The desoldering pump works best for through-hole connections. You can use it on surface-mounted devices as well, but it is less effective. [1] X Research source That said, it’s one of the cheapest options. You can easily ruin a circuit board by accidentally separating the board layers during the desoldering process. Ensure that you only desolder the exact pins you need to remove a faulty component.
You may see a tiny bit of smoke as you pass the sponge, but it’s just from the moisture in the sponge.
Use an old soldering iron if you have one, since pushing with the iron can wear the iron down.
The tip of the pump may melt a little during use. Most pumps either have replaceable tips or are cheap to begin with, but you can try to reduce the damage by pausing for a moment after melting the solder. Melted solder can harden again quickly. Work with only one terminal at a time. For the greatest efficiency, hold the soldering iron in one hand and keep the desoldering pump ready in the other.
Apply flux first to help the melted solder flow. Melt a little new solder to mix in with the old, hardened solder. For through-hole connections, use the tip of the soldering iron to gently wiggle the terminal from side to side. This breaks the connection to the sides of the hole. [5] X Research source
Sometimes, the pressure from the iron or pump will shift the solder pad slightly. It should still work as long as the traces connecting the pad to other components are still intact. If the traces are broken, you will need to solder on new ones. [6] X Research source If there are still traces of solder on the pad, it’s easy to pick these up using a desoldering braid, described below.
This approach works best on through-hole attachments, or to clean up excess solder after you have finished removing a component using a pump or other method. [8] X Research source You can try it on surface-mounted components in a pinch, but it may be difficult or time-consuming to desolder many pins.
Hold the braid by the bobbin it is wound around. The braid may get too hot to touch. [12] X Research source If the solder isn’t melted, too much heat could be dissipating up the braid. Try cutting off the end of the braid and using that instead, holding it in place with the soldering iron.
Even on a through-hole attachment, you may need to remove the solder around the component. If you plan to reuse the component, keep the braid and soldering iron away from the component to avoid heat damage.
Vacuum up the melted solder using a desoldering pump or the vacuum nozzle on the rework station.
Apply flux and new solder across the whole line of pins, melting the old solder together. Use a desoldering braid as described above to remove most of this solder. Strip the end of a fine, enameled copper wire. Tin this end (that is, coat it in a layer of solder). Insert the wire underneath the line of pins, then solder the tinned end to the last pin to fix it to the board. Tug the wire upward while you heat the closest pin with the soldering iron, until the pin detaches. Repeat with each pin. Try not to pull too hard or at too steep an angle.
