How to Solder Wires

Soldering is a basic skill that students are trained in college and at the undergraduate level to solder wires to a circuit board or to a metal. People who are electronic hobbyists and love spending time on electronic projects often require guidelines about, the apparently simple tips of soldering. Anybody who has ever done soldering might be aware of the fact that soldering though appears a simple process requires adequate techniques and good practice.

What is Soldering?
Soldering is a mechanical process in which two or more metals are joined by filling the gap between the metals by filler metals. Now, this definition of soldering is more apt for the industrial soldering processes where large chunks of iron pieces and other metals are to be joined. On a smaller scale, normally which is used in electronic laboratories, soldering is referred to the joining of wires to the printed circuit boards (PCB). Soldering is also done to join two wires together or to join a wire to a battery.

Necessary Tips for Soldering Wires
Two important points that must be taken care of, before you move on to solder wires are as follows

Choose Adequate Soldering Iron
While soldering components of a PCB or an electronic circuit, always ensure that the soldering iron has the wattage rating that suits your circuit board. In other words, "soldering guns", that are meant for soldering metals with very high melting point must not be used for the circuit boards. The amount of heat that you use during the soldering process determines how well your wires will be soldered. For better control, you can use temperature control soldering station that displays the temperature of the soldering iron and so, as per the need, you can use it. Generally, like we use in colleges, sockets are used to plug in the soldering iron.

Composition of Solder Type
The type of solder metals used, play a crucial role in the quality of soldering. Generally, the soldering wire that is used in our laboratories is a mixture of the Tin and Lead. Precise, Sn/Pb (Tin/Lead) concentration of 60/40 and 50/50 is commercially available. The 60/40 combination has a melting point of 371 degree Fahrenheit and the 50/50 concentration has a 425 degree Fahrenheit melting point. The most popular and notably used concentration is that of Sn/Pb with a melting point of 183 degree Celsius (361 degree in Fahrenheit). This melting point is the lowest known for any combination of Sn/Pb alloys.

Soldering Wires Together: Tips
To solder two wires together, you have to just touch the filler to the tip of the soldering iron and then solder at the required place. However, this method is usually not preferred as it melts the soldering material even before applying to the wires! The wires that are to be soldered, must be properly joined and twisted a bit to impart stability. You should first apply the filler, also called solder material to the wires and then solder them by the soldering iron. When you start soldering, the solder material will melt and you'll be able to see the wires joined. All this process takes some seconds and so you've to be careful that you don't overheat the joint. Also, the amount of solder material you apply on the joining place must be estimated correctly.

Soldering Wires to a Circuit Board
When soldering the wires to printed circuit boards, you've to ensure that overheating of the circuit boards is avoided, as this can spoil the entire circuit board and you may have to get a new one. So, before soldering wires on the circuit boards, it is better to mark all the areas where you need to solder wires with marker pens or pencil. Take adequate amount of solder material, put it on the corresponding place and then just slowly heat the soldering material to melt and let it harden for sometime. To ensure that your circuit board looks clean after you're done with the soldering part, put small amounts of soldering material on the place where you've to join the wires. Large amounts of soldering material, more than needed to fix the wire, will melt and form a hard covering on the circuit board and this will make the PCB appear cluttered and unclean.

Soldering Wires to a Battery: Tips
While soldering simple wires on to the circuit boards is safe and not risky, soldering wires to a battery can be risky due to the fact that batteries contain explosive ingredients and over heating can make them explode. This never means that batteries are not soldered. It means that it must be done by an expert. In some cases, one is required to solder a wire to a metal or a battery. Soldering wires to a battery can be done but with utmost care and guidance and it is essential to be aware of the exact amount of solder material used. Also, overheating of the contact point must be avoided. If you're a beginner or don't have enough knowledge about soldering batteries then soldering them on your own is not a bright idea. It's better to get professional help.

So, as you can see, the basics of soldering wires is not very difficult to understand. All it requires is some adequate practice and necessary precautions. You can take help of your lab assistants and teachers to learn this skill methodically.