removing (silicone) gel?

[William R. Watt]

is there something which will clean the clear gel off a circuit board?
pretty sure its silicone di-electric grease. it's kind of rubbery.

thanks.


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[William R. Watt]

William R. Watt (ag384@FreeNet.Carleton.CA) writes:

is there something which will clean the clear gel off a circuit board?
pretty sure its silicone di-electric grease. it's kind of rubbery.

thanks.

I guess not. I got one response by email suggesting acetone (aka nail
polish remover) and cautioned not to let it get on the board.

For what it's worth I was able to remove most of the gel with a set of
woodcarving knives which look like pens with small removable blades. the
blades are thin, sharp, and tiny so the can get in between the components
mounted on the ciruit board. I also used a wooden toothpick which was
better in some spots. The gooey gel sticks to the rough surface of the
toothpick while the toothpic doesn't leave any of itself behind to
contaminate the board. The toothpick was especially good for getting under
soldered wires.


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[tweak]

On 29 Jan 2004 14:04:42 GMT, ag384@FreeNet.Carleton.CA (William R.
Watt) wrote:

William R. Watt (ag384@FreeNet.Carleton.CA) writes:
is there something which will clean the clear gel off a circuit board?
pretty sure its silicone di-electric grease. it's kind of rubbery.

thanks.

I guess not. I got one response by email suggesting acetone (aka nail
polish remover) and cautioned not to let it get on the board.

For what it's worth I was able to remove most of the gel with a set of
woodcarving knives which look like pens with small removable blades. the
blades are thin, sharp, and tiny so the can get in between the components
mounted on the ciruit board. I also used a wooden toothpick which was
better in some spots. The gooey gel sticks to the rough surface of the
toothpick while the toothpic doesn't leave any of itself behind to
contaminate the board. The toothpick was especially good for getting under
soldered wires.

There used to be a solution call Board washer. Cam in an aerosol that
you'd just spray the board with. Was a super solvent that wouldn't
hurt capacitors and such.
I believe the main ingredient was petroleum ether.
They pretty much regulated the sale of it to consumers out during the
late 70's.
CRC makes some of the contact cleaners that might do the trick, just
check the label for warnings.