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recycling waste paste

#2916

recycling waste paste | 25 September, 2000

Back in October a post went up re: the fact that a solder manufacturer quit recycling paste, and the responses then weren't encouraging, so I'm gonna stir it up again.

I haven't figured out what we're going to do with ours yet and it's piling up. NO ONE seems to know what to do. The manufacturer buys our dross but won't take paste because it's hazmat. Why it's hazmat and dross isn't is beyond me, but here're my questions:

Any creative methods (within reason) for disposing of this stuff? You guys know anyone happy to take it off your hands? We're talking to someone else that might buy our dross and take the paste off our hands too, but I don't really want to change the status of our dross recycling because we're happy with the way it's working. Might have to bite the bullet, though.

Steve

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#2917

Re: recycling waste paste | 25 September, 2000

Hello Steve We use Alpha/Fry metal reclamation. They are happy to take the paste as long as is kept segregated. They pay if it's over 300 pounds. California contact: Patricia Mealey 949/364-6741

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#2918

Re: recycling waste paste | 25 September, 2000

I'd heard that Alpha did paste reclamation but just assumed they only offered the service for customers using their paste. Hmmmm, it's worth a call, anyway. Thanks for the contact.

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#2919

Re: recycling waste paste | 25 September, 2000

Steve: How bout loading the old paste into syringes and have your hand solderers use it?

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#2920

Re: recycling waste paste | 25 September, 2000

Steve: How bout putting it on pie plate, running it through your reflow oven, and then adding it to your wave solder pot?

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#2921

Re: recycling waste paste | 27 September, 2000

That sounds like a nightmare, but creative, definately. I do know I don't want to chisel all 4 pails into chunks small enough for a syringe, though.

Actually I found someone that will take it if we sell them our dross. Problem solved. Our bar vendor just won't get our dross.

Hmmmmmmmm...I wonder if our bar price will go up?

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#2922

Re: recycling waste paste | 27 September, 2000

So, what are you doing to your paste that would make you have to chisel it into small chunks? Our paste is soft and pasty ... perfect for smooshing into syringes. hmmmm

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#2923

Re: recycling waste paste | 28 September, 2000

Well the majority of it has been sitting in pails for months, since our supplier quit handling it for us. It's pretty solvent free, at least on top.

Do you really do that? It just sounds like another process control headache. Doesn't the oxidation give you grief? Does that old stuff really solder up OK? Doesn't that pan of reflowed waste paste come out of the oven smoking like a tire fire?

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#2924

Re: recycling waste paste | 28 September, 2000

We dump the paste in with the dross in a 55 gallon drum. It's all hazardus waste the only difference is paste has flux and dross is who knows what. We use waste recycler. I don't know if we get as much money back as you would from the manufacturer but that's not a big concern for us.

James

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