My Top Ten Most Useful Breadboard Tips and Tricks

Step 2 Power and Ground Buses

There are times where it would be useful to dedicate some of the power and ground rails to different voltages. For me, this occasion has yet to arise. I decided to connect them permanently to reduce some of the clutter.

All you have to do is unscrew the breadboard from the backing, if it has one. Then cut away a strip of the foam backing with an Exacto knife. Next, solder the power and ground buses with some fine wire. Then cover with tape and screw it back onto the backboard.

Comments

[coleyy]

push the foam back in and tape or glue it

[Arduino Guy]

i dont think that tape alone will hold the small clips in the breadboard. shouldn't there  be more stuff to hold the clips? because there will be a drop because the foam is taken away and it probably it will be hard to insert wires.

[klee27x]

I dunno. I have used this type of breadboard without any backing at all, and have never inadvertently pushed out a clip.

I've intentionally removed clips, before. So I can tell you they are wedged in there pretty tight. You CAN push them out from the front, using a needle vice. But I bet you can't pop one out with a jumper wire (or a needle) using just your bare hands - meaning no pliers or thimble!

(If you ever really want to remove one, it's a lot easier to pry them out from the back using a small jeweler's screwdriver. :))

[geeklord]

sheesh, i wihs my soldering was that nice...

[klee27x]

Actually, anyone should be able to solder this well. My equipment is cheap and my technique is lazy. I use a crutch. I use zinc chloride flux wherever I can get away with it. This is regular old plumber's flux... acid-core stuff that's traditionally a no-no for electrical work. It produces weak hydrochloric acid when heated. This means it is corrosive to ferrous metals, but it's fine for copper and solder.

Using this strong flux, I can get away with bad soldering techniques, like picking up a blob of solder and transferring it to the fluxed joint. And things that would normally take 4 hands can be done with just 3.

The main thing to watch out for is that it's conductive when wet. If you use too much and leave excess residue on your circuit, it will cause problems if it gets wet (and it's somewhat hygroscopic to make matters worse). Luckily, it's water soluble, so it's usually pretty easy to wash off when you overdo it. But you have to take care not to get too much of it underneath smd parts, or it might be impossible to get to.

I use a small syringe or the tip of a broken Q tip to apply it sparingly. When working on ferrous metals, I wipe them with a damp cloth immediately afterwards.

[geeklord]

ok, i don't even use flux. Does it help that much?

[klee27x]

In a word, "yes." In 2 words, "zomg, yes."

[Plasmana]

I use solder with an flux core, I am quite surprised that is it unsuitable for electronic work!

[klee27x]

There are different kinds of flux. Rosin flux is the most common one for electronics work. It leaves a sticky residue which is noncorrosive and nonconductive. But the active acid is abeitic acid, which is very weak. It works only on copper that's pretty clean to begin with and doesn't work at all on many other metals. There is a spectrum of available soldering fluxes for electrical work which have a combination of fluxes. The more aggressive ones have more "activated flux" vs rosin flux. Zinc chloride happens to be an one of the activated fluxes that is used in some electrical solder. They just don't add very much and combine it with other fluxes. So I guess that's what I'm doing. I use rosin-core flux and add a dot of zinc chloride where I know it'll help... which is practically everywhere.

[klee27x]

The other thing is that fluxes are quickly dried out when touched by your soldering iron. So by placing flux on the joint, not inside the solder itself, you gain the ability to bring a blob of solder to the joint with the tip of the iron. The dried out solder is instantly revitalized by the flux at the joint.

[geeklord]

Sweet, that would be handy.

[Plasmana]

Wow, it sounds like strong flux makes job easier... With the strong flux, is it possible to solder onto aluminum and/or iron? Also, where can I find strong flux?

[klee27x]

No to aluminum. Iron and steel are a yes. You can easily solder to battery cases, nails, screws, etc. You can also do weak structural soldering with a torch, although it is very weak compared to brazing. And remember to wash your joints promptly when using acid-core flux on ferrous metals. You can buy zinc chloride flux in a white hocky-puck looking container at home improvement stores next to the propane torches. If it dries out, add some water and stir it with a wooden stick. A supply of tooth picks or wooden Q tips is the best applicator. You do not want to smear it across an entire row of connections like other electrical fluxes. You want to just dot each pad/trace. A small plastic syringe is also handy - one with large tip so you can stick component leads right or small wires right into the end.

[Plasmana]

Okay, thank you for telling me all of this useful information! I will try find the flux for a easier life on soldering! :-)

Also, why solder don't stick to aluminum? ^{Is it because of its strong oxide layer?}

[przemek]

Yes, the trouble with soldering Aluminum is that it forms a continuous Al2O3 layer, which reforms very quickly in air so you can't just scratch it off and solder. Here's a nice trick to defeat it though: put a drop of light oil (motor oil, sewing machine lubricating oil) and scratch the surface 'underwater' with a dental pick or scalpel. When it is nicely worked up, bring in a healthy blob of molten solder straight from a hot soldering iron tip, and rub it in vigorously under the oil puddle.

[Plasmana]

Hmm, I might give that a go...

[klee27x]

No, it's because solder doesn't stick to aluminum, oxidized or not. You're welcome. Just don't complain to me if you use it to solder a bunch of 0603 1Mohm smd resistors and it screws up your circuit. Use some common sense where you apply it. DIP stuff and low impedance smd stuff, only. :P

[przemek]

> No, it's because solder doesn't stick to aluminum, oxidized or not. Well, me and Mother Nature disagree :) Drop by my pad and I'll show you my aluminum solder joints, done by the under-oil technique. For instance I soldered a light switch to a bendable aluminum low voltage lighting track, so that the switch is integrated with the fixture.

[ste5442]

Yes, I've used conductive flux by accident in the past - you end up with a 1Mohm/sq inch conductive blanket over everything!
Nothing a bit of IPA can't remove though ;-)

PCB Police Electronics Forum - Try our competition!