cleaning the boards

[John Patasius]

Two years ago I bought a Pioneer audio preamp and power amplifier on
eBay. I thoroughly questioned the seller about the units via e-mail
before placing my bid. I was assured that they were in "mint" condition.
Now that I'm an experienced eBayer, I realize the word "mint" is a
meaningless term at eBay. But at the time, I was expecting to receive
some really nice vintage silver face vintage Pioneer gear. What I got
were two pieces of silt covered smelly equipment. I took the covers off
and you could barely see silhouettes of the components under a layer of
thick silt. These pieces had been in a fire - not subjected to extreme
heat - I couldn't find any heat damage. But the smoke must have been
intense. Of course, I immediately e-mailed the seller. The seller
replied they WERE MINT and just needed some cleaning.  He reminded me
that they were sold as-is and that I should have asked him about smoke
damage if it was a concern of mine. He was not willing to make any
concessions and never answered another e-mail from me. All I could do
was leave negative feedback. He has since been removed from eBay,
although he's probably back doing business under a new name.

Anyway, the only way to salvage this "mint" gear was to give it a
serious cleaning. I took all the covers off. Put aluminum foil over the
pots and switches. Then I made a STRONG solution of laundry detergent
and water. Out in the backyard, I slobbered the soap all over the
equipment using wide and narrow paint brushes, working it in everywhere.
I rinsed it with the garden hose. The process was repeated until
everything was squeaky clean. For the next five days, I put both pieces
outside in the sun all day - everyday. I made sure all the surfaces got
plenty of exposure. During this period, I cleaned the controls and
detailed hard to get at areas. On the 6th day, I plugged in both units
(no variac - that's for wimps). Both the amp and preamp worked fine and
are still working perfectly. It's been my experience that soap and water
are O.K. on most electronics as long as you can bake the moisture out
quickly and thoroughly. Apply power before the moisture is gone and you
will be making toast.

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