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Possible to water wash no-clean solder paste boards?

Pyramus

#35495

Possible to water wash no-clean solder paste boards? | 14 July, 2005

Hi production encountered a problem today. There have been a mix-up of solder paste. We are currently running clean process in one side of board. Unfortunately when PD run the other side process they were able to used a wrong no-clean solder paste... Is it possible to clean these boards? If we do what would happen?

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Ivan R

#35497

Possible to water wash no-clean solder paste boards? | 14 July, 2005

Hi Pyramus you should`t have a major problem after you wash the board as my crew also run into this problem a few month ago ,, I wash them after but I suggestto run one first it depent who is the paste from I think.

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Ivan R

#35498

Possible to water wash no-clean solder paste boards? | 14 July, 2005

Hi Pyramus you should`t have a major problem after you wash the board as my crew also run into this problem a few month ago ,, I wash them after but I suggestto run one first it depent who is the paste from I think.

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#35499

Possible to water wash no-clean solder paste boards? | 14 July, 2005

Solder paste used was Kester FL250M (no-clean).... components affected were only chip components 0603, no BGA & no IC components.

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sarag

#35511

Possible to water wash no-clean solder paste boards? | 14 July, 2005

Our facility helps customers clean no-clean soldered boards on a regular basis, and it definitely can be done but is a little more challenging than boards built with water soluble flux - one piece of advice I would give is to use low water pressure (DI water preferably), but high flood in your cleaning protocol. Also - you may want to use a saponifier - Envirosense Envirogold is very good, and Kyzen manufactures some good chemistries as well. If you would like to read some case studies on cleaning a no-clean board, here is a link to my company's list of articles and case studies: http://www.residues.com/resources.html

Sara Gorcos Foresite Inc. www.residues.com

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slthomas

#35524

Possible to water wash no-clean solder paste boards? | 14 July, 2005

We've only seen it done by accident, and the result was a lot of white flux residue.

You do need to make sure you get it all off, and to do so most likely means using a saponifier like sara suggested.

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sarag

#35534

Possible to water wash no-clean solder paste boards? | 14 July, 2005

Yes, if not done correctly, you will have a mess on your hands and probably do more harm than good. It can be done, though and has gotten much more common and easier to do. If you are ordering cleaning chemicals, your supplier can guide you through, or there is a lot of research and discussions out there that should point you in the right direction.

Sara Gorcos Foresite Inc. www.residues.com

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sarag

#35536

Possible to water wash no-clean solder paste boards? | 14 July, 2005

Here is a link to a specific article about cleaning no-clean assemblies: http://www.residues.com/pdfs/Clean_No_Clean.pdf

Our facility does a lot of contract cleaning and cleanliness testing for various companies around the world, and that study should give you a good base synopsis of what to do and what to expect when cleaning a no-clean assembly

Sara Gorcos Foresite Inc. www.residues.com

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#35553

Possible to water wash no-clean solder paste boards? | 15 July, 2005

Now is when you find out if you have a good sales rep for your solder. I've seen solder reps eventually get around to responding. And I've seen some that would be in the plant that day to help you out. I even know a couple who would give advice even if we were using competetors product. In any case phone up your rep and see what help you can get. AFAIK the solder market is both competitive and relatively high margin. So in other words when you buy paste you are also buying support, so use it.

Stephen

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#35585

Possible to water wash no-clean solder paste boards? | 16 July, 2005

Thanks Everybody!!!

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#35592

Possible to water wash no-clean solder paste boards? | 18 July, 2005

I have nothing to add technically but we have been washing no-clean for years. Use very clean filtered DI water to avoid the white residue issue and some good detergent or sopanifier and you will get great results.

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