the whole C02 tube? How do I test if my tube is still working?

2) How do I determine if the pump is the issue?

3) How do I change the tube/wire given the image attached? Can I just cut the wires and replace it with another wire or do I have to replace the entire tube + wire.

I'm sorry if this has been asked many times and I seek all your expert opinions.

Thank you!

Bryan

This is not melting, this is high voltage arcing. Electrical tape is not really suitable for insulating high voltage wires. You need to unwrap it, clean the wires and splice them properly. Here is how I usually do it:
- smooth solder joint with no sharp edges;
- clear silicone sealant;
- heat shrink tube;
- more silicone sealant;
- one more heat shrink tube.

Good luck, and welcome to this great forum!

Wow, what a sloppy insulation on High Voltage wire.
Try to unwrap the red tape to expose wire connection. Find a piece of silicone tubing which has a inner diameter as the outer diameter of HW wire with thick wall.
Redo the connection, place over the silicone tube and then test your tube.
I guess that all will be all right.

any silicone sealent you use needs to be an electrical grade that's acetic acid free

the usual sealents sold for household use for sealing windows or door frames etc release too much acetic acid and corrode the wire !


I would used several layers of heat shrink sleaving

John

Quote:

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Originally Posted by john-100

any silicone sealent you use needs to be an electrical grade that's acetic acid free
the usual sealents sold for household use for sealing windows or door frames etc release too much acetic acid and corrode the wire !

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I have successfully used regular acetic silicone (identified by strong vinegar smell) for electronic repairs - insulating wires, securing parts and connectors etc. I even potted entire circuit boards with it without any bad effects. The stuff cures before it can cause corrosion.

You can buy "neutral" silicone which takes longer to vulcanize and does not produce acetic acid. It is also known as RTV Silicone.
I use it frequently when repairing PC Boards with factory jumper wires.

Anyway, @Bryansglaser, repair that sloppy chinesium insulation and you are good to go.

You guys are all amazing haha! :)

I will go look out for some silicone and will let you guys know if the tube works !!

oh also right, this doesnt mean my water pump is damage right? just poor wrapping of the wires?

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Bryansglaser

oh also right, this doesnt mean my water pump is damage right? just poor wrapping of the wires?

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No, this is a purely electrical fault, not overheating. The pump did not cause it (but check it anyway).

Thanks!!! really appreciate your advice... just fyi, here's how the inside tube looked like previously.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Bryansglaser

Thanks!!! really appreciate your advice... just fyi, here's how the inside tube looked like previously.

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I am curious is it working now? there is black burn mark on my 40w laser tube's lowervoltage connector...the machine still able to cut, but the connection got more and more burnned. so i stopped using the machine. wondering what caused it... and what should i do?