Home Improvement Stack Exchange
Home Improvement Stack Exchange

Questions tagged [soldering]

For questions about soldering both electrical and plumbing joints.

Soldering is the process of joining two or more bits of metal together, by melting a filler material over/into the joint, and then allowing it to cool. Soldering is used to make both electrical and plumbing joints.

Electrical

In electronics and electrical work, soldering is used to join two pieces of metal, often to insure electrical conductivity. This process is accomplished by heating solder with a soldering iron, allowing the molten solder to flow over the joint, and then allowing the solder to cool and harden.

Plumbing

In plumbing, soldering is used to create a leak free joint between two fittings. The joint is heated using a torch. Once hot, solder is melted into the joint where it cools, hardens, and creates a solid leak free joint.

Soldering VS. Welding VS. Brazing

Soldering is different from welding, because the materials being joined to not melt. It is closely related to brazing, though brazing uses a different filler material that melts at a higher temperature.

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What is your advice on repairing this PCB trace?

This is a PCB from an induction cooktop. It runs on 400v. This trace blew because the wiring was crossed during installation of the stove. Compared to the exacto knife, the area is quite tiny. How would you rebuild this trace; with what sort of…
Ryan Imported
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Should I use a wire or soft sponge to clean a solder tip?

I will be buying something to clean my soldering tip. I think my choices are either bronze looking metal wire sponges or yellow soft sponges. Which one is the right tool to clean soldering iron tips? Which one should be used when? Currently I'm…
Phil
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Heat transfer to adjacent solder joints behind wall

I need to remove a soldered valve from a supply line and there is a soldered elbow only about 2 inches away. I've read another post about trying to keep the second joint cool but it sounded less than convincing. It's the first branch in the house so…
grumpyoldman
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How can I solder/braze thin stainless steel wire?

I've been attempting to practice torch brazing/soldering and am currently attempting to join a ring of stainless steel wire shut like a wrist sized 'o'. Unfortunately the results have been pretty bad. The silver solder I'm using just does not want…
NULLZ
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How to repair leaking stainless steel electric kettle

My electric kettle (Brewista BKV12S02-CEV, if you're interested) fell on its nose (?), and now leaks water (one drop at a time) at the point where the swan neck touches the body of the kettle. The kettle is made of stainless steel. Food-safety is…
mkl
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Is it safe to solder near Teflon tape

I have a threaded cast iron flange that I'm going to use a brass nipple join a copper connector. I'll be using Teflon tape for the NPT connections, and my instinct is to solder the threaded copper adapter to the copper pipe before I "snug and grunt"…
QueueHammer
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How much power do I need to soft solder small piping?

I'm thinking about a few hobby projects and the tools I might need for them. Specifically I'm thinking about getting a butane soldering torch that can also be equipped with tips for electronics works. The Seller gives the power as 130 W, max. temp…
mart
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Soldering or welding stainless steel objects together

I'm working on a diy project which requires a tiny L bracket attached to a tinbox. I have tried several adhesive techniques such as super glue and metal epoxy but the smooth surface of the tin box does not permit proper adhesion. I'm thinking of…
Ler Ws
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Can I use flux from the lead era with non-lead solder?

I rarely sweat copper pipe but did so recently. I bought lead free solder because the solder I had on hand (from long ago) had lead. The flux I found on the web said "lead free". That leads me to ask, Is it ok to use my old flux from lead solder…
Yehuda_NYC
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How do I re-wire this board to swap the button functions?

TL;DR - How do I re-wire this board to swap the button functions? The whole story: This is a bit of an odd question, and if there's a better forum (or even a more appropriate website) please let me know. So, I work in an office that has a projector…
Addison Scott
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How can I remove the cylinder from a Bernzomatic QuickFire propane torch?

This torch was discontinued by the manufacturer and the division that made it is no longer a part of the company, so current tech support has no knowledge of it. It takes a proprietary propane cylinder about the size of a coffee mug, which twists up…
mr blint
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Will soldering a cast brass finial to 38mm brass handrail tube discolor either metal?

I am looking at soldering a cast brass finial to 38 mm brass handrail tube because the fit is too loose for using grubs-crews. Can anyone tell me if a decorators-style propane torch be hot enough for this, and will the heat discolor the metal…
nonmember
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