resoldering circuit boards

Mar 25, 2009 2 Replies

About a year ago my '92 960 started a wierd deal. It would die while driving but then restart after 10 or 20 attempts, then run fine. This would happen infrequently, maybe once a month or sometimes several times a day.



I couldn't find anything wrong. No codes and of course it never acted up while I was working on it. After getting advice from this group I resoldered the circuit board in the fuel pump relay. The car ran fine for about a month, then started the same thing again.



After a few months it got worse. It would die almost every time I drove it, usually 2 or 3 times in a row, then run fine.



I took the fuel pump relay apart again and found cracks in the soldered connections that I had previously resoldered. The first time I did it I didn't add any solder to the connections, just melted the solder. I guess that was a mistake. The solder connections were paper-thin and recracked. This time I added a drop of solder to each connection. So far, so good.



So, if you resolder a circuit board, add a little solder to each connection. Of course, don't use acid-core solder and be sure to get the connections hot enough for the solder to flow freely but not hot enough to burn the circuit board.



Steve Elms


That is a common problem and a solution. Do not be shy on solder. The relay armature carries current and its mounting pins often fail. When I do this I also clean the contact lightly with fine grit abrasive paper. You can glue two pieces of abrasive back to back and cut a stiff sliver which will work like a small file.

Regards,

Boris Mohar

Got Knock? - see: Viatrack Printed Circuit Designs (among other things)

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void _-void-_ in the obvious place

Yes, you should always add a bit of solder, the flux cleans things up and allows the solder to flow. If the old stuff is really crusty, remove it with some desoldering braid or a sucker and flow new stuff.

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