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Cleaning keyboards & mice & phonesa with alchol

Nope. Just electrons (and holes). The electrons can be part of many elements and molecules. The electrons are what "moves" in solutions and wires. I don't know of any molecule or ion that will "move" in the same manner as electrons. Electrons will move (conduct) through a solid wire, through a conductive liquid, and through an ionized gas, all connected in series without any chemical or physical change. Electrons can even be convinced to flow through a vacuum. When you talk about conductivity, you're really talking about the movement (displacement) of electrons (or holes) through a solid, liquid, or gas.

Nope. The ions do not travel through a solid wire.

Distilled water is an insulator.

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Conductivity is measured in micromhos per centimeter (µmhos/cm) or microsiemens per centimeter (µs/cm). Distilled water has a conductivity in the range of 0.5 to 3 µmhos/cm. The conductivity of rivers in the United States generally ranges from 50 to 1500 µmhos/cm. Studies of inland fresh waters indicate that streams supporting good mixed fisheries have a range between 150 and 500 µhos/cm. Conductivity outside this range could indicate that the water is not suitable for certain species of fish or macroinvertebrates. Industrial waters can range as high as 10,000 µmhos/cm. </quote>

Take a look at TDS (total dissolved solids) meters.

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These are commonly used to test for the total amount of crud in our drinking water. Mostly, they react to the HCl (hydrochloric acid) added to our water to kill off bacteria. There are also pH meters, that will indicate if your favorite beverage is acidic or alkaline.

Incidentally, distilled (or de-ionized) water is tasteless. The quality of good drinking water is not in the water, but rather in the ionized additives.

Nope. Alcohols do not easily ionize. I'll spare you the organic chemistry involved: "THE IONIZATION OF ALCOHOLS"

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In any case, like water, pure alcohol is an insulator because it doesn't have any loosely bound electrons to promote conduction.

Think of holes as the temporary lack of a loosely bound electron. Holes are a term of convenience. Electric current was originally declared to flow from + to - by Ben Franklin in about 1746. It wasn't until 1897 that J.J. Thomson discovered the electron. 150 years of doing it wrong was difficult to fix. The invention of semiconductors and doping in about 1950, which uses both electron and hole flow models, made things worse. So, electronics is still stuck with Ben Franklin's hole flow, while physics and chemistry have successfully switched to electron flow.

Reply to
Jeff Liebermann
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Jeff:

You are micturating vertically onto a braided convenience. For some the "science" is too much to handle in light of infinite 'what if' speculations.

Mit der Dummheit kämpfen Götter selbst vergebens.

Schiller

Peter Wieck Melrose Park, PA

Reply to
Peter W.

Rubbing alcohol is hygroscopic (it absorbs water from normal ambient air). So, cleaning with alcohol will usually, after the alcohol residue evaporates, leave a water film. The water will evaporate, too (it's 'distilled' from the air, so there's no residues expected), but takes longer than alcohol. A printed circuit with water exposure will air-dry in a few days at room temperature.

No isopropanol is 'pure' after being exposed to air, like for a cleaning task. It's likely the water that mainly contributes to conduction, either due to intrinsic dissociation or to pH from minor contaminants (aka 'buffer agents') that didn't get cleaned off.

Reply to
whit3rd

============================

** Very slowly....
** Not usually, the BPs are similar so both evap at once.
** Wrong - more likely it will take minutes, not days. No more than 5 in a warm oven.

FYI

I regularly clean very dirty PCBs in hot water & dish washing liquid - rinse and then dry in a oven at 100C for 5 to 10 mins. Come out looking like new.

..... Phil

Reply to
Phil Allison

Electroplating works precisely because the ions move to the electrode through the electrolyte and stick to it.

Reply to
Mike Coon

Jeff:

No such thing as a stupid question - but for the one not asked. But, the individual you are attempting to 'educate' is not asking questions, but speculating. There may be a question-mark after the speculation, but it is not a question.

"The time has come", the Walrus said, "To talk of many things: Of shoes - and ships - and sealing wax - Of cabbages - and kings- And why the sea is boiling hot - And whether pigs have wings."

It is nonsense. And attempting to enforce 'science' or 'discipline' or 'rigor' on nonsense is an exercise in futility. As you are ever-the-gentleman, you are much more prone to grant others the benefit of the doubt - I am far less tolerant than you are. Not that I do not enjoy nonsense. It has its place and it can be great good fun.

Peter Wieck Melrose Park, PA

Reply to
Peter W.

Corrosion is the same. Ions move through the electrolyte, when they hit the dissimilar metal (which can be the same surface just at a place with slightly different electronegativity) then electrons move through the metal, so you have a complete circuit. I've not done any electroplating but had some experience with corrosion protection.

So in a case like electroplating or corrosion, electrons are moving through the wired part of the circuit, ions are moving through the electrolyte part. The electrons that move with the ions are fixed to them, not loose like in a metal. I don't want to argue with Jeff but i always called that current, with ions as the charge carriers.

Reply to
Tim R

Depends on the purpose of the circuit; if nanoamps matter, or kilovolts are involved, or components have nooks and crannies (remember, this was about keyboards to begin with) the answer is different. How well sealed are your trimpots?

Reply to
whit3rd

Back in the 70s, I was washing TV module and chassis boards before rebuilding them by putting them in the sink and using a commercially available sudsy ammonia cleaner cut 5:1 with water and a stiff paint brush. Before I did, I removed the transformers and anything else that would trap moisture. After washing and rinsing, I put the boards in a hotbox (cardboard box with a hole cut to fit the snout of a hair dryer) on low heat for about an hour, then reassembled. So clean they even shined. Never had a problem, but as you say, you've got to make sure there's no trapped moisture.

Reply to
ohg...

Witless Wanker Fuckwit wrote: ========================

** Context shift ?
** Quote: " A printed circuit ... "

Congenital LIARS slyly shift contexts and deliberately misquote.

Was it your mom or your dad who taught you to lie and cheat ?

Fuck you.

...... Phil

Reply to
Phil Allison

Yeah, so? Do you see a lot of keyboards that are hand-wired, without a printed circuit (sometimes flexible) attaching the other components? I've cleaned a few by total-immersion dipping.

Reply to
whit3rd

Mpfff, yep! Or top rack in the dishwasher (Bosch), batteries out (wireless types), delicate cycle, 1/4 detergent load.

Not lost a patient yet. About once per year. Clean as the proverbial whistle.

Peter Wieck Melrose Park, PA

Reply to
Peter W.

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