Building my own Ultrasonic Cleaner - Follow Up

I've learned a lot since starting my DIY ultrasonic cleaner project. The project has been plagued with faults and failures, but now I finally have the answers. How do I properly secure the ultrasonic transducers? Why were my ultrasonic drivers failing? Is it even worth building an ultrasonic cleaner?

Check out the first video here:

And have a look at the first follow up here:

#UltrasonicCleaner #Hobby #DIY

If you enjoy the content and would like to support the channel, please consider becoming a Patron:

Alternatively, if you would like to make a small one-off donation, you can do so here:

Tools/Products used (paid links):

[DEADBF]

A good idea when brazing a stud like this onto thin sheet is to put a thick backing plate against the back side of the sheet.

It'll soak up any excess heat and help stop any warping.

[mikeryman]

The flux I would consider essential. I use silver solder frequently with stainless items, and the flux makes the solder flow and stick much better than without.

[rajagopalann.]

Every aspect of DIY is thought over meticulously after confronting the problem. The description alas is fantastic

[LunaWuna]

Props to the seller, lots of AliExpress sellers have basically zero support.

[raceace]

Now that is dedication, I simply wanted to trouble shoot a possible dud transducer, started with your first video and was instantly grateful for your efforts. Both these videos were brilliant and went through some of the practical solutions I was about to attempt. Genuinely impressed with your scientific and engineering rigor. I'll be watching your videos in the future. Much respect.

[KuntoHarjadjiBaiquni]

A lot of experience has been shared here. Congratulations and thank you very much for the lectures!

[Simon_Rafferty]

You could also try friction welding - put the screw in a mill or drill press. High RPM & lots of pressure. The heat generated is very localised. I've used it for welding studs in place (not on a cleaner though)

[wild-radio]

That solder test was hecka punckrock!♡ luv it

[hdrenginedevelopment]

As many have mentioned, flux will make it much easier to flow the solder and get a reliable bond. If it is soft solder, the plumbing torch is a bit overkill and will make heat management a bit tricky for the thin wall tank. One of those pocket butane torch lighters would work perfectly. Stainless heat soaks very easily due to very low thermal conductivity, so less heat than you think and a bit of patience is best to let it come up to temperature without creating hot spots. If it starts to glow, it is definitely way too hot for soft solder. The small pencil flame of a butane torch lighter would help make it easier to focus the heat primarily on the stud and just flick the flame off to the tank just enough to bring up the temperature to where the flux starts cleaning. Getting solder flowing on the stud will help conduct heat into the tank and flow it to the tank without too much heat deformation from too much direct heat. Just before glowing is about good brazing temperature for a Harris stay silv brazing filler if you are doing it that way.

[CorrosionLive]

Ultra-sonic cleaning improves almost everything I use it for. Even in plating processes, it causes the build to be more diverse and compacted. You can also add a sonic horn and other techniques to the ultra-sonic without causing harmful effects to each process. I was going to name all of the functions it improves, but there are just too many. Whether its medical equipment, automotive, industrial cleaning, high-tech production parts, surface polishing, and plating, Wiring, welding, width of wall thickness are all super important. Most of the liquids used in the US, are wetting agents to help wet the solution to an altered state of slipperiness. This makes the dislodging of the smallest particles very easy.

[Pepe-rypm]

Thanks for sharing your experiences. I like that t-shirt. English for Spanish speakers.😂

Greetings from Spain

[SatanicJamnic]

That was just 10/10 YouTubing. Amazing stuff. Thanks man

[ChuckNorrisLEET]

Thanks so much for the follow up ^_^ really appreciate you sharing what you've learnt with everyone. Good to know you solved overheating problems

[spkymky]

Thanks for this follow-up video! I'm definitely going to build my own knowing how to fix the issues you had earlier.

[sPiRiOn]

Amazing patience with trial and error. Thank you 🙏

[scottcates]

Very helpful testing! I was convinced that brazing would be good and I was sure that welding would fare better than silver solder. It's a good thing you did this testing. Thank you.

[gren]

I've not seen a reasonably priced u/s cleaner that has cooling fans .. and I've had a few blow up on me ! So I think you have built a better machine than the off-the-shelf units. I may now rebuild on of my old dead "shells" using your specifications. Many thanks

[Scarlet__cuda]

Thank you. Now that the bugs are worked out, it's time to watch the video series, make a parts list and let the fun begin.

[wackowacko]

Silver solder is used a lot in refrigeration, especially where the item being soldered is having trouble getting stuck together because of contaminants or dissimilar metals. It is also used a lot on stainless steel items. It is ESPECIALLY important to clean stainless when soldering/brazing and welding because it is easily contaminated. If you use a wire brush to clean the weld/solder area, make sure it has never been used before or has never been used on anything except stainless. Any sandpaper should be new. Before welding or soldering, wipe the weld/solder area with acetone and let dry. If you are soldering it, you should use flux if at all possible, because it removes contaminants from the solder area. Silver solder will stick most items together, but it is better to be too clean than too dirty. A TIG machine is necessary if you plan to have it welded, but you can find a welding shop in most mid sized towns that can do it.

[santoimam]

Hi Bruce, I think the transducer falls from fatigue not from overload, so testing strength by applying a load is probably irrelevant. After seeing the first video I assumed maybe the bond had a small gap between them, it could cause:
1. The vibration of the transducer makes the trapped air compress and contract at a very high speed which causes micro fracture in the adhesive -> causes the transducer to fall
2. The adhesive that has been half failed causes the transducer to hit the tray repeatedly -> causes the transducer to heated up
Keep it up! I'll be waiting for your next follow up video