Thread: Cleaning the Protective ECU coating

How do you remove this stuff when installing a daughterboard? If you leave it on there it goes gooey when heated up with the iron and gunks it up, and i've tried all the chemicals i have that won't melt through the board and i can't seem to clean it very well.

I've tried nail polish remover (acetone), PCB cleaner spray, wax and grease remover, white spirits.

Some of them went a small way, but mostly they did not manage to get it off.

I can install without removing the coating but i figured it would be best if it was removed. Any tips? or am i perhaps not being aggressive enough with my application of the products?

try IPA, Acetone or even acrylic paint thinner. Use a thick brush to apply and then rag dipped in the stuff to wipe it away

Thanks, i'll give the paint thinner a try on the next one.

What is "IPA" ?

Try spraying a bit of brake cleaner on a rag or sock then rub the area that you want to remove the coating from. That's what I've always used and it works like a charm. Good luck.

Just use a solder sucker and a nozzle with a bit of thermal mass. I don't bother to wipe the board at all, the sucker just sucks it up. If theres a big glob on the top side I just slowly vacuum it up.

Dont we all wish we had a soldering / desoldering station.

All of our boards at work are conformal coated and it is a pain some times. Make sure you clean it up before you solder. I can cause bad / cold solder joints. I usually have a little scraper tool that i use to clear the excess off with. If you get it before you heat it up it will come off in chunks.

out of here

Calum, how do you suck the solder from inside the header holes?

I tried with a WELLER desoldering station but the diameter of the tip was way larger than the header holes and did not do much!

An dwhat exactly is "thermal mass"?

TIA