On 25/04/2017 08:51, jim stephens via cctalk wrote:
On 4/25/2017 12:45 AM, ben via cctech wrote:
I would go for distilled water, tap water could have chlorine it it.
Not enough to do any harm if you dry it sensibly; besides, it's more likely to be choramines these days, not chlorine as such. I'd be more concerned about calcium and magnesium salts if you live in a particularly hard-water area, but, again, just dry it sensibly. I've done several backplanes with tap water, just blowing the excess water out with compressed air (but preferably from an oil-free compressor tank).
I'd start with a vacuum cleaner assisted by a small paintbrush, then wash in water with a little mild detergent. Tap water if you live in a soft-water area, otherwise cheap distilled or deionised water, or from a dehumidifier. Finally, blow dry.
Good point. Also with care, I've seen distilled water, then alcohol rinse (not rubbing, but pure of some sort), then air dry. This is used on optics to get rid of water spotting. The alcohol will flush out water that you could normally only wait out for evaporation, and rapidly evaporates itself w/o residue
"Little residue" would be more accurate, and some of that residue will be water (look up "azeotrope") - plus you need a lot of alcohol for something the size of a PDP-8 backplane. Blow dry, even after an alcohol rinse.
-- Pete Pete Turnbull
