Soldering

There are five soldering stations in the lab each composed of a soldering iron and soldering stand. Soldering is an art that some of you may have already experienced. In preparation for making a solder joint, plug in the soldering iron and allow approximately 3 minutes for heating. Wet the the sponge located in the soldering stand with water. Touch some solder to the tip of the iron letting a small amount drip on the tip. Then swipe the tip of the iron on the wet sponge. This process is called tinning and helps the transfer of heat from the iron tip. To make a solder joint, heat the contact point by touching the connection with the tip of the iron while touching the solder to the other side of the contact point. It is important that the solder melts on the joint itself due to the heated joint, not from contact with the tip of the iron. There are several important facts to keep in mind when soldering:

1. Some circuit elements can only tolerate the heat produced by the soldering iron for short periods of time. It is good practice to minimize the amount of time the soldering iron is in contact with the connection.
2. Tinning the tip of the iron helps heat transfer. If you have trouble heating the connection to be soldered, consider tinning the iron. Make sure you have a wet sponge.
3. Do not breathe the smoke produced from the solder. Solder is approximately 1/2 tin and 1/2 lead.
4. When you are finished soldering, unplug the iron.