Ultrasonic PCB cleaning

[@zyghom]

"the guy, whose smile never stops" - lovely ;-)

[@MichaelCowden]

Excellent solution disposal advice! 😂 Thanks for an informative video!

[@tony359]

I've been thinking of an ultrasonic cleaner for a looong time. It's just it takes so much space and I'd need a large one for motherboards and similar. I wash my PCBs in Electrolube SWAS, I have a feeling it's the same you showed on video, just RS branded. I love it. It's effective but water based. I then rinse in water, final rinse in distilled water and then compressed air to remove water as much as possible. Finally 48 hours drying time in dry place. I love how "brand new" the PCBs turn out. The SWAS removes that layer of oxidation really well. Thanks for the video!

[@SCOTTYD2031]

Your show always brings me a smile.

[@roerdomp16e]

Thanks again! My way for drying pcb's is quite simple: I put them outside in the sun or on the central heating for a night. Works fine for me!

[@lawrencium2652]

You should always fill an ultrasonic cleaner to the fill line. It needs liquid to dampen it so that it doesn't vibrate itself apart. You might find that it breaks prematurly if you don't. I fill mine with water up to the fill line. Then I find a container or freezer bag that my components will fit in and put my cleaner in that. It saves cleaner that way as well.

[@AA-xm7rt]

Hey thanks for your comment but why did you put em in a container instead of in the water?

[@tookitogo]

@@AA-xm7rt So that you don’t use (dirty) a ton of cleaner. With water-based cleaners this is simply a matter of cost and convenience. With flammable solvent-based cleaners, it’s also a matter of safety: multiple liters of hot alcohol is an extreme fire hazard. But a small amount of alcohol in a baggie, jar, or tub, surrounded by a water bath, is perfectly fine.

[@AA-xm7rt]

@@tookitogo ah thnx for the explanation! I've bought a cleaner since than and i've been using water with a little bit of special cleaner and stuff that small I'll put a bag with water just so it stays together. Its a great machine the ultrasonic cleaner! Its changed the way I work.

[@tookitogo]

@ I hear you! When I found out that we actually did have an ultrasonic cleaner sitting in storage at work, I dragged it out and have been cleaning my PCBs that way now. I posted a separate new comment a few hours ago about my experiments with water-washable no-clean flux, and those make the process even simpler since no cleaning agent is required, just hot water and ultrasound!

[@Plons0Nard]

The bricks at the bottom of the oven, what a good idea ! It also provides thermal mass.

[@pedromorgan99]

Thankyou.. A huge amount of my conflicts solved...

[@regfenster]

Good to see you've changed the fluid in your degreaser at last, it was looking like the gravy boat you'd find down your local boozer on a Sunday afternoon carvery.

[@AllenCavedo]

You made me burst out laughing when you showed dumping the solvent at a “chemical disposal area”.

[@Krunch2020]

The tomatoes are going to taste good next year!

[@stellamcwick8455]

My method for drying vintage boards is a gentle heat combined with moving air. I built a drying oven using a small ceramic space heater that had a fan. Component temperatures remain around 38C and the forced air tends to get into harder to reach areas and speeds evaporation. Yes, I realize I’m blow drying my boards. Don’t judge me.

[@andrewholdsworth4421]

I love pottering with very little knowledge I feel is the next step to my hobby , cheers for all the info . top channel

[@tookitogo]

FWIW, at work I’ve been experimenting with the water-washable no-clean fluxes that are now on the market. And so far the results are very encouraging. I did a few little boards yesterday, in fact, and in addition to being easy to clean with solvent (which I did partway through assembly), they really do come off nicely in the ultrasonic bath. 5 minutes in the ultrasonic in 70C hot water and they were flawlessly clean. I just rinsed them with clean deionized water and then used compressed air to blow them dry. FYI, I’m using the water-washable no-clean solder wires from SRA and ChipQuik, as well as the equivalent tacky flux from ChipQuik, plus the “Repair Flux and Cleaner” gel from SRA. (That last one requires cleaning, but it is really easy to clean.)

[@thefreedomguyuk]

Use isopropyl alcohol for final rinse

[@tookitogo]

@ I could (and sometimes do, though usually ethanol because we have tons of it and it smells better, or commercial solvent-based flux cleaner) but there’s often no need to use alcohol. A deionized water rinse is just as effective, and as long as it dries quickly enough to not rust any steel, it’s perfectly safe. I use compressed air to blow off residual water or solvent. If I really needed absolute dryness ASAP, I could use an oven or even a vacuum oven to dry them. The whole point of using water-washable fluxes and flux cleaners is to eliminate solvents, after all.

[@wackowacko8931]

To remove water from the board, you can use a drying solvent. Most drying solvents combine readily with water, but most would not work well with a PCB. Alcohol (usually denatured) is one of the better ways of removing water, but denatured alcohol isn't the best thing to have around unless you can control access to it. Fortunately, Isopropyl Alcohol works almost as well, is easy/cheap to obtain and you don't have to be as careful with it. To dry out the board just soak the board in that, pull it out and let it evaporate.

[@roroseppel2077]

Hello Mark, would you be as kind as to make a workshop tour for us ?

[@yoink5592]

He has! Yeah it’s a great video. Well worth a watch

[@nextepisode7033]

I use it for prep a car and deferent surfaces before painting, pretty clean job

[@paul.alarner6410]

if your not in a rush i find a few days in the airing cupboard works ok for drying,also washing machine gel pods work in my homebrew ultrasonic cleaner,73 m3vuv.

[@sleu8084]

Just found your channel. Really fun and informative videos ! Love how you go all the way to even open up components for repairs. Never thought of doing that myself. Always wanted to buy an ultrasonic cleaning for a project I have laying around but never came around to it so this is really helpful. What I am missing thought is: actually how long do you dry the boards in the oven ? And how large is your ("chinese ?") ultrasonic cleaner. Looks like 15L but could even be larger. Like others also mentioned in the comments, I would also love a tour-through-the-lab video. Where you mention all the equipment you have. Your lab is really to be jealous of ! A dream for most of us.

[@quantumleap359]

He did make a video showing a tour of his lab and workshop. Fascinating! Mark is an electronics, mechanics and woodworking genius. After using the ultrasonic cleaner, I usually dry the boards at 140 degrees F. for about 8 hours.

[@calculusentropy]

Branson EC is simply amazing stuff for electronics.

[@richardelkington7605]

Hi Mark thanks for your interesting electronic videos I have only just seen a few of them but I intend to view them all I noticed when you are testing the main power on items you plug it in to the home made volts and amp meter plug on the wall can you please do a video on how that is made also the power resistor thing you have next to it Thanks great job

[@MendItMark]

I certainly could! Keep watching - It will appear in the comming weeks!

[@yvonf2312]

@@MendItMark Hello Mark Thanks for your very interesting videos... My english is poor but with the automatic translation it is ok ! 😉 ... however I cannot understand - 2 years after, what you mean by "in the comming weeks!" ??? Indeed I watched all your videos - I think, and no information on this special troubleshooting power switch...😪 Does that mean in your language "in the next thousand weeks!" 😅 Best regards,

[@Antonio-gc1cn]

Thank's Mark!

[@tinagladu3744]

very helpful ,thanks alot tina

[@EricTViking]

4:53 take it in the garden and go WEEE 😂👍

[@gordonwelcher9598]

Switches and potentiometers might have to be relubricated after washing. Some types can trap water inside.

[@AA-xm7rt]

Like with potentiometers from controllers?

[@roymercer6967]

Thanks for sharing such good info and doing what you do. I really enjoy your content. Where did you get your extension hose for your hot air station?

[@SteveJones172pilot]

So.. if I have a board that is too big to fit in a cleaner, is it OK to put it in edgewise with half (or hopefully just less than half!) of the board sticking out, then rotate it to clean the other half of the board? In otherwords.. No reason (other than fumes perhaps?) to require using the top, right?

[@simonelton481]

dry the boards in vacuum chamber to boil off the water at low temperature. I use an old redundant vac packer from a butchers shop and heat the board inside with an IR lamp my granny had for warming her bad leg, pointed through the clear lid.

[@raccoon874]

*Glad to see Phil Collins has found a second career*

[@-nw1mr]

I use my dishwasher. Even Bob Pease recommended that.

[@johnblain417]

My dishwasher doesn't work like that. She absolutely refuses to even touch my circuit boards.....lol.

[@Chris-hy6jy]

Pretty sure we used Methylated Spirit in our uSonic cleaner. That was back in the 90's though so probably better options these days.

[@JustinEpley]

What model and/or capacity ultrasonic cleaner do you have?

[@AlanMedina314]

lol, Local chemical disposal.

[@wholiddleolme476]

Bet the wife liked that lol

[@D-qe7sg]

Hi Mark 👋, I have a circuit board from a digital dash from a Honda xr motorcycle. Most of the solder joints have suffered from water ingress and have become slightly corroded 😢. And now the lcd display only partly functions now and again and some times does not work at all. My question is this...firstly would it be safe to ultrasonic clean the circuit board with the lcd display still attached to the board, and secondly do you think the ultrasonic cleaner would be enough to remove the corrosion and could the corrosion be the thing from preventing the dash to display properly. Cheers in advance and kind regards

[@Thmartin60]

Hi Mark, I love your channel, among the best. What's the capacity of your ultrasonic cleaner ? (or tank dimensions). Thanks for your brilliant videos !

[@gribbler1695]

The PS‑60A is 15L. Water tank size is 330 x 300 x 150mm.

[@Thmartin60]

@@gribbler1695 Thank you !

[@HansDelbruck53]

I'm pretty sure his degrees are in Celsius rather than Fahrenheit.

[@jimmy_jamesjams_a_lot4171]

I wonder why Potter and Brumfield like to jacket their relays in a see-through casing?!? Is it for quality assurance? Or maybe as functional example to educate? However it is, whenever I spot a see-through relay, it’s a difficult thing to avoid the desire to wire the thing up and demonstrate it’s functionality.

[@gerryp9711]

Can't you just rinse the circuit board with 99% Isopropyl Alcohol after the water bath? Just thought that would displace any water without the need to heat the board.

[@tookitogo]

Certainly. I’d use compressed air first to blow out the water (which should be distilled/deionized water) and then isopropyl to displace any residual water, then blow that out with compressed air, too.

[@edwinlooy6551]

Hi Mark, Love your stuff man😊 I just started with some Vintage audio repairs and had to clean some pots and switches. Had good results with contact cleaner, followed by compressed air blow out and than some protective contact spray. But i might go for this sollution too, Seems better in the long run. However, What stuff do you use to get them going again and protect it from going bad again? Just plain old sewing machine oil or something?

[@RejectedManiac]

What about components on the PCB with a MSL 3 rating?

[@steinbecktheman]

Where to you get safewash?

[@Sigmatechnica]

i just use a small amount of washing up liquid. if something is greasy i'll spray it with ipa first to get the worst of the grease off. to wash it off after i spray with deionised water from a sprayer bottle. I just let it try at room temp.

[@tookitogo]

Safeways isn’t degreaser, it’s flux remover. It will remove grease, too, but flux is what it’s designed for, and many degreasers won’t remove flux well. And you need it to be electronics-safe, which all-purpose degreasers aren’t guaranteed to be.

[@nigelwilliams4800]

Awesome don't really think about this,whats your view on ESD cleaning inside with a vacuum cleaner...I've been cleaning inside tvs,tower PC for years no problem...others say be very careful with static build up...

[@MendItMark]

I don't think ESD is such a problem for complete PCB assemblies, where sensitive parts will usually be loaded by pull-up / pull-down resistors and other EMC 'what-not' that would provide a safer leakage path. I'd be more worried loose components vanishing up the tube.

[@russellforrest1730]

Wow! Soooo useful. Your 'melty' mistakes will save hundreds of people engineer tears... Cheers!

[@Ronnie01964]

Cleaning pcb's with an ultrasonic bath is ok, but how do you follow traces of leakage to solve the problem to find the culprit? I know guys who do this procedure directly after they know what is the culprit and not before.

[@mattsan70]

that fluid is basically car windscreen wash. dilute with distilled water - bingo same stuff

[@icsunonova]

ah thats a nice tip...i try that in my cleaner...windowwash is reallly cheap

[@jimbelcher6877]

How much to dilute?

[@tookitogo]

No it’s not. Safewash is a flux remover, so it contains added ingredients (saponifiers; lye, basically) and corrosion inhibitors not present in cleaners for non-electronics use.

[@technomad900]

"What to do with old liquid ? Take it to recycling centre ". Proceeds to throw it over grass- PMSL

[@radiogramgramophonetoons5802]

Can you advise me….. how much would a fully restored RGD 1046 radiogram cost to buy ?

[@MendItMark]

If you can find one, I suspect it would be up for sale around £2000. I've heard that the amplifier alone sells for £1000, and not necessarily in working condition! Unfortunatly, it has the attention of the Audiophile market - so sensible pricing goes out of the window...

[@radiogramgramophonetoons5802]

@@MendItMark ….ok and thanks. Your estimate is higher than others I’ve asked but thanks for replying 🙂

[@radiogramgramophonetoons5802]

@@MendItMark …….. oh one other question and sorry if it’s a daft one, but we’re they always a steel needle for the 1046 ?

[@mikestribling7574]

I have been using a ultrasonic cleaner for water damaged boards but never thought about using it to clean pots. Do you think it would help with joycon stick drift, and if so, what would you use?

[@aalexjohna]

Piss on it, girlfriend.

[@thedevilinthecircuit1414]

Mark, LOVE your channel. If you're paying through the nose on detergent for your ultrasonic cleaner, glass cleaner is cheap and effective. Brand names like Windex cost more, so use an off brand from an industrial supply--and dilute it 50% with water. Far less costly and it works just as well as the purpose-made stuff.

[@tookitogo]

Circuit boards are sensitive to certain types of contamination, so using something not made for electronics is risky. This is flux remover, mind you, not degreaser.

[@planetfoxdotnet]

I wish I could afford one of these. Even the cheap Chinese ones are a little outside my price range. For now I’m stuck with the poor man’s version, which for me involves hosing everything down with carbon tetrachloride and drying with compressed air.

[@quantumleap359]

Carbon tet?? Where can you buy it? No doubt about it, carbon tet works great, but I thought that stuff was banned long ago.

[@yannc76]

Melt it Mark ♨

[@davislar1]

CrackerJack presentation!

[@desmondchin4666]

May I know what brand and model of degreaser you are using. Thanks

[@tookitogo]

First of all, it’s not degreaser. It’s electronics flux remover. Second, he shows the container in the video.

[@chriselliott726]

Ultrasonic is not so good for resonators.

[@tjtreinen7381]

lol

[@silenthill4]

Only things you should remove are things that pass current, LCDs....all the obvious stuff

[@aanandreassudiro8375]

Hello salam

[@agl3083]

Wa aleikum assalam bro ...