Re: Smell of burned capacitors...

gb wrote:
"TimPerry" <timperry@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote in message news:hN2dnb0j1uDZECnenZ2dnUVZ_tGdnZ2d@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"mc" <look@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote in message
news:10Zsf.20603$Lb1.10693@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

I have a function generator that burned up a tantalum capacitor (which
shorted) and a 2-watt resistor.  Fixing it electrically was no problem,


but

there is a scorched place on the circuit board and a terrible smell.

Today I made some progress against the smell.  I had been airing the
generator out, covers off, in my attic (which is not hot at this time of
year), for about 3 days with little progress.  Today I figured out that


the

bulk of the smell was actually in a large calibration-instructions chart
that was glued to the inside of the case. I Xeroxed it and peeled off and
discarded the original; much better. I've also given the whole circuit
board a spraying with contact cleaner and then with isopropyl alcohol.

Any other ideas? The smell was so strong that even with all the covers on
the function generator, it was quite noticeable throughout the workshop.



simple green or other mild detergent applied with toothbrush or paintbrush.
rinse with clean water. air dry or gently apply heat gun or hair dryer.


Tim has the right idea. The Collins radio restorers swear by Simple Green for cleaning and restoration work.

I am cleaning a receiver (previous 25 year owner was a smoker). After doing all of your steps with contact cleaner, Windex, isopropyl alcohol and distilled water in key areas .. it still had a slight odor.

So, I tried Simple Green with cotton swabs and Q-tips. Brought up brown in areas that I had previously cleaned. Simple Green also has a slight pleasant odor. It's better -- but will take quite a bit of Q-tips and cleaning still !

I am on an aircraft listserv. The subject of Simple Green for cleaning airframes came up recently. Apparently, both the FAA and US Military have banned it for being corrosive to aluminum. The SG folks have released a new aviation formula specifically for the purpose.

Might be worth keeping in mind....

jak
gb 


.

Relevant Pages

  • Re: Arcade Cabinet smells like the bar it came out of
    ... As well as all the above suggestions (complete dis-assembly, cleaning, ... crud can hide in amounts sufficient to produce the dreaded "bar smell". ... interior of the cab, any air vents, the monitor chassis (be careful not ... Clean the bottom of the cab, ...
    (rec.games.video.arcade.collecting)
  • Re: Anti-smoking nutjobs go overboard.
    ... a quick cleaning of the room and a room deoderizer ... > Smoking releases cancer-causing particles into the atmosphere which go ... it only masks the smell. ...
    (rec.motorcycles)
  • Re: Looking a house .... with strong smoke odor
    ... log home that fits our needs almost perfectly with the one exception of a ... fairly strong smoking smell. ... be accompanied by a complete list of "cleaning", ... the odor removal problem as a method of negotiating down the price, ...
    (alt.home.repair)
  • Re: Anti-smoking nutjobs go overboard.
    ... a quick cleaning of the room and a room deoderizer ... Smoking releases cancer-causing particles into the atmosphere which go ... it only masks the smell. ...
    (rec.motorcycles)
  • Re: Tech: Track & Field needs your help (UPDATE)
    ... Still not much progress, so I thought I'd post here again in the hopes ... Have you tried cleaning the edge connector really well? ... that was having similar issues but a good cleaning of both the solder ...
    (rec.games.video.arcade.collecting)