Gold cup electrodes' life span

zfmengzfmeng Japan
in Electrodes
Hi~

It seems that the gold cup electrodes also have a life span.
It is just one-day use and become no signal the next day.

I performed an experiment these days.
But when I used the gold cup electrode one day for three person. It couldn't be used the next day.

What's the problem ?

Thank you.


Comments

  • wjcroftwjcroft Mount Shasta, CA
    Are you cleaning them correctly?


    With care, they will last many uses. If you only got three uses, that has to be some manufacturing issue, possibly broken wire, connection, connector. You can check continuity with an ohmmeter.

    Did you try other gold cups in your set? They can't all fail in three uses.

    Gold cups do have a unique failure mode if the gold plate is 'chipped'. They will generate a galvanic current, like a battery. So readings will go off the chart. Not normal microvolts. Chipping is unusual, and should not occur in normal use.

    Regards,

  • zfmengzfmeng Japan
    Hi~

    Thank you for your reply.

    I'm sorry that I didn't clean them in hot water at once after using.
    If I clean them in hot water 2 or 3 days later after using.
    Would it work ? I'd like to try it.

    I'd like to follow your suggestions to take care of them.

    Thank you very much indeed.

  • wjcroftwjcroft Mount Shasta, CA
    Best to clean them as explained in the above link. Otherwise the paste will get hard and crusty, then possibly harder to dissolve.

    You can find small "immersion heaters" online, that will boil a mug of water in a couple minutes.

  • zfmengzfmeng Japan
    Hi~

    Yes. I cleaned them in hot water as the link yesterday. But I'm not sure if it could be used or not.
    I would check them today.

    Thank you.
  • wjcroftwjcroft Mount Shasta, CA
    Plain hot water from the tap does not appear to be as effective or easy as the very hot water. With the very hot water the remaining paste just drops off. What can shorten the life is if you use anything that might abrade the gold plate surface.
  • zfmengzfmeng Japan
    I used the hot water boiled from the hot pot and added some cold water.
    And I used tissue paper to clean them. Does it matter ?

    Thank you.

  • wjcroftwjcroft Mount Shasta, CA
    The text in the link above (from neurofeedback expert Pete Van Deusen), suggests that the old paste should just fall off in the very hot water. Did that occur? If so, they can just be hung up to dry at that point, no need to rub off anything with tissue paper. The gold plate coating is very thin, so any friction or scrubbing could slowly wear it down. The ingenuity with what he is suggesting is that the very hot water does all the work.
  • zfmengzfmeng Japan
    Yes. I think the gold plate coating maybe destroyed by the tissue paper.
    We need to buy new ones.

    Thank you.
  • wjcroftwjcroft Mount Shasta, CA
    Well, one use of tissue paper would not 'destroy' the gold plate, but over time, say dozens of times of rubbing after cleaning -- might well damage it.

    I'm not sure I understand what you are saying. If you use new, unused gold cups, THOSE fail in the tutorial steps? Maybe you got a bad batch.
  • zfmengzfmeng Japan
    Hi~ 

    We bought new gold cup electrodes.
    And I cleaned them in the hot water after use just as the link explained.
    However, they could not detect any signal after cleaned.

    I'm confused about the causes.

    Thank you.

  • wjcroftwjcroft Mount Shasta, CA
    When cleaning electrodes, only dip the very tip end (cup portion) into the hot water. Don't submerge the wire portion or the portion of the electrode that connects the wire to the cup.

    I'm not sure where you are getting your electrodes, perhaps they are of low quality to begin with. Normal cup electrodes, with proper care, should last for many uses.
  • zfmengzfmeng Japan
    Hi~

    Thank you. I understand.
  • zfmengzfmeng Japan
    Hi~ I cleaned the electrodes as the explaination, only the cup part.

    But it could not detect any signals after cleaning.

    I also used the digital multimeter to test its conductivity. There is no problem with its conductivity.

    I'm not sure about the problem.

    Thank you.

  • wjcroftwjcroft Mount Shasta, CA
    Are these gold cups from the OpenBCI Shop? Are you using Ten20 paste?
  • zfmengzfmeng Japan
    Yes. I used Ten20 paste.
    They come from OpenBCI. We bought them from Japan agency.

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