Richard,
I like simple and easy life and I don't like cleaning PCBs at all. In
fact, when I was using all kinds of 'secret' papers (Ihave a foot
high pile of all kinds of exotic papers suggested for inkjets and
lasers) with a hot iron, I cleaned my PCBs in numerous nad complex
ways, including an 18th century secret preactivation of copper... not
anymore. Don't need to. First, I use clean boards from ebay, they are
new or at least look like new that means they are not oxidized like
some old phenolic boards I inherited from a Woodstock engineer.
So my cleanup is following
1. Wash the PCB with dish soap (few drops) rubbed with paper towel.
Do it few times and if both sided, do the both sides, finally it's
your laminator... Then wash well under warm water. Dry it outwith
sheet of paper towel.
2. Clean with a green, kitchen, scouring pad. It is that thin spnge
like pad, that is made of some fiber, not metal. It has abrasive
properties. Clean in diagonal directions, methodically, doesn't have
to be excessive, just make sure you have that fine and visible 'grid'
from abrasive surface.
3. Clean with dish soap, wash with water and dry with paper.
That;'s it, just don't touch the surface.
4. Stefan suggested to 'preshrink' the paper and run it first thru
the laminator and I think it will work but we don't know that. That
would be a nice improvement if it works.
5. I do not use 'Bnzine' anymore as I don't know anymore what those
chemicals do additionally. I remember vaguely htat during my initial
test with other papers I ws not too happy with the results. Of
course, if you have a dirty board than I would use it.
6. As far as using IPA (isopropyl alcohole) I see no reason for it.
Alcohol does not dissolve fat. Period. It may smear or make some new
compound, but I don't thinkit makes any sens from chemical point of
view. If thre are anychemists on board, please comment on it, what
does isopropyl alcohol do to cleaning copper surface? I don't think
it does anything except for 'smearing'.
Good luck,
Mike
--- In
Homebrew_PCBs@yahoogroups.com, "rmustakos" <rmustakos@a...>
wrote:
> Mike Thanks for answering. IPA is isopropal alcohol, but I have to
think too hard to try to spell that, and I saw someone else just
writing IPA, so I helped push the bandwagon.
> Does the rest of your anwser ("Originally ...") mean that now you:
> 1) rinse it with benzine and let it air dry,
> 2) wet a _cloth_ rag with benzine and wipe the board down,
> 3) douse it with benzine and burn off the film,
> 4) do something different, now?
> thanks
> Richard
>
> --- In Homebrew_PCBs@yahoogroups.com, "mikezcnc" <eemikez@c...>
wrote:
> > That question puzzled me, too. Originally I used a cigarette
lighter
> > fluid (european Benzine) which always removed something 'dirty'
afer
> > having used the dish washer soap (detergent). On a similar
subject I
> > read somwhere, maybe even on this board, that a paper towel
leaves
> > silicon dilms on board. Talking to a paper eengineer did not
confirm
> > it though.
> >
> > What is IPA?
> >
> > Mike