very tiny ultrasonic cleaner?

[coppercone2]

Can anyone recommend a transducer or a model of a ultrasonic cleaner that is utterly tiny and adorable, for say cleaning single parts on a bench top prior to soldering?

I am talking like a 1 inch by 1 inch tank

more for getting rid of the wax found in green rogue then for actually cleaning oxide off a part.

[james_s]

Wouldn't it be easier to just use a more standard size cleaner and wash multiple parts at a time? You can get them that are pretty compact.

[thm_w]

There are some small plastic units, but they are probably garbage:
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/Portable-Ultrasonic-Cleaner-Home-Mini-Automatic-Ultrasonic-Cleaner-for-Glasses-Contact-Lenses-Jewelry-Watch-Cleaning-Machine/32859413022.html

I would get the smallest size standard metal unit, as already suggested. The good transducers are already 4cm x 5cm or so.

[David Hess]

Look for an ultrasonic cleaner intended for jewelry.

[BravoV]

Look for contact lens cleaner, it is available in very small form approximately a ping-pong ball sized for the whole unit.

[coppercone2]

Are they built well? I bought a tiny one before and it was a 60Hz buzzer not a damn ultrasonic device.

[cdev]

The transducer from an ultrasonic humidifier I bought years ago - it cost around $5 - was sold for use on Halloween decorations does a semi-decent job of cleaning my glasses and other small objects when I want it to. I use soapy water with some rubbing alcohol added in.  I put it in a Pyrex (thick glass) baking pan thats just the size of the glasses and not much larger. It emits a directional beam of sound underwater. You can see it removing the gunk wherever its pointed. I've also used it on very small PCBs. (LNAs) with some citrusolv. It removed the solder flux residue.

I have no other ultrasonic cleaners to compare it to. I should probably buy one, they are so cheap.

[David Hess]

Are they built well? I bought a tiny one before and it was a 60Hz buzzer not a damn ultrasonic device.

Some are.  One of the jewelry cleaner ones I had was if anything too powerful as it had to tenancy to destroy anything which was not tough.

[mmagin]

Are they built well? I bought a tiny one before and it was a 60Hz buzzer not a damn ultrasonic device.

I have a cheap ultrasonic cleaner, it buzzes at 60hz (maybe 120hz) as well, I think it's using unsmoothed rectified DC to run the oscillator.

[coppercone2]

60 hz is not ultrasonic though, its a sonic cleaner.

[james_s]

It's still ultrasonic even if the ultrasonic waveform is modulated by a 60Hz (or 120Hz) carrier as you'd get by powering it from unfiltered rectified AC.

[coppercone2]

I'm pretty sure mine was just a vibramotor attached to a container with epoxy, it did not behave like a ultrasonic humidifer that is 60hz modulated ultrasonic. It did not work at all and i got it at the thirft store for like 4$

I thought you got a similar 'bargin', where the 'oscillator' was a vibrator torn out of a dumpster recycled dildo

[David Hess]

If you want to know if it is a true ultrasonic cleaner, throw some aluminum foil into it.  It should quickly produce holes in the foil.  My jewelry cleaner would render the aluminum foil into micro confetti in short order.

Most designs feed the power oscillator with rectified but unfiltered AC producing a 120 Hz AM modulation.

[cdev]

The little ultrasonic mist-maker does work well enough to occasionally be pressed into service in cleaning and degreasing of small objects - it usually only takes a few seconds before the liquid has acquired most of the gunk that was attached to whatever is being cleaned. I have nothing else to compare it to, though. Its likely anemic compared to a real cleaner.

[Erwin Ried]

This one looks acceptable
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/Adoolla-Smart-Ultrasonic-Cleaner-Stainless-Steel-Ultrasound-Wave-Washing-for-Jewelry-Glasses-Ultrasound-Bath-Machine/32868604617.html

[coppercone2]

Now to find a western counterpart

Speaking of which, is the design of the mechanical impedance match circuit in a swept one (to decrease point stresses caused by quasi? resonances) different then a fixed frequency one with purchased cleaners? I forgot to mention it had to be electronics safe, so spread spectrum to reduce stress on bond wires if they have a narrow suceptability.