Mastering PCB Cleaning with an Ultrasonic Cleaner! | Voltlog

High quality PCB Services pcbway.com Welcome back to Voltlog! In this comprehensive guide, I'll walk you through the process of effectively cleaning Printed Circuit Boards (PCBs) using an ultrasonic cleaner. Whether you're a DIY electronics enthusiast or a tech aficionado, this video is packed with valuable insights and practical tips.
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🔧 Cleaning PCBs with an Ultrasonic Cleaner | The Ultimate Guide
00:05 👉 Introduction:
Ever wondered if cleaning your PCBs is necessary? We'll delve into why cleaning matters, especially if you're using active fluxes or sensitive components. Discover the benefits and importance of ensuring your boards remain free of residues for their long-term health.
01:56 🛠️ Understanding Ultrasonic Cleaning:
Learn about the fascinating cavitation process-the science behind ultrasonic cleaners. Explore how rapid pressure changes and implosions of microscopic bubbles in the cleaning solution aid in dislodging dirt and contaminants from surfaces.
02:52 🔍 Safety Precautions:
Prior to diving into the cleaning process, I emphasize crucial safety measures. From ensuring sufficient liquid in the cleaner to avoiding flammable substances and considering component compatibility, we cover essential precautions to make your ultrasonic cleaning experience safe and effective.
05:24🔌Introducing the VEVOR Ultrasonic Cleaning Machine:
Get an up-close look at the VEVOR 15L Ultrasonic Cleaning Machine. Uncover its features, specifications, and my firsthand experience using this powerful cleaner. Links in the description below for more details!
08:16 🔧 The Cleaning Process:
Step-by-step, I demonstrate how to set up the ultrasonic cleaner, prepare the cleaning solution, and run the cleaning cycle. Witness the transformation as the cleaner efficiently removes flux residues from the example PCB.
12:00💡 Post-Cleaning Steps:
I share my post-cleaning rituals involving rinsing the PCB with demineralized water and using an air compressor for thorough drying, ensuring a pristine finish.
🗣️ Engage & Share:
Join the conversation! Share your experiences, tips, or questions in the comments section below. Have you tried ultrasonic cleaning for your electronics?
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#UltrasonicCleaner #Cavitation #PrintedCircuitBoard

[@robmurg]

I have a small version of this cleaner, it works well. I often run it with plain water and then add a smaller container (paper cup, plastic takeaway meal tray) with the actual cleaning solution and parts in. This keeps the tank much cleaner and avoids cross-contamination. Nothing bad has happened yet so I assume it's OK.

[@voltlog]

yet another good idea that I need to try, container inside the tub. Thanks!

[@Janktzoni]

@@voltlog A plastic bag works well too. Preferably with a zip-lock.

[@sasha.djordjevic3071]

I’m doing the same for years now. Smaller plastic container filled with cleaning solution inside the tank which is filled with distilled water. To avoid floating, in my case, plastic container is weighted with fishing weights ( in plastic bag). Tip: If you have cleaner with smaller capacity and have to clean pcb that size of one of the axis is bigger than cleaner, take some soda bottles (2l Coca-Cola is fine for me) and cut it to fit the pcb. Fill the bottle with solution and put all together into the tank. Result is totally the same but extra few minutes has to be added.

[@sdgelectronics]

Don't forget ear protection. The fundamental and harmonics are quite high in energy.

[@voltlog]

Thanks! You're right! I was thinking yesterday that I should get some form of ear protection, at the very minimum some simple ear plugs.

Good point. I saw people wearing ear protection during ultrasonic washing, but it was observed in car repair garage, where power of ultrasonic washer is extreme. Have you got any information about PCB related cleaners? Does power of eg 200W of ultrasonic generator produces harmful sound level? I personally can descript this noise as quite silent high frequency buzzing. Radio in car produces much more noise. Is it nevertheless harmful?

[@BestSpatula]

Aluminum can get etched pretty quickly by one of these. Not sure why it affects aluminum but not steel. You can use aluminum foil to see where the ultrasound is the strongest. I don't think you need ultrasonic to clean flux residue since alcohol will readily dissolve this. However, I have had amazing results with cleaning vintage computer motherboards that have been severely corroded by leaky electrolytic capacitors. Finely pitched IC pins tend to get a lot of this corrosion stuff that the ultrasonic cleaner can very safely sweep away. That small ultrasonic cleaner is definitely undersized but is extremely cute. Thanks for the video!

[@tegra5971]

Great introduction to cleaners! Mine has a frequency sweep button and a degas mode. (Both of these can be done manually) Echo the comment about getting the size you really need. I find that only a minute or two is good. I batch about 10 boards then swap to clean fluid (saving dirty for next batch), then just shake the fluid off and “bake” at about 80C for 30 minutes to completely dry each nook and cranny. Bit of a process but essential for good production results.

[@voltlog]

Sounds like you got quite a process setup there. Nice to hear about it!

[@mitchellhw2006]

Good video. Thanks. I use distilled water in mine (same brand as shown in video). I do however set up a triple rinse station when I pull the boards out. First I allow the boards to cool for a minute to reduce any chance of thermal shock to components. Then I do a first rough rinse, then step the boards through two more rinse trays to continually dilute any remaining cleaner. Then they go to the compressed air stage. For final drying, I use the reflow oven on a BAKE mode with a circulating fan for 10 minutes just to be sure any moisture under QFPs is completely baked out.

[@executive]

you should always fill your tank at least 2/3 full. you can put your PCB and solution into a smaller container, and then submerge that container in to the water. The cleaning will still work, but the container needs to be glass or metal to pass the ultrasonic waves. with this way I've also used cleaners like 70% IPA or even gasoline (which works miracles on engine parts and chainsaw chains). by the way the cleaners usually just contain commonly found chemicals. You don't need to spend loads of money on expensive cleaners, since it's the machine that does most of the work. Don't forget to preheat and then "degas" your solution for 10-15mins before using it . (only have to do once). It makes a world of difference. Also turn your parts over halfway through. most of the cleaning is done to the side facing the transducers.

[@tookitogo]

Plastic containers or plastic bags work well, too. I recently cleaned a few dozen PCBs that way. :)

[@executive]

@@tookitogo not nearly as well. Plastic absorbs too much ultrasonic energy

[@tookitogo]

@@executive I’m sure it does, but at least for this particular application (flux removal) it doesn’t appear to make any difference in practice. On the aforementioned batch of boards, I cleaned some boards in glass, some in hard plastic tubs, some in plastic bags, and they all got perfectly clean in 5 minutes.

[@H4zuZazu]

Another addition would be if you glue some foamtape into the rim of the lid of the ulrasonic cleaner, it reduces the rattleing of the lid so much.

[@voltlog]

The foam tape would have to be temperature resistant, silicone maybe, but yes, this is a good idea. Simply putting some pressure on the top of the lid does reduce the noise a lot.

[@PriyankBolia]

I just use soap and tap water and my wife hair dryer. Tried with IPA and toothbrush, but liquid soap gave me much better result, and it's more cheaper. Yes, I know what you will think, but so far no problem, and it works very well for me.

[@voltlog]

Professional cleaning liquid is also soap but with some added ingredients.

[@ergindemir7366]

According to esp32-wroom module datasheet, ultrasonic cleaning should be avoided due to crystal damage.

[@tswtx]

I was wondering with the little hole in the module if it was going to cause a problem...

[@ergindemir7366]

@@tswtx The hole is no problem, there are actually several slots on the sides. The problem is with the crystal, which might damage during the cleaning process.

[@israelsalas4617]

I see a coil also, that power supply package. I preffer to remove those ones when i ultrasonic clean.

[@repairtech9320]

Would you clean a switching power supply with the transformer ? If yes, how do you dry it properly?

[@MCsCreations]

Awesome device, dude! Congrats! 😃 Stay safe there with your family! 🖖😊 And happy holidays!

[@voltlog]

Happy Holidays!

[@jaro6985]

Good video, since you are rinsing with distilled water, should be fine to use regular tap water in the cleaner. I've had no issues rinsing with tap water but may depend on your location.

[@AndreDeLimburger]

What about crystals? I've heard they can get damaged in ultrasonic cleaners too.

[@voltlog]

Yes, ultrasonic cleaning can potentially damage certain types of crystals or oscillators that are sensitive to mechanical stress or vibrations. In practice I have not seen specific mentions of this problem in the datasheets of the crystals that I used. MEMS oscillators however.. that's something I would not put in an ultrasonic cleaner.

[@AndreDeLimburger]

@@voltlog I could imagine a crystal close to the ultrasonic cleaner's frequency, like an RTC clock crystal at 32.768 kHz, might start resonating with the sound.

[@voltlog]

@@AndreDeLimburger I can imagine that too but it doesn't mean that having the crystal resonate at it's designed frequency will damage it. Generally speaking it's a tiny crystal block not some sensitive intricate structure like MEMS would be,

[@kuro68000]

I wish they did "PCB shape" ones. To get one that is large enough for mid size boards you need to get a very large one, even though in one dimension you only need maybe 25mm. Would be good for vinyl records too. I guess there must be a good reason why they don't make them.

[@voltlog]

It's the size of the ultrasonic drivers and the fact that it's probably more difficult to press the steel tubs into a thin shape.

[@thenextproblem8001]

Esp32 has also hole dot on it. İs it harmful for esp32?

[@mitchellhw2006]

I questioned the same thing. I have seen Kapton tape used to seal holes where cleaner should not go. The piezo buzzers I used recently came sealed from the factory with a note to remove after cleaning.

[@TheArudam]

​hi all, it's not dangerous if you drying the esp32 pcb 130 degc for 1 minute after ultrasonic cleaning. I'm using reflow oven for driying.

[@GeorgeGraves]

That's thing is huge - way to big unless you are doing a lot of boards. I also think that sure, maybe there are micro-bubbles pooping and that cleans it, but it's mostly just mechanical I believe. Don't get too wrapped up in using the expensive solutions - some shops I know of run their boards through a "portable" countertop dishwaster with just standard Lemond Joy detergent - boards come out spotless 30 mins later (sometimes need a bit more drying). When I need to clean a board or two, IPA and a anti-static brush works well. For more, look for untrasonic cleaners made for jewerly. Fill with warm water and put in a tiny, tiny, tiny bit of soap. Rinse with IPS or distilled water or a combo of both.

[@udhayakumara4033]

Can we use pcbs with electrolytic capacitors and relays for ultrasonic cleaning? Sorry i don't see that mentioned in datasheet

[@kissszilard4220]

Hello, the Vevor manual says to fill the tank at least half full. Isn't it usually a problem that there is only so little liquid in it?

[@AntoninKral]

I guilty of buying larger unit than needed. I fill it with regular water, and put the PCB (or other objects) to zip-lock bag filled with appropriate cleaning solution -> I need way less cleaning solution. Plus if I am cleaning mechanical parts, I don't need to clean the tub from all the grease, which would normally be on the sides.

[@voltlog]

Zip-lock bag, that's something I need to try! Thanks!

[@executive]

@@voltlog plastic attenuates the ultrasonic energy. You should use glass or metal.

[@ecka333]

Thanks for the video. But it would be even better if you would have tried other type of flux. For example rosin mixed with vaseline or pure rosin.

[@johnnytambaku364]

Do ultrasonic cleaners have any negative impact on electrolytic/polymer capacitors?

[@voltlog]

Yes, ultrasonic cleaning can potentially damage certain types of crystals or oscillators that are sensitive to mechanical stress or vibrations. In practice I have not seen specific mentions of this problem in the datasheets of the crystals that I used. MEMS oscillators however.. that's something I would not put in an ultrasonic cleaner.

It seems that this is best method for cleaning but... is really hard to determine if cleaned PCB will not die after that. Trying to investigate Microchip's MCU's if they are ultrasonic cleaners proof - I got no answer. Probably internal or external crystals will be dead. In real world I never know which components will be killed this way. Of course microphones, loudspeakers are obvious candidates to failure, but rest of them are difficult to judge. I'm still not convinced to this method.

[@nezbrun872]

Very good, and generally agreed. I use these for all my boards by default. After the wash, I rinse twice in a series of two separate tubs of deionised water. Good idea with the air compressor: I use the hot air iron at 150 deg C if I'm in a hurry. My liquid of choice here in the UK is Electrolube SWAS. It smells and feels more like a detergent than a solvent, but it claims to be a solvent. I'm not a chemist though, all I know is that it works. I still clean whether or not it says "no clean": IME ionic contaminants are still there, so for hi-Z applications there's still a problem. Furthermore, I use "de-ionised" as opposed to "distilled" water, there's a difference!

[@voltlog]

Yes, my solution also smells like soap which I'm guessing is the primary ingredient in some form. I'm not sure de-ionised water is actually needed for cleaning PCBs as the primary difference is that de-ionised water has eliminated ions and charged particles whereas distilled water has eliminated minerals and contaminants. To me it feels like you want to remove minerals and contaminants which appear as residue on the PCB surface after cleaning.

[@Lu-ql5tj]

Does it make a high pitch audible sound? Mine make a very noticeable pitch sound. After 1 minute it makes my head hurt

[@voltlog]

Yes, that is part of the operation. Another precaution suggested here in the comments is the use of ear protection.

[@edic2619]

Great video. Thanks.

[@RandornCanis]

Be cautious with nearby electronics. I had two smart displays start pulsing in brightness the moment I turned on a cleaner in the same room for the first time. They never recovered.

[@ulbed]

For electronics only a cleaner with 120/130 khz should be used. 40 khz models are cheap but will likely damage most electronic components. It abrades plastic and epoxy materials because the energy of the collapsing cavity is too high. 40 khz is only for mechanical and insensitive parts!

[@voltlog]

I could not find any mention of this, can you share a link where this problem is documented/described?

[@ulbed]

comments with links are instantly deleted. you can search for "ieee ultrasonic cleaning damage"

[@martinandersen7955]

My ultrasonic cleaner must be filled at least 2/3. The heater i located on the side

[@voltlog]

It is always recommended to fill the ultrasonic cleaner up to the required level. I just didn't have enough cleaning liquid while shooting this video.

[@Vladimir-hq1ne]

welll... There ARE kinds of ultrasonic cleaners that designed to work with kerosene or IPA...

[@voltlog]

Are those out of the reach of the average hobbyist?

[@hhawawq1065]

You should not reach in the liquid when it is running.

[@BestSpatula]

how else am I supposed to clean my bones?

[@2000jago]

Not a fan of this "sponsored" content. :(

[@lasersbee]

8:55... the cap is not on correctly...

[@voltlog]

I know.. I doesn't go in correctly no matter how I try 😒

[@paulpaulzadeh6172]

At wour work , we put pcb in plastic bag with zipp, put cleaning liquid in bag with pcb , close the zipp , then fyll tank with tapp water . In this way yiu don't need 15 liter cleaning liquid . 👋👋👋👋👋👋🫴🫴🫴🫴