Choosing a soldering station for work and home - what to look for?

What does the kit consist of?

When carrying out soldering work, not only a soldering station is needed, but also complete parts: a control, monitoring module and a spring holder. All this will be able to provide the necessary temperature, protect against overloads.

With the specifics of operating a soldering station, the kit may include:

• tweezers (soldering and removal of small parts);
• hair dryer for heating (additional heating of the place of soldering);
• heat radiator (board heating when soldering a group);
• vacuum tweezers;
• additional fittings.

Equipment classification

Depending on the specialization of the soldering iron, these or those components are included. To choose the right soldering station, you must remember that the configuration determines the operating profile of the device.

There are four types of soldering irons:

1. Thermoair (it is completed with the hair dryer, the soldering is carried out by hot air). We recommend choosing this option for repairing car bumpers and other plastic parts.
2. Pulse (mounting and removal of more modern circuits).
3. Induction (a small but very powerful device).
4. Infrared (easier repair of laptops, phones, mini PCs or tablets).

Based on this, we summarize - to choose one or another model you need to know initially what will be soldered with this soldering iron.

Technical features

When choosing, you need to know that according to the type of soldering, two categories can be distinguished:

• lead;
• lead free.

Lead devices are equipped with a module that regulates the temperature level of the soldering iron tip, which makes the work more accurate and better. Mechanisms based on electrics and induction type stations, for the operation of which produces a magnetic field. Using such a device you get a high heat transfer.

When soldering inaccessible components, non-contact soldering (hot air or infrared) is used. Infrared is used for circuits in computers or motherboards. Thermoair (spot transmission) - for heating inaccessible parts, without affecting nearby parts. It is better to choose this option for soldering plastic, as well as setting up household appliances and mobile phones.

Operation of soldering stations

Today, there are many types of equipment for the technical part of the soldering device, and this greatly complicates the choice when buying. Because of this, before choosing the right model, you need to decide on the technical features and scope of use. Those who like to repair something with their own hands for the home mostly use ordinary soldering irons, but they overheat the parts, as a result of which it is not the repair of the parts, but vice versa. This is the most important reason to leave a choice at a soldering station. The presence of a power supply makes operation easy and simple due to the ability to change voltage and temperature.

Power plays a role, it is important when using refractory solders. Otherwise:

• high temperature - overheating of circuits;
• the sting collapses when exposed to high temperature;
• the heating part fails over time;
• overheating of the board tracks;
• soldering quality decreases.

In order to avoid the above nuances, it is better to choose a station for lead-free soldering. Also can DIY soldering ironwhat we talked about in the corresponding article!

Type of control

Soldering station - one of the most important devices in the manufacture of electronics. This indicates a high degree of need among people involved in this. The installation allows you to connect a pair of modules that make it possible to solder with and without contact, and nozzles and tips can also be replaced.

To choose the right device, it is important to correctly determine the control method:

• digital (certain programs provide control over the heating of the tip, stability and accuracy in operation than analog);
• analog (devices should be constantly monitored, since high temperature negatively affects the component parts of the device).

Key selection criteria

First-class grip on the elements is the most important goal of the soldering station. To choose the right device you need to know the design and technical parameters:

1. Heating element and its type. Today, the bulk of the devices, among which you can choose, have 2 types - ceramic and nichrome. Ceramic ones quickly heat up, but they can burst due to uneven heating; if there is a heat stabilizer, all this will not happen, it will control the temperature and the device will last longer. Nichrome quickly fails and is not suitable for frequent use. It costs significantly less than ceramics.
2. The temperature adjustment range should be whiter than wide.
3. Heating rate.
4. Power. To choose a soldering station by power, you must initially know the area of ​​operation of the device: telephones, laptops, tablets or household appliances, etc .;
5. Voltage; weight, size, shape, etc.

And also you need to take into account such moments as:

• world standards for lead-free soldering, which indicates equipment with a temperature of 250 degrees;
• The circuits are housed in a BGA housing for microchips, which makes the device itself more miniature and lightweight.

What else is important to know?

When buying, craftsmen are advised to stock up on spare replacement stings. They all differ in the shape and area of ​​the end, which determines the result of the work itself. Also, in order to choose a suitable embodiment, you need to know that a larger edge provides better heat exchange during soldering. In turn, the shape affects the type of elements that will be soldered, as well as accessibility to soldering places and temperature.

Another important tip - to choose everything correctly, you need to pay attention to the materials from which the soldering tips are made, they must conduct heat transfer well. In addition, you need to select equipment with easy replacement of parts in the event of failure of one of them.

The best manufacturers and models

Well, the last thing I would like to tell you about which soldering station is better to choose for the home (lovers repair of household electrical appliances), work (electronics repair), as well as soldering plastic parts of cars.

First of all, let's talk about instrument manufacturers. The best today are the German company Ersa and the Chinese Quick. However, for fans of repairing electrical appliances at home, choosing an Ersa soldering equipment will not be the most rational solution. The fact is that the price of the equipment is quite high, so this option is better suited for professional use. At the same time, Quick has in its assortment budget soldering stations of more or less good quality.

Another popular firm is Lukey. Many craftsmen and radio enthusiasts claim that this is the cheapest China that breaks down quickly and can also cause a fire. Another part of the masters recommends choosing a Lukey soldering station for beginner hams, as Some models of equipment are quite well made and for their price are the best option for a home workshop. To make a choice, we recommend that you review the reviews on YouTube. You can find many video reviews of new technology that show the basic functionality, equipment and disadvantages of certain soldering stations.

Nevertheless, the most popular models from inexpensive ones are Lukey 702, 852D + and 868. Of Quick, they most often buy 202D ESD (for amateurs) and 702 ESD (for professionals).

A hot air station is suitable for repairing bumpers. A good option is Lukey 868, the work with which is shown in the photo:

Finally, we recommend watching a video in which all the nuances of choosing a soldering station for home and work are examined in detail:

That's all I wanted to tell you about this rather complicated question. We hope you now know how to choose a soldering station and which one is better in 2017!

It will be interesting to read:

• How to solder wires
• Choosing a home screwdriver
• How to solder radio components from boards