Can you fry your components?

[GeorgeFormanGrill]

This is an extremely dumb question, but something I've always wondered about as I've stumbled through a couple builds. How easy is it (if at all) to "fry" a component when you're soldering your board? I imagine it's fairly easy with delicate things like op amps, but is that true? Can you mess up resistors, caps, pots by keeping them on an iron for too long? Any tips on how to avoid that, besides just getting quicker at soldering?

[jkokura]

I used to be concerned with this, but it really is a rare thing to have happen. Components like Resistors and Capacitors are relatively durable, and difficult to damage. They aren't really a worry. Diodes are similar, but can be damaged if they're made of glass. Most aren't, but the type we sometimes use in pedals can be.

Transistors and ICs can be damaged with too much heat, but it really does take a fairly large amount of heat to do so. If you're worried about it, you can use devices called Sockets. Sockets get soldered into the places that ICs and Transistors go, and then you can 'plug' the more delicate device into place, and also allows you to 'swap' another version in, so you can test the sound of other devices in place.

As you get better at soldering, you won't need to use a socket, but you will anyway if only because pulling them out with desoldering is such a pain.

Jacob

[davent]

Stompswitchs have been known to give people problems. i think most people proceed with caution with Ge transistors,  you could socket them, heat sink while soldering, take a break between soldering leads, real quick in and out as you gain experience and skills improve.
dave

[mjg]

I have to admit, I did get a laugh when I saw someone called George Forman Grill asking about frying components. 

But yes, what the others have said.  I tend to socket transistors and ICs, and don't stress about anything else. 

[madbean]

As long as you are using proper soldering technique you should not be frying up any through-hole stuff. And by that, I mean stick to 1-2 sec preheat of lead and pad together followed by 1-2 sec of solder flow. If you run into a difficult solder joint, simply back the iron off and wait a 5-10 seconds before re-working. In case you are ever soldering an IC directly to a PCB, or maybe a germanium transistor (IOW something expensive) just do one or two leads at a time, then work another part of the board, then come back.

Frying components in other ways, though, always possible! Just a few days ago I had smoke coming off a powered board due to my carelessness and put an IC in backwards on another one.

[jimilee]

I burned up a pot, it was glorious and then smelled terrible.

[Aentons]

You can also lift a pad off the board if youre not careful

[m-Kresol]

I had to desolder a pot off my PS4 controller the other day (the stick module had 14 pins, so only exchanging the pot was the easier way). I had to really heat the GND pad for quite a while to be able to get the pin out and remove the solder. I'm talking 20 seconds or so
this is obviously different, because it has a GND plane that will take the heat and distribute and not the component directly. Works like a charm again now.
TLDR: some pads, especially connected to the GND planes will take more/longer heat. In general though, try to be fast which will come with time. Personally, I never had a failed component so far.

[matmosphere]

Yeah, but they will probably taste best if you use olive oil



In all seriousness you will probably lift pads long before you fry any components. You do need to be careful with switches though, they can't take as much heat before the epoxy breaks down.

You can also burn any plastic on caps, transistors, switches, or whatever with the side of your iron. I do it all the time.

[PapaKev]

This is a great question. Glad you asked it. I've often wondered this myself.

[GeorgeFormanGrill]

Thanks for the thorough replies, everyone. Super insightful. I'll keep playing around with sockets and heat sinks (especially on switches) as I work on my soldering game. I'll leave frying to the grill.

[Zerro]

Very usefull is to use tweezers. To hold the pins for to drain heat away. But the most effective is avoid the need to solder for long time, by praparing the pins - clearing them from oxidated layer by softly scribbing over with some knife. It will help together with sufficient amount of rosin to get good contact without too long heating. Sometimes even helps to tin the pin before you put it to the PCB. You have more oportunity to hold properly pins with tweezers to drain the heat away. For this, learn how to work with rosin. Very usefull and important.

[GeorgeFormanGrill]

I haven't worked with rosin before -- do you have a link to what kind of rosin you're using?

[Zerro]

My links will not help you coz I am from eastern Europe :@)  But you can buy quality rosin for violin players in any shop for musicians. And maybe local shops from your country will help. Look for welding rosin. Though very cheap, very usefull and important thing.

My previous message about rosin as a treatment with PCB:

I always use rosin while soldering anything - it helps me to safe and reliable contacts. And, you can use it before population the desk too, and after it, as a protection layer.
Before: put some strong technical alcohol to smal glass (a few ml) and add rosin, to solve it there, to get laque density. Then use it as laquer at the desk. Let to dry several hours.
After: clear populated pcb desk with soft metall brush, then wash with technical alcohol and again add lacqueer layers with that solved rosin. Very usefull for future soldering too. Cheap and great!

[GeorgeFormanGrill]

Nice. Thanks for the tip! A few follow-up questions:

1. So, you lacquer the whole board before populating with components?

2. What ratio of water to rosin do you usually use to make the lacquer?

3. Do you apply any of the lacquer directly to the components or just to the board itself?