Soldering
Contents
Background information
Soldering is the act of attaching devices or wires to metallic pads on the printed circuit board(PCB) by melting solder on the area
What tools you will need
Items are not listed in any particular order
Required
- Adjustable temperature soldering iron
- Extraction fan for solder fumes
- Soldering wire (lead free or leaded)
- Soldering flux
- Solder iron tip cleaner
- Soldering iron holder
Optional but useful
- Desoldering wick
- 99% isopropyl alcohol
- Squeeze bottle
- Cotton buds(q-tips)
- lint free cotton pads
- Latex-free gloves
- Heat-resistant mat
- Set of soldering iron tips
- Heat-resistant helping hands
- Non-magnetic Tweezer set
- Digital microscope
- Set of files (rounded, circular and flat)
- Desk vice
Uses of this skill
- 1. Attaching wires to devices
- 2. Repairing broken connections
- 3. Bypassing a broken or troublesome part
- Reference 1: how to solder (with pictures)
- Reference 2: detailed Ifixit guide
Step-by-step guide with images
Insert step-by-step walkthrough with images and summary text here
Step one, enabling the fume extractor to ensure any hazardous fumes are removed (if you are able to smell the fumes, then your extractor is not working correctly).
Step two, Set the temperature of your soldering iron to 200C/395F for lead-free 183C/361F for leaded solder (these are not exact numbers you may have to adjust according to your needs and tools).
Step three, Completely cover the tip of the iron with a fine layer of solder to "tin" it (this will help with heat transfer and protect the tip).
Step Four, place the item you're soldering in the position you want to solder it to.
Step Five, Gently place the solder wire on the area to be soldered, then touch the tip of the wire till the connection is covered in molten solder.(for hot air and IR soldering please see Hot air gun)
Step Six, Clean up the area with desoldering wick or lint free cotton buds and 99% isopropyl alcohol.(this just ensures the area is clean and less chance of issues)
Step Seven, Check the connection is secure by gently pulling or pushing on the soldered item, to see if it moves.(soldered items should not move)
Flow chart of order of operations
Troubleshooting/tips and tricks
Fixes to any common issues that were encountered or could be easily encountered.
Q: The tip is black/gray and doesn't work very well
A: It is likely oxidized, and needs to be retined with solder,
Simply heat up the iron as you would when normally soldering then
apply solder in an even layer around the tip
(filing the black/gray off is often recommended to help with heat transfer, but not required)
Q: How do I know if my extraction fan is powerful enough?
A: A general rule of thumb I always follow is if you can smell or taste it at all, then your extraction is not strong enough.
as the smoke must be reaching you in order for you to be able to taste or smell it.
Related Topics
Topics such as desoldering to chip off or firmware dumping for disk PCB repairs
Further reading
External references in wiki references can just be cited through the keyword link