Fuse slowly burning

[georgeramos]

every time I drive the car I smell a burning odor which I have thought was coolant but i now believe is fuse "L". According to my manual this protects the voltage regulator and the alternator field winding. Why would it slowly burn? to the point that it makes a bad smell but I dont see smoke. I pulled the fuse and it was brown and charred looking but not blown. I am using an 8 amp per spec.

[vandor]

Possibly it is not making good contact with its metal holders. Make sure those are clean and bend them so they put a little force on the fuse while holding it.

[georgeramos]

I cleaned all the contacts with a dremel wire brush not long ago and put a tiny dab of grease on the contacts. Could the grease be an issue. I will double check the tension on the fuses.

[wetminkey]

If I'm correct, the grease could be an issue. It's not a conductor and in a high resistance situation (that it might create) could heat and smell. A dielectric silicone grease would work well for your purpose to reduce oxidation, but I'd not apply regular grease to the contacts. Dielectric silicone grease can be bought at any auto parts store.
Sure hope that helps!
Todd.

[georgeramos]

Sorry thats what i meant. It is dielectric grease

[georgeramos]

Also when i pulled and replaced the charred fuse i noticed it was live as i was inserting the new one. I could hear it sparking with the car off. Is this unusual for that particular fuse?

[georgeramos]

I think Csaba nailed it. I will keep an eye and a nose on it...

[vandor]

I assume you know that dielectric grease in NON-conductive. So do not put it where the fuse meets the holder.

It is used on electric connections because it won't short one connection to the other, but it is not meant to be used on the point of contact.

[georgeramos]

The fuse is getting very very hot while driving. None of the others are doing this. bad ground? Any thoughts on what to check and/or hot to check it?

thanks