Ferric Chloride Hexahydrate Crystals - PCB Etching Chemical - 2kg

It’s certainly no secret that we at DIYElectronics love Prototyping, and we feel that it’s essentially the core of true Making; taking bare components and simple materials to create something completely new without any predesigned modules or tutorials to follow. This is why we’ve chosen to begin stocking fundamental prototyping tools and materials like this Ferric Chloride Hexahydrate, which comes in the form of dehydrated Crystals, and is primarily stocked for Makers who want to create their own PCB Etching Chemicals for real prototyping from scratch.

These crystals are made from a specially chosen chemical that is excellent at corroding copper, while ignoring certain other chemicals that would typically act as a masking agent. As such, this chemical is perfect for etching copper-clad PCB’s for integrated circuitry, so that you can create your own customised Printed Circuit Boards for your unique and tailor-made Electronics projects. And while the process of PCB Making may seem complicated at first, once you’ve had a bit of experience and viewed a few guides on the big wide web, you will find that it’s actually a lot easier than it seems, and as long as you follow the instructions (and safety protocols) carefully, you too can start making PCB’s from almost nothing in the comfort of your own home.

Safety Precautions for Working with Ferric Chloride:

When working with chemicals and potentially hazardous compounds, it’s always a good idea to prioritise safety at all times. As such, when working with Ferric Chloride, it’s important to utilise the correct protective gear, which includes safety goggles, nitrile gloves and a respiratory protection mask as the most important protections. Additionally, however, it’s a good idea to utilise an apron, shoe covers or specialised boots, as well as a hair cap if your hair is long enough to potentially fall into the solution, although these aren’t as important as the face mask, goggles and gloves. And finally, when working with any chemicals or compounds that produce any kinds of vapours or steams, it’s imperative that you work in a well-ventilated area, so as to prevent the build-up of dangerous and potentially toxic gasses – which are often difficult to see and sometimes even impossible to smell.

In addition to user safety, it’s also important to understand that this chemical compound is very aggressive towards metal, but completely inert towards plastic and glass. Because of this, make sure that all of your containers, dishes and bowls that you will be using to mix, store and submerge copper boards into are made from glass or plastic – with glass taking first prize since it won’t distort or cause problems when exposed to heat from external forces of endothermic reactions.

Please Note: While this doesn’t necessarily pose a safety hazard, Ferric Chloride tends to immediately stain pretty much whatever it comes into contact with. So be sure to keep this in mind, and avoid working on expensive countertops or any locations which you want to keep clean and tidy.

Typical Applications for Ferric Chloride Hexahydrate Crystals:

While many Makers enjoy taking the easy route of simply purchasing ready-made modules or developing custom PCB’s on Veroboards or even Breadboards (and there’s certainly nothing wrong with doing this), for Makers who really want the ultimate level of customisation for Prototyping, nothing can quite compare to actually making your own PCB Boards from scratch. In fact, before we started putting serious effort into making DIYElectronics a well-known name in SA, we used to spend entire weekends sometimes building custom PCB’s with fun, silly or very complex circuits etched into them for our custom projects. And while it may look very confusing (and dangerous) from surface research, once you start Doing It Yourself and developing your own techniques, it becomes a lot easier, and opens up so many new opportunities for truly customised and personalised projects.

In fact, we’ve even had some customers who, instead of creating PCB’s for electronics, like to experiment with how this can be used for creative purposes too, and some people have made beautiful “PCB Art” that really blends creativity, chemistry and electronics in an amazing way. So, whether you love to prototype your own projects from copper-clad boards to finished product, or whether you just want to try your hand at creating unique and creative PCB Art, these Ferric Chloride Hexahydrate Crystals are the perfect start to that exciting adventure.

Additional Resources:

• This Ferric Chloride Safety Datasheet is arguably the most important extra resource available, and you should always keep an extra copy at the ready for just in case disaster strikes.
• This is a small but succinct Ferric Chloride Crystal Datasheet, with basic parameters and directions for usage.
• For more understanding of how to prepare the solution, utilise it, as well as store and dispose of it once you’re done, this Ferric Chloride Usage Instructions Sheet offers some great insights and tips for success.

And Finally, this is a very insightful video that has been created to take new users through the seemingly complex steps of preparation, usage, disposal and storage to help you stay safe and enjoy effective etching for your custom PCB creation - in easy video format: