How to Solder

Taking an electronic device to a service center can be very expensive, sometimes costing as much as purchasing a new device. If an electronic component ever goes bad, knowing how to solder will allow you to make the repair quickly and save money.

Instructions

Difficulty: Moderate

Things You’ll Need:

• Steel wool
• Solder wire
• Electrical component
• Electrical board
• Electrical cleaning solvent
• Lacquer
• Solder gun

1. Heat the solder gun by plugging the it into an electrical outlet in your home, garage or wherever you may be. Keep the tip of the solder gun away from wood, plastic or anything else flammable to avoid starting a fire. You can purchase soldering supplies at your local hardware store or online at Solder-It (see Resources below).
2. Prepare the surface for soldering. In order to obtain a good, low-resistance solder, you will need to clean the surface you will solder and the leads of the component you will be attaching. Use an electrical cleaning solvent and some steel wool to clean both surfaces thoroughly.
3. Place the component on the electrical board. Bend the component leads so they will fit through the holes in the electrical board. You will most likely have to bend the component leads at a 45-degree angle for the leads to fit through the electrical board's holes.
4. Heat the electrical board where the component will be soldered. Apply a small amount of solder to the tip of the solder gun, then place the tip of the solder gun against the electrical board and the component lead where you will be soldering. It will take a few seconds for the component and board to get hot enough to apply the solder.
5. Apply solder to the component lead and electrical board. Touch the solder strand to the component lead and board and allow the solder to flow freely until the surface of the board around the component is completely covered. Do not allow the solder wire to touch the tip of the solder gun while soldering.
6. Remove the heat. When the solder has been applied, you can stop adding solder and then remove the solder gun from the component and electrical board.
7. Clean the area. Use electrical solvent and steel wool to clean the component area when you are finished to remove leftover resin. Clean the bottom of the board as well, then apply lacquer to keep the bottom of the board shiny.

Tips & Warnings

• Keep the iron tip of the solder gun clean to ensure the solder gun will work every time.
• Double check your solder to make sure the solder joint was made correctly. If not, the electrical device will not work correctly.
• Don’t solder larger components before smaller components. You will need to apply heat longer to apply heat longer to the larger components, which could compromise your smaller component solders.
• Avoid cold solder joints. Cold solder joints are caused by moving the component before the solder has been allowed to cool completely and are easily noticed by the dull grey color of the solder joint. Cold solder joints will cause your device to not work because the electrical flow will be broken. If you have a cold solder joint, remove the solder by heating it up and flicking it off with the solder gun tip, then reapply the solder.

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