Advice on cleaning A4000 motherboard.

[RMK305]

I had the A4000 open while installing a SCSI hard drive and had a look at the capacitors. The mother board around the audio ones looks a little "greasy". I'd like to clean it up so I can get a good look to confirm if one of them is leaking but not sure the best way to go around this without damagine the mother board. Can I use a q-tip (cotton bud) with some white spirits?

I really just want to get this machine working fully and setup so I can try out WHDload and start installing the hundreds of programs I have for it and start using it again properly.

I have photos of the area but have nowhere to host them...if someone could help.

Many thanks,

Robert

[Tripitaka]

Can't help with the hosting but I've always favoured Isopropyl Alcohol as a cleaning agent. It's sold by many companies including perfect data (from whom I purchased my bottle).  :-) It's the same stuff that a lot of floppy drive cleaning disks use, also sold as Hi-Fi cleaning fluid etc.

Your local pharmacist may be able to sell you some too, but they'll probably ask you what you need it for.

[da9000]

I've got some related links posted under here:

http://www.amiga.org/gallery/index.php?n=2354

Synopsis:

Use vinegar to neutralize some of the crap that's leaked. Use Isopropyl to rinse and clean. If you want to be thorough you could wash the motherboard and air-dry it.

Also, I'd recommend changing those capacitors, because they're obviously dead (or close to it) if they've leaked. Plenty of links around on how, etc.

Lastly, if you're coming to AmiWest, let me know, I can help. In fact I should post this up.

EDIT:
OK, here's the post:
http://www.amiga.org/forums/showthread.php?t=38302

[ZeBeeDee]

You can host photo's for free on www.photobucket.com

[RMK305]

Thanks for the advice. I was planing to do it without removing the mother board from the case so rinsing it off would not be an option I dont think. Would the vinegar have to be thoroughly removed with the alchohol? ie, would any remainder cause problems and how long to let it dry out after cleaning?

Is it possible to replace the audio caps with it still in the case or does it have to be dissassembled?

[Dr_Righteous]

Vinegar is used to neutralize the acidity of the electrolyte that has leaked out. Alcohol is the actual cleaning agent, since it evaporates readily. I'd leave it to dry a day after if it were me, but a couple of hours should be sufficient.

!!DO NOT use mineral spirits or acetone or any other chemical likely to eat through the enamel coating of the motherboard!! Use isopropyl alcohol or if you have access to it freon based tuner cleaner (without silicone).

I suggest using a soft bristled brush instead of a q-tip, as you'll end up with little wads of cotton sticking to the surrounding components.

Either way, I suggest removing the motherboard to clean it and/or replace the capacitors.

[da9000]

What Dr_Righetous said.

And, yes, generally you don't need to wait too long for the dry up if you don't completely soak it. A few minutes will do. An hour or two if you want to be certain. I've had the case of having some liquid UNDER the SMD chips and the way I figured it out is by listening carefully for shorting sounds or smell. After I noticed one of those, I went and dried it better and was fine. I'd also remove the socketed chips since liquid can stay there and not dry up (that's what happened to me - I think it was SuperBuster that was getting shorted). Another thing is to use a big fan to blast the board for an hour, or a hair drier without the heat turned on.

As for the caps, you can replace without removing the motherboard, but you'll need to remove all the cables and daughterboard etc., if you want to replace them all. Of course you have to be handy with the soldering iron for the tight spots, that's why the removal of the motherboard is easier (your hand won't be knocking against the back of the case, etc.)

Good luck!