Best way to clean/dust pcb's?

AUSyTyIN

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I've got 4 VERY dusty boards that need a good cleaning. It there a good way to do this? (I've search because I know it's got to be here somewhere, but didn't find it)
 
Canned air, rubbing alcohol and q-tips, stick them in the dishwasher, etc.

There are plenty of suggestions. The dishwasher supposedly works great, but I've never done it and just can't bring myself to try it.
 
I use a small paint brush, the kind one would use for painting models....
WORKS GREAT!
 
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Ok, I've heard of several alternative uses for a dishwasher, but to clean circuit boards just seems like a bad idea. Has no one seen any ill effects from doing that?
 
There are threads on here. No ill effects, apparently. Remove any socketed chips. Let them COMPLETELY dry before powering up. I forget the most popular drying methods....

I haven't gone that far yet, but there are a couple PCBs I might try that with eventually. Up until now I've just been using my air compressor and brushes of various stiffnesses.
 
Ok, I've heard of several alternative uses for a dishwasher, but to clean circuit boards just seems like a bad idea. Has no one seen any ill effects from doing that?

For most boards ... including the ones shown above, it is a bad idea.
I notice that the boards in the above pictures have DIP switches. Water -WILL- get inside these. Blowing out or hot air will often NOT dry these out internally and they will eventually corrode. They will start building up a nice light-green/blue corrosion on the internal contacts and start building up resistance. It takes a few years of this to become apparent but it does happen...and I used to have a bunch of internally corroded DIP switches as proof.

If there are no non-sealed components (e.g. DIP switches, relays, or other types of switches), then these are directly washable.

Ed
 
There are threads on here. No ill effects, apparently. Remove any socketed chips. Let them COMPLETELY dry before powering up. I forget the most popular drying methods....

I seem to remember setting the oven as low as it will go, letting it get up to temp, shutting it off, putting the board in and just waiting until it's completely cool being one, but there's been a few threads on this, a search of "board clean dishwasher" should bring them up.
 
Well since the majority of the boards I get the dip switches are broken they get replaced anyways.

After wash they go in the oven for 45 mins at 175.

The other thing you don't see is the DI water. All the water is de-ionized.
 
Do you mean that the dishwasher is plumbed to a deionized water source (from a softener, etc)?

-Jim

Yeah it's valved right now so I can switch between tap, and DI. Until next month when I get a new washer. Then the old will be moved to the garage and plumbed permanent.
 
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