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Changed my mind about using canned air on everything after talking to a repair tech at a convention
I was at the Midwest Electronics Expo in Chicago last month and got chatting with a tech who works on vintage arcade boards. I mentioned how I go through a can of air a week just blasting dust out of consoles and laptops. He just shook his head and said, 'You're just moving the problem around and pushing moisture in. For anything with old flux or sticky dust, you need a brush and 99% IPA, every time.' That hit different because I'd just had a PS4 come back with a weird corrosion issue on the HDMI port a week prior, and I realized I probably blew a bunch of crap right into it. Now I keep a soft bristle brush and a bottle of alcohol on my bench instead of reaching for the air first. Anyone else make that switch and notice fewer comeback jobs?
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victorcoleman2mo agoMost Upvoted
Switched to the MG Chemicals stuff after having the same streaking problem. It dries super clean on circuit boards, no residue at all. That cheap hardware store alcohol just made a bigger mess for me.
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Man, that brush and IPA trick really is a game changer. Have you noticed it makes a difference on the hard-to-reach spots like under those tiny SMD resistors or is it more of a pain in the ass?
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