The sponge in a solder station has an important role in keeping the tip of the solder iron clean. A normal practice is to run the tip through the damp sponge every time you pick the solder iron up. Over time, the sponge collects small amounts of solder and flux. It will also start to break up from all the times it has dried up and was re-soaked.
A replacement sponge isn’t expensive, but often they come in a quantity that I won’t use in my lifetime. So I sought an alternative and used something that I already had around the house.
A replacement sponge isn’t expensive, but often they come in a quantity that I won’t use in my lifetime. So I sought an alternative and used something that I already had around the house.
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Some years in the past, I was given some sponges that were basically a business card. One side resembled a business card, the other side was blank. These sponges were compressed and dry and very thin until you soaked them; just like the solder station sponges you would buy. This material is called a Compressed Cellulose Sponge and is availbe in bulk also. They weren’t the right size so I needed to trim them.
To trim and prepare the sponges, I used a wooden straight edge from a home improvement store that I had lying around, and a utility razor knife. A metal straight edge would be better but I didn’t have one that would work well for this. Something to draw markings would be handy but not required.
To trim and prepare the sponges, I used a wooden straight edge from a home improvement store that I had lying around, and a utility razor knife. A metal straight edge would be better but I didn’t have one that would work well for this. Something to draw markings would be handy but not required.
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