corroded contacts???

[ding]

I bought a GPultec pcb and some of the contacts look funky. I am not sure if I can clean it with alcohol and use it as is. Does anyone have any ideas?

Thanks,
Alain

 

[mjrippe]

Ultra-fine ScotchBrite pads should clear that up.

 

[ding]

So unless its showing green pcb it should be fine? Should I clean just the contacts or the whole board?

Thanks.

 

[JohnRoberts]

clean and tin just the pads.

JR

 

[ding]

I have tinned cables but I am not sure how to tin pads. Any pointers?

 

[fpliuzzi]

Hello,
Besides the green Scotch-Brite pads already mentioned (they work well), if you just want to brighten the individual solder pads on your pcb you can use the type of white eraser that's normally used for erasing ink from paper. If you can find the type of eraser shown below they're good for doing pinpoint tarnish removal. After the pad is shiny again you can add a bit of liquid flux to the pad and a bit of solder to pre-tin the pad. The shinier the pad is, the easier it will be to tin.

Regards,
Frank

Alternately, a Fiberglass Pen can be used to safely remove the tarnish on the pads, but these may not be as readily available.

 

[Andy Peters]

I bought a GPultec pcb and some of the contacts look funky. I am not sure if I can clean it with alcohol and use it as is. Does anyone have any ideas?

When you assemble the boards, the flux will clean that up.

-a

 

[gyraf]

If I come across pcb's looking like that (it's the chemical silver in the coating that has sulphur'ized), I simply clean them with a pencil eraser

Jakob E.

 

[JohnRoberts]

It depends on how long they will sit again... If you plan to use them soon, just scrub and use. If you plan to sit them back on the shelf for some time, there may be merit to applying a thin layer of solder.

JR

 

[ding]

pencil eraser worked like magic. I'm gonna have to wipe it down with alcohol when I'm done to clean up all my finger grease. ;D