Baby Monitor Camera Repair - Cracked Solder Joints

Many devices fail because of simple problems so in this Instructable I'm gonna guide you on how you can identify cracked solder joints and repair them yourself.

A cracked or cold solder joint happens when there is mechanical stress on a solder joint or if the joint was made with not enough heat, thus the name, cold joint.

In that case, the solder is separated from the pin or the pad and it is only making a connection at a specific angle or position so the device has intermittent issues that come and go away when you move it.

This was exactly the issue that my brother was having with this Baby Monitor Camera so I opened it up to investigate and fix it.

The only tools that you gonna need to attempt such a repair are a screwdriver and a soldering iron.

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• WiFi Baby Camera - https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_DDkZnDH
• Baby Camera With Screen - https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_mNmHfM6
• Soldering Station - https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_EGpZtr9
• Electronics Repair Kit - https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_DkvLnvH
• Multimeter - https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_Ddx0WFd
• Bench Power Supply - https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_DlNtVcb
• Electronic Microscope - https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_DDtn6nH

Devices with pads on the bottom usually have hidden screws under them and this was the case here as well. After I removed the pads and the screws, the bottom opened up and I was able to remove the small PCB that had the power connector on it.

Moving the connector revealed the issue where all three legs of the connector had cracks in the solder joints, probably from mechanical stress.

I added some soldering flux and some fresh solder to my soldering iron and I made sure to re-heat all the joints adding plenty of heat until the solder was reflowed all around the connector pins.

After the soldering, I used some isopropyl alcohol to clean up and residual flux.

And with that, the camera was repaired and back in operation. Many devices fail with issues like this and they can all be easily repaired.

If you liked this repair, then be sure to check some of my other Instructables and also check out my YouTube channel.