soldering ranker

Why soldering.

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Advantages of soldering

There exists a variety of options for bonding items such as adhesive bonding, brazing, wielding and soldering. Each has its own up and downsides. Soldering has various advantages as compared to the alternative methods. Some of the upsides to soldering include:

Electrical conductivity

Soldering uses solder which is made of two or more metals. This implies that even after drying, solder conducts electricity thus making the method suitable for bonding electrical items. Adhesive bonding however, as one of the options is limited in that most of the commonly-used adhesives act as insulators.

Neatness and precision

Soldering is the most effective bonding method when it comes to operations in small workspaces. The sharp soldering iron tips are able to precisely apply solder in very small quantities and surface areas unlike any of the available alternatives. This makes it the best, probably the only viable option when it comes to joining parts on circuit boards.

Lower heat requirement

Since solder melts at a relatively low temperature, the heat needed to bond items through soldering is way lower than that required in methods such as brazing or wielding. This implies that on a large scale, soldering could result in significant energy savings. The low heat also significantly reduces the health hazards associated with high temperatures.

Easy and cheap

Besides adhesive bonding, soldering is the easiest bonding method to learn and to start with. Brazing and wielding all require some level of skill and probably apprenticeship. Soldering can however be learnt comfortably over secondary sources of information such as the internet and printed material. The availability and relatively low price of soldering tools also make it among the cheapest bonding alternatives available. 

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Alternatives to soldering

Soldering is a means of bonding two items together using solder and tools such as soldering irons, soldering torches and soldering guns. However, there are alternatives to joining items other than soldering. These include:

Brazing

Brazing is similar to soldering except for the fact that the metal filler used has liquidus of more than 450 degrees Celsius. Soldering on the other hand uses solder that has liquidus of below 450 degrees Celsius. Brazing basically involves filling a joint between metals with molten metal filler where it then cools and binds the metals together. Like in soldering, the metal alloy used as filler is designed to have a lower melting point as compared to that of the metal it bonds.

Welding

Welding, unlike soldering and brazing causes the metal in the base joint to melt and then adds liquefied metal to create a pool that then cools and bonds metals. The basic process by which welding bonds two or more sheets of metal is known as fusion. Some common welding techniques include gas metal arc welding, flux core arc welding, electro-slag welding and submerged arc welding.

Adhesive bonding

Adhesive bonding is also called gluing and involves applying layers of an adhesive between two items to be bound together. The type of adhesive used varies greatly depending on the purpose, material of substrates, and pricing. The adhesive could be inorganic or organic. The basic procedure for bonding items through this method includes various straightforward steps. First, the surfaces to be bound are cleaned to ensure efficiency of the adhesive. The adhesive is then applied to one or both layers and maybe allowed to rest for a short while. The surfaces are then put together with the glued sides facing each other. Depending on the type of adhesive, small amounts of heat may be necessary to complete the procedure. However, pressure is often sufficient to firmly bond the layers.

in large scale and huge-sized items in a commercial setting. Options such as wielding and brazing are more viable within the commercial setting. 

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Disadvantages of soldering

When it comes to bonding items together, one may choose among a variety of options such as adhesive bonding, brazing, wielding and soldering. Each has its own up and downsides. What then, are the disadvantages of using soldering as compared to other alternative binding options?

Lead poisoning hazards

This is a significant health hazard present in the use of solder. When lead is heated, it turns to lead oxide and through naturally occurring can cause serious health problems. Other methods such as wielding and adhesive binding do not make use of lead and are therefore safer as compared to soldering. This disadvantage may however fade with time as regulators eliminate the use of lead-based solder to lead-free ones.

Resin and fume hazards

The elements contained in solder and flux coating in solder cause dangerous fumes once exposed to temperatures above a certain level. Resin for example turns to a wide range of toxic gases that have been known to cause respiratory problems especially if one is exposed consistently to the fumes for a significant period of time.

Limited strength

As compared to methods such as wielding and brazing, soldered joint are probably the joint weakest with those of adhesive bonding. This is evident in plumbing joints that are soldered and require carrying much weight. Soldering can therefore not be used to join heavy items together or those that require high tensile strength.

Limited scope

Soldering is often used to join items of small sizes and on a small scale. This implies that the method may not be applicable in large scale and huge-sized items in a commercial setting. Options such as wielding and brazing are more viable within the commercial setting.