How to clean the Teensy 3.2

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CloudZero

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Hello,

I have gotten a lot of dust and particles on theTeensy 3.2 because the PCB which it was soldered onto was trimmed down. I know it is generally safe, but I wanted to ask anyways whether it is safe to use normal Isopropyl Alcohol (91%) to clean the Teensy? I was planning on just pouring the alcohol over the teensy and lightly running a toothbrush over it. Or Should I just dip the toothbrush in the alcohol and clean the teensy with the wet toothbrush?

Was planning on using this: http://www.walgreens.com/store/c/walgreens-isopropyl-alcohol-91/ID=prod6056571-product

-Thank You
 
Isopropyl is the traditional choice for jobs like this, and will do the job, though if this is just dust you may find straight distilled/deminerilised water will do the same job of washing it away. Regardless of what you use aim is to avoid anything that won't evaporate off or will dissolve some critical part. And always give it plenty of time to dry afterwards since surface tension will keep pockets trapped around the IC legs you want gone. Chemistry says both pure water and isoproyl are insulators when applied, but remember any thing you put on the board is now contaminated, so may become conductive until it's fully dried off. Toothbrush is a reasonable choice though suspect there is some potential for ESD so the proper tool would be a conductive brush, unsure if working wet makes a difference to ESD build up or not.

If you have access to it a ultrasonic cleaner would be the proper hammer for the job, just don't set fire to the isoproyl if you use one!
 
I suggest you use plain, clean water (and a toothbrush). After cleaning, blot the water off with a paper towel as much as you can, and then keep the Teensy warm for 30-60 mins to completely dry it -- you can turn on a stove for 5-10 mins (until it gets too warm to keep your hand inside); then TURN IT OFF, and put the Teensy inside for an hour. in fact temperatures up to over 100 C won't damage it.
 
Anyway ... back to the OP ...Dipping your toothbrush in alcohol and then brushing your teeth is a good idea. it works for me.

If you want to get rid of all the pesky chips and things on the top of your teensy, I suggest hydrochloric acid. That will clean the whole thing up nicely.
 
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