Tom,
I use only Palmolive Original and green scouring pad (plastic
fibers). Palmolive original does not leave any film, like regular
soap would. No alcohol, to limit amount of bottles around my house.
Mike
--- In
Homebrew_PCBs@yahoogroups.com, "Thomas P. Gootee" <tomg@f...>
wrote:
>
> Richard,
>
> I think that using soap or detergent is not necessarily a bad
thing, as long as you also use something else, after that, to get rid
of every trace of the soap or detergent and its additives. The
isopropyl probably accomplished that, in your case.
>
> I now do ONLY TWO things to prepare a new piece of board for TT.
(See farther below.)
>
> Cleaning of the PCB blank IS a CRITICAL part of the toner transfer
process. I USED to go through many more steps than I do now,
including either sanding and/or scrubbing with an abrasive pad, and
washing with soap and water, and washing with isopropyl alcohol
(IPA), and washing with acetone and/or laquer thinner, drying with a
new paper towel after each step, etc. BUT, I have found that ALL
that is needed is the abrasive pad and the acetone. Results are
always perfect. [It works for me, anyway. But I also use a certain
magic glossy paper, from Staples office supply stores, which is just
called "Staples Picture Paper", on the package. (Complete/exact
details of the Staples paper's UPC and SKU numbers, ordering it on
line from Staples, etc, etc, are on my pcb webpage, at:
http://www.fullnet.com/u/tomg/gooteepc.htm .)]
>
>
> ∗∗∗ PROCEDURE FOR PREPARING PCB BLANKS FOR TONER TRANSFER:
∗∗∗
>
> (After this point, don't touch the surface of the board with bare
skin. I use a clean paper towel to hold the edges of the board,
during the procedures below.)
>
> ∗∗ STEP 1: ∗∗
>
> Rub/scrub the whole surface of the pcb blank with a nylon abrasive
pad (usually green, e.g. "Scotchbrite", often sold for kitchen use
(?); some types are also sold for painting and varnishing prep; also
sometimes referred to as "artificial steel wool", usually equivalent
to '0' grade steel wool. (But DON'T use REAL steel wool, since it
will embed steel particles in the copper, which WILL rust.)).
>
> I lay the board on a flat surface and go all the way across the
board and partially off of each side with each motion of the pad, and
work my way from one end to the other while doing that. At that
point, the board should be uniformly shiny and clean-looking, with no
remaining discoloration or marring or irregularities. Then, you need
to do the same thing again, but in a perpendicular direction, and
probably not quite as vigorously or firmly.
>
> The board should look like the example I show at
http://www.fullnet.com/u/tomg/gooteepc.htm , with a pattern of nice
fine scratches that run in two more-or-less-perpendicular directions
(high directional precision is not required, hehe).
>
> You usually don't have to press TOO hard. But I press the pad down
with the flats of several of my fingertips, in a manner that I would
called "firmly", and use a fast and vigorous side-to-side motion.
>
> ∗∗ STEP 2: ∗∗
>
> Wet a clean paper towel with Acetone and rub the board very firmly,
to clean it. Note the huge amount of "dirt" that comes off (probably
composed mostly of particles of the abrasive pad and the copper).
Keep using a completely clean part of the paper towel, or another
towel, with more acetone, and repeat, until you can't see anything
else come off onto the towel. (Rub hard!) [Also, you have to take
care to not re-introduce any dirt or contaminants back onto the board
from the work surface, via the paper towel. I always clean the work
surface with acetone and a paper towel, after using the abrasive pad
and before cleaning the board with the acetone. I usally also clean
my hands, and quickly wipe both sides of the board, AND the edges,
just before starting the main cleaning process.]
>
> The entire process takes about a minute, at the most, if the
materials are all at hand and you've done it before.
>
> If you're one of those who's worried about getting cancer from the
acetone, you might want to wear some type of protective gloves, and
have good ventilation.
>
> Also, remember that many household finishes and materials can be
harmed, or destroyed, by acetone. (So don't do this on the lady of
the house's good dinner table, for example.)
>
> Remember, too, that acetone is ∗extremely∗ flammable!
>
> By the way, I also usually use a paper towel and acetone to remove
the toner, after etching.
>
> Good luck!
>
> Regards,
>
> Tom Gootee
>
> http://www.fullnet.com/u/tomg
>
> ------------------------------------
>
>
>
> Date: Thu, 29 Jul 2004 18:43:10 -0700
> From: Richard Mustakos <rmustakos@a...>
> Subject: Re: What cleaner to use for preparing for TT
>
> I have scrubbed the surface of boards , and washed them with
> detergents, but until I used IPA, I was never able to get the toner
to
> stick reliably. Does anyone know why the detergent doesn't clean
the
> oils off? Does it leave it's own coating?
> Richard
>
> [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]