Replacement sponges for hakko 888D?

[Pasky]

I remember seeing a topic about this before but cannot find it.  I've tried using a kitchen sponge but that thing destroyed my tip, so lesson learned.  Anyone know of any cheap alternatives I can just cut to shape for this?  Paying $10 for a sponge is getting annoying.

[Muxr]

You could give these a try: http://www.ebay.com/itm/WELLER-TC205-Soldering-Sponge-For-PH-Stands-/221682089186?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item339d483ce2

Cut it with scissors to fit into the holder.

[Ian.M]

A solder station sponge must always be made of cellulose sponge (for the heat resistance) with minimal additives.  Although one can find cellulose sponge in the supermarket, it is often dyed and always comes soaked in some sort of gunk to keep it soft in the packet.  If you are using it for a solder station, get the pale yellow ones (minimum dyestuff) and wash them well three times (once with a drop of detergent + two rinses) squeezing them out fully between washes to get the gunk out before it wrecks your tip.

The 3rd party solder station sponge isn't that pricey, its just a P.I.T.A finding a stockist that has enough other thing you want to get free delivery.

[tec5c]

I recommend using the wire-type tip cleaner along with tip tinner. IMO using a damp sponge is not the best thing for the iron in the long run, due to sudden temperature changes. Sure it's fine for hobby type work though once you start getting into IPC standards, that's when you're required to use the wire-type + tip tinner. Others may not agree but this is just from my personal experience.

Amazon sell the sponges for ~ $13 each.
http://www.amazon.com/Hakko-A1559-Solder-Cleaning-Sponge/dp/B004P3IXUC/ref=sr_1_fkmr1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1428370314&sr=8-1-fkmr1&keywords=hakko+888d+sponges

[Pasky]

You could give these a try: http://www.ebay.com/itm/WELLER-TC205-Soldering-Sponge-For-PH-Stands-/221682089186?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item339d483ce2

Cut it with scissors to fit into the holder.

Ya, just curious if anyone knows if these actually work. Afraod I'll buy some cheap Chinese made that will destroy it similar to a kitchen sponge. 

Thanks for the tip on the metal wire cleaning.  Wasn't aware high level professionals did that.  $13 a sponge is exactly what I'm trying to avoid though and looking for alternatives that I can cut to shape.

[Fungus]

I'm not sure how a sponge can destroy a soldering iron (unless it melts all over the tip or something, or you used way too much water).

I use cheapo eBay ones like this and I never had a problem. They're so cheap that I can change them early and often.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/201024955125

They come in a few sizes, look for one that will fit in your tray

(nb. it doesn't have to fit exactly, just get the biggest size that fits in the tray)

[Pasky]

I'm guessing the additives (if any?) and dyes did it?

[Ian.M]

Did it behave like a cellulose sponge (rock hard when dry, chars but does not melt) or did you make the mistake of using a plastic kitchen sponge?

[Pasky]

No, it was definitely not a plastic sponge and behaved liked a normal sponge.  It's just that my tip got extremely blackened and was actually deteriorating rapidly.

[Ian.M]

It will be whatever gunk keeps the sponge soft in the pack.  I dont know what is used, but it must be non-toxic and hygroscopic, so it wouldn't surprise me to find a salt/glycerine mix or similar which certainly wouldn't do your tip any good.

With the tips for your iron being the price they are, using kitchen sponge obviously isn't a smart move except in an emergency.   Way back when, my boss had problems with unwettable Weller TCP tips.   I never had that issue with my own tips, but I always flux and carefully tin a brand new tip before use and wash out new sponges etc. but he was a jump right in and get soldering kind of guy so probably didn't bother washing the sponge.