Desoldering | Soldering Basics | Soldering for Beginners

In this video I'm go over the basics of Desoldering. This video is part of series I'm making about Basic Soldering. This soldering series is a great way to learn soldering for beginners.
My Soldering Basics Playlist:
➞ • Soldering Basics | Sol...
Tools and Supplies for Basic Soldering Playlist:
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Tools
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Soldering Iron (amzn.to/2oK9Xrh)
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Desoldering Pump (amzn.to/2GjwSTH)
Supplies
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Desoldering Wick (amzn.to/2GjwSTH)
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#SolderingBasics #Desoldering

[@HowDoYouDIY]

The description of this video has links to some playlists I've made for Basic Soldering. I also added some links to help you find items that are similar to what I'm using in this video.

[@tedl8090]

Wow, I was using a solder wick without much avail, added flux and it worked incredibly! Thank you

[@HowDoYouDIY]

You're welcome, I'm glad it was helpful!

[@DigitalMediaCanada]

me too! Excellent video! Thank you

[@kaelbryant7660]

Me too! Never thought to use flux!

[@mcoley84]

Omg, I can't wait to try this. I have Never had luck with solder wick and could never understand why.

[@rickeykeeton4770]

I have solder sucker, but it does seem to be heat resistant. I have also tried wick and flux with very little luck. Not sure if it the iron I am using or just inexperience. Wondering if the iron is too low of wattage and not getting hot enough quick enough. Needing to learn more on electronic appliances and how to repair boards.

[@electronicsandewastescrapp7384]

holy crap... the load it up with solder and yank the part and clean up after method is a hella time saver. perfect.

[@electronicsandewastescrapp7384]

I love you. seriously. life changing.

[@HowDoYouDIY]

Thanks! I don't remember what video I learned that from, but it's definitely a game changer.

[@hellopo5218]

Thank god this channel exist, you save my skin bro.

[@dajoma36]

Thanks for the tip on using flux with solder wick.

[@niall3410]

Great Video! I've been looking for a video like this for ages but none has been this clear.

[@sealiosshorts]

Currently making an NES to Famicom adapter and this is exceptionally helpful!

[@HowDoYouDIY]

I'm glad this was helpful! I hope your adaptor works well!

[@rickhopper7886]

Thanks. Straight to the point. I like it

[@CalebSkurdal]

Thank you! After watching your video of using a desoldering wick I was finally able to get it to work after being stumped for 25 years :)

[@HowDoYouDIY]

You're welcome! Before I figured it out, it would only work sometimes for me.

[@homerghost]

Great videos! The desoldering by bridging tip is 🔥🔥🔥

[@HowDoYouDIY]

Thanks! It's kind of counter intuitive, but it works so well.

[@iyadalsaqqaf8490]

Thank you man, your video helped me after almost watching like 4 videos and the information explained there wasn't clear enough to get solder out of small thin holes.

[@MIXT55]

Just getting into soldering and this is helping me.

[@_aiborie]

Thank you for making these basics series! They're helpful and quite comforting to watch.

[@HowDoYouDIY]

You're welcome!

[@bunnybuns6342]

Ong im tryna figure out how to despiser keyboard switches and this is the best video Iv seen so far

[@HowDoYouDIY]

Thanks, I'm glad this video has been helpful!

[@morkthebuilder9943]

A really helpful and easy to follow guide. Thanks

[@HowDoYouDIY]

You're welcome!

[@JasonSmith-qx3zh]

Thanks for all you do!

[@blakepower5336]

thank you very much. sincerely, mechanical engineering students

[@anshulgoel9494]

Your videos are neat and precise unlike others. Keep it up. Thank you!

[@HowDoYouDIY]

Thanks, I appreciate the comment!

[@d2vmusic]

Many thanks for this very useful information. I'm about to replace a soldered-in CR2450 battery from a 1992 Yamaha synthesiser and replace it with a battery holder instead. I'm a bit of a PCB soldering newbie (I've done lots of guitars in my lifetime) so I'm gathering as much information as I can before I start.

[@bennethos]

SY99 ? :-D

[@d2vmusic]

@@bennethos Close! Mine is an SY85, still going strong 😀

[@user-xs4od5ek9m]

Excellent explanation, many thanks

[@certifiedcelingfan]

Very helpful. Thanks!

[@joshuaswannmusic6462]

Excellent video on the subject!

[@HowDoYouDIY]

Thanks!

[@OscarHernandez-rj1dl]

Great work love it great demonstration

[@Manche-De-Pelle]

For some components, you can also use 2 iron to unsolder it. I got a soldering station that I bought for starting with electronic and a old soldering iron without any temperature control that I have bought many years ago. Only use 1 soldering iron on each side of the components after adding flux and voila, the part it's now unsolder and you can recuperate it.

[@HowDoYouDIY]

I haven't thought of that. Seems like it would take a bit of practice holding 2 irons at the same time, but I might have to try that myself. Thanks for sharing your knowledge!

[@tictac-nscale]

Wow this is the video I needed thanks.

[@conahscreations]

Thanks for this. Haven't done soldering in a long, long time and gearing up to repair a video game console controller. Was about to order some rosin flux paste but realised the whick I have on order has embeded flux so i'll see if that does the trick first!

[@sarisarientertainment7721]

thanks, another knowledge to me

[@HowDoYouDIY]

You're welcome!

[@JCG0001]

Good video. A simple 15$ heat gun can also desolder multiple leads at once and pull out hot components with some pliers, although it takes practice (still trying to master) working without a temp gauge and dial to not burn the board or components for too long. I use $2 cotton based grippy latex coated gloves to keep from burning my fingers but still have enough dexterity to work. Also good idea to wear saftely glasses or magnifiers to protect the eyes from spattering solder bits.

[@HowDoYouDIY]

Very good tips, thanks for sharing!!

[@adamsmith2209]

@@HowDoYouDIY link?

[@bunnybuns6342]

Link?

[@DARK__KING]

thanks for the info

[@sarihaddu]

Holy hell man, I am trying to desolder the old keys from my two keyboards (total 220 keys) but the solder wick was not working properly, added flux and I almost teared up out of happiness :D. Thanks for the trick.

[@HowDoYouDIY]

You're welcome, I'm glad this was helpful for you!

[@flexinestrellitas]

I'm currently trying to desolder switches too! Does the flux help even if i'm using a solder sucker?

[@bymicol]

Thanks for sharing 😍

[@HowDoYouDIY]

You're welcome!

[@emredikici]

Thank you so much for explaining the desoldering. You said so much heat can damage the board, what is the recommended good heat temperature for desoldering without damaging the board?

[@ManulTransmission]

A lot of these tutorial videos seem to gloss over the temperature settings. Lol. Sometimes they say a range or a generic temperature for all types of soldering, but never show the temperatures during the different processes in their videos.

[@krrish7508]

Thanks a lot, it helped ❤

[@FarmYardGaming]

Thanks. I've seen KZbinrs do this and I picked up an Xbox with a dead HDMI port - I'm probably going into the deep end but I'm hoping to get experience either way.

[@joseaguirre4169]

Great video for me as a beginner. What is the soldering iron temperature setting?

[@crabbybastardguitars9955]

Thank you.

[@stryker2k2]

My hero!

[@ZoroastrianCowboy]

Thanks for this. I'm about to fix a part on my gameboy advance sp that broke when i was trying to replace the case with a mod kit. wish me luck!

[@Wythaneye]

Great video, thank you for the demo! What temp do you like to use for de-soldering? I know that too much or too little heat can damage parts, what do you recommend?

[@HowDoYouDIY]

I usually use the same temp that I use for soldering. I think the time you spend heating up the parts is more critical that the temp of the iron. The faster the solder melts, less heat goes into the part. I hope that makes sense?

[@leftieloosers]

What temperture do you have your soldering iron at when using solder wick?

[@cubul32]

Do you cut the copper braid once it's filled with solder? Say 10cm are silvered out, do you discard that or just leave it like that?

[@ashansenarathne7703]

Good One

[@danilopagalan2011]

Thank you

[@WireWeHere]

Adding a little weight to a part will pull it out for you. A light coil spring anchored on one end will do the same.

[@spinafire]

I finally figured out how to use my desoldering pump and it's very satisfying, but I can't get tiny modern circuits and surface mounted parts with it. I'll give desolder wick a try!

[@HowDoYouDIY]

I noticed the same thing with my pump. I've been thinking about filing the tip of the pump a bit so that it fits with the tip of the soldering iron. I'm not sure if that will help, but the desoldering wick should work!

[@EdwardKrapovnitsky]

I use hot air for SMD desoldering. Fast and easy.

[@HowDoYouDIY]

I haven't tried that. Thanks for sharing that tip!

[@bkid1776]

What is a good soldering and desoldering iron for the ps5 dualsense controller for removing the potentiometer

[@AntR803]

When using a solder sucker, do you apply flux onto the iron when heating?

[@huttone]

THANKYOU

[@umranafzal2969]

I have a question. When you want to desolder and remove an electrical component, when you turn over the circuit board, how can you tell which one to desolder especially if your circuit board has loads of electrical components?

[@amanpraharaj6875]

you are great love from india

[@HowDoYouDIY]

Thanks!

[@amanpraharaj6875]

@@HowDoYouDIY welcome

[@adiliraliyev5882]

Thanks!

[@HowDoYouDIY]

Thank you! I'm glad this video was helpful!

[@AndrewHarmless-wv5or]

Im a plumber and have done plenty of soldering copper pipe. This finer stuff though all I have done is wires for head units and speakers. Going to try and replace a battery in an old game cartridge. Will make the game a lot more valuable and playable. Bought some desolder braid but have never used it before. Thanks for the video I am excited to try this out and see if I dont completely destroy my game in the process.

[@Corn0nTheCobb]

How did it go?

[@AndrewHarmless-wv5or]

@@Corn0nTheCobb Great! It took me a minute to figure out the technique. My iron is pretty cheap, doesn't have adjustable temperature or anything. Everything I read online said don't let one of those 500°+ irons make contact longer than 2-5 seconds. That's plenty of time for soldering alone but I was doing that too when trying to use the braid. Finally realized there was no way the heat had enough time to get the braid hot enough to suck up the solder. Realized 20 or so seconds worked perfect and didn't damage the game at all. It works great now. Now I just need to figure out how to fix a Gameboy advance SP lol. I fixed one on my own pretty easily but we found my wife's old one and I couldn't get hers working with the easy tricks. Took it to a retro game store and repair shop. Kept it for 3 months then told me they couldn't get the back off so they couldn't fix it lol. Going to start tinkering with that next. If its already broke ain't gonna be like I am going to break it any more.

[@Corn0nTheCobb]

@@AndrewHarmless-wv5or awesome! Wow, 3 months and they never even got it open? That's crazy. What a disappointment that must have been

[@AndrewHarmless-wv5or]

@@Corn0nTheCobb Lol yeah it was a little annoying, they said they had been exceptionally busy and they were down to only one console and game mechanic. So it's been taking a lot longer to even get to folks consoles. I get too if they don't want to just tap the screw out cos if any little thing gets messed up or they can fix it but cant get the cover back on most people aren't going to appreciate their effort but blame them for "breaking it more than it were already broken". So I'm really not upset with them honestly I totally get it. Most people dont understand what it takes to get something working, let alone something very old that uses outdated parts or in some cases only salvage parts left.

[@rickeykeeton4770]

I was wondering about adding flux to use braid. That is how I found this video. Is 18 watt iron good enough to use on appliance circuit boards? Recently bought one not paying any attention to the wattage and having a hard time using it. That being said, at 68, I have little to no experience with soldering irons but wanting to learn how to remove capacitors and such on boards.

[@justinchan8868]

are liquid solder flux just as good as the grease/ paste?

[@ChavessFps]

perfect

[@HubLocationSound]

Thanks for these videos. I've been soldering for years, but never had any formal training - the good news is I intuitively do much of what you preach. I need to get more flux into my workflow though. Curious how you handle the cleaning up an accidental bridging of 2 tiny adjacent pins (like on a Lemo connector). I have a desoldering station with suction, but it's not a great fit for very tiny adjacent pins.

[@HowDoYouDIY]

That's a really good question. I haven't tried this myself, but I've seen videos where the technique for soldering parts with close pins is to bridge the pins with solder, then use desoldering wick to remove the extra. Something that I have done to remove solder that's bridging pins is to clean the tip of the iron, melt to solder, then clean the tip again. This only removes a small amount at a time so it's annoying. One more thing you could try is flux. Flux is REALLY good at making the solder less "sticky" and the solder wants to ball up on the copper. If there's not too much solder, adding a bit of flux then melting the solder can do the trick. I still have a lot to learn myself, so hopefully this is helpful.

[@HubLocationSound]

@@HowDoYouDIY Awesome. Thanks for these suggestions. Ordering more types of flux now ;)

[@giovannigiorgio2262]

what temp u recommended on wick ??

[@frankfox6904]

Good video. Nice detail with the leftover solder from using the desolder pump. Can you tell us what temperature your soldering iron was set? I assume this was all done using lead based solder. Can you do the same demonstration with lead-free solder, and explain tempertures you used?

[@HowDoYouDIY]

Thanks! My soldering iron was set to the middle setting (about 350C/660F.) I was using lead based solder, but it should work the same with lead free solder. It is a good idea to test with that so I'll check it out. As far as the temp needed... I'm always hesitant to focus on that because there are so many people that have non-adjustable soldering irons, I feel that showing a method that will work for everyone is better. Thanks for asking! It is a really good question.

[@BRAVOSIX-GOINGDARK]

3 minutes long and explains everything, I will watch the ad as a thank you lol

[@flux1968]

Thanks for this video. I just have one question: what temperature should the soldering iron be? I'm afraid of burning out the board.

[@blitzkriegvonkonig]

about 320°C to 380°C, but i usually use 360°C

[@solderingsoldering]

nice video

[@taranagnew436]

can you use the sucker to get the bulk of it off, then if it's still stuck, use the wick to get the excess off?

[@4536647674]

When you say compensate for the missing part, do you mean add extra solder to cover the surface area of the missing part?

[@megeezer69]

I also had no idea that adding flux to the solder wick would greatly help. Small tips like that go a long way

[@bunnybuns6342]

POV: me trying to figure out how to get a stripped screw out of a keyboard pcb 💀💀💀

[@yomama6164]

Hi beginner here, right now im trying to fix 2 console controllers a Playstation related controller and a Xbox related controller, both have their analog joystick broken and i got the right equipment and everything but was wondering what solder tip should i use for desoldering and soldering, in the video i saw you were using a fat round tip to desolder and solder back so im guessing some electronics have their prefered tips

[@pongkie25]

Are you using 60 watts soldering iron? Cos i am using that but i dont think it will easily melt the solder

[@VakoDemuro-wc3yw]

What's the alternative to a soldering wick ? Something that can be found in home ?

[@ClbnaVGM]

Nice videos, this is helpful for a capacitor or anything that has max 3 leads but I was wondering how do you desolder 40 DIP IC's ?

[@bobross-hv6dy]

Hello. Hot air. Goodbye.

[@ClbnaVGM]

@@bobross-hv6dy 40 dip tht (like a zilog Z80) with hot air ? Don't you damage the chip with overheating ?

[@carlosgarcialalicata]

I never managed to remove all the solder, I don't know what I do wrong, but I'm very jealous from how it looks in your video :)

[@HowDoYouDIY]

It can take a bit of practice. If you're using desoldering braid, adding a little bit of flux to the braid can help it soak up solder easier.

[@habtamusium8646]

single Q, what effect the smoke result & its protection ? I get challenge to blow away .many thanks !

[@HazeBaze]

how much heat you are using while using the wick?

[@redpill7238]

Most important is to get a quality wick. I learned this the hard way. The wick i had would not even suck a low temp solder! Even with flux added. Pure garbage basically! Use quality wick and it will work just like in this video!

[@usernotbeenfound]

sir , wick is another way to remove the solder without the heat gun right ????

[@prasadwarkhandkararts5358]

Does it requires lot of heating because when I tried to desolder ready made pcb nothing was happening to the solder it was not melting only.

[@jameskrall8411]

I'm using wick just like in video. Not sucking up any solder at all. Using a Rosin flux pen rather than directly from a tin of flux. Any suggestions? Pretty sure my board is already destroyed though from too much heat... Also, what temperature is typically used for desoldering?

[@mlalbaitero]

Same

[@AngeloLuis22]

Hope do notice me, how about if the solder is almost 10 years already on joint, it is possible to remove it by the method of soldering iron with a copper wire to rub it so that will coat the copper?, For short; will the old solder will be removed?

[@HowDoYouDIY]

It should still work. You might need to add some flux to help it stick to the copper. It might also help to add some new solder to the old solder so that they both melt and mix together. I hope this is helpful.

[@ZingiberSnaps]

I use my soldering iron at 800 F with lots of flux. My wick will stick to what i work on, any tips?

[@4eyesover2]

I have the same desoldering wick shown in this video and mine just keeps turning black or sticking to the solder. It’s not wicking even slightly

[@hardnachopuppy]

I have the exact same desoldering pump.

[@boom_headshot56]

I recommend taking your time and being patient

[@HowDoYouDIY]

That's some solid advice. Being impatient and trying to pull out a part before it's ready can damage things.

[@guney8401]

At what tempeature should we set the solder iron at when working on console or phone motherboards?

[@fuzzylogic33]

275 / 280

[@bastmaster1]

OK I have a question I am doing a board and I don't know if I truly messed up so it was stuck and some of the board peeled those little strips and the copper came off to can I send u a pick and can u give me advice it's literally my first time

[@Onm3_Funky]

Is the solder tinned when removing?

[@SecretJuice1]

Can the soldering wick continue to be used after it's absorbed the solder? If not, would one just cut away the affected parts?

[@HowDoYouDIY]

That's a really good question! After the wick absorbs the solder, that part is all used up. You can cut off the used part of it.

[@djbarela4]

How do you compensate for the missing copper pad I messed up lol

[@spongeRuthy]

Te amo ❤

[@healthbeauty7853]

Most videos on KZbin, people use liquid flux. I only have standard flux. I hope it works just as well.

[@thecitrusfrequency6503]

I’m trying to replace a mini toggle switch on guitar pedal, and I’ve been sitting here for 20 minutes with the solder pump and I cannot get this thing out! I got the main bubbles out but there is still solder in the holes, im thinking about picking up some solder wick if the hardware store has it

[@HowDoYouDIY]

If they don't have it then you can use regular copper wire with a bit of flux on it. It won't pull out as much solder at a time, but it can help in a pinch.

[@erraddict]

I tried removing the USB port from my PS Vita but my soldering wick seemed to not do anything. Maybe I was using the wrong temperature? What temp should I use?

[@Amanverma561]

I have 2 questions: 1. why is it sometimes that the solder won't stick to the surface of the PCB and doesn't leave the soldering iron? 2. I was fixing my mechanical keyboard and I burnt the copper pad/joint of the key because of the same issue in 1st question, now only PCB is left on that joint. Is there any possibility of fixing it?? I am a beginner at soldering.

[@TimSantillanes]

Why is it when I try to disorder Nothing gets hot enough to melt? I thought my first cheap soldering iron just wasn’t good enough so I returned it and got a really nice expensive one and it doesn’t seem to melt anything.

[@MrEpixdude]

How do I compensate for a missing copper pad?

[@ERROR-hf3wx]

Where to buy copper pad?

[@zubershaikh5546]

Woow very nice video sir thanks sir plz make this video in Hindi plz

[@HowDoYouDIY]

I'll see what I can do

[@estendir]

i try to desolder ps5 analog stick but alloy does not melt even with iron set to 400 degrees... Should it mean only heat gun can do this ?

[@BrokenDesktop21]

I’ve found if it seems like the solder you’re trying to remove isn’t melting properly and your iron is at the correct temperature, try adding a little extra solder to the tip of the iron. It’s an odd trick that works and it might even let you know that your iron actually isn’t hot enough.

[@HowDoYouDIY]

I've noticed that too! Doesn't seem like it would work, but sometimes it does.

[@kudideenakudideena654]

asome

[@Reeyan987]

Suppose that the copper pad got fully ripped out while desoldering. If I apply more solder to compensate for the missing pad, will it still work? Will removing the pad expose the board to oxidation or anything of that sort?

[@HowDoYouDIY]

That's a really good question. Yes, that can work. There are a few things to watch for. You'll need to make sure the solder you're adding gets connected to the copper path that's still there. You'll also need to make sure you're not accidentally connecting to other nearby copper or nearby parts. As far as the board oxidizing, that shouldn't be an issue. Circuit boards are usually made from fiberglass, and that didn't oxidize.

[@Reeyan987]

@@HowDoYouDIY Thanks a lot for the answer man. As someone who is still new to soldering things, your videos and your answers really helps.

[@vmiget01]

what is a good desoldering temperature? im trying to desolder analog sticks off controllers

[@angelf9800]

Try 340 c worked for me .

[@yourlocalgoner]

where to find that copper pads, i lost 1 more my mouse, and it's dead

[@shellbell8062]

What do you use for harder metal? I just bought a table with a metal frame and it has a tiny metal bump on it that prevents the frame from fitting properly. I just bought a soldering iron to desolder but it doesn't work. I don't think it's hot or powerful enough.

[@HowDoYouDIY]

That's a good question. For a table frame it's probably not soldered, it's most likely welded. You can try getting a file for metal and filing down the extra bump.