vintage computers and lead poisoning?

SHAUN> I started to worry about lead paint problem when buying an old SHAUN> house. I bought a lead test kit and tested the paint chips SHAUN> from the windows and fould them to be positive. Then I tested SHAUN> some computer boards, and the result was postive too. Have you SHAUN> ever found white powders near solder on your vintage board? SHAUN> They are most likely lead dioxide. True. Ditto for any computer except, maybe, some made in the past year or so. I'd say you should look for boards with corrosion like that on them and clean them with a suitable solvent. If you find any, that would mean the boards weren't correctly cleaned when they were last soldered. Unless the factory was really incompetent, it should have been cleaned right at that stage -- so any leftover flux is usually Quite independent of any health hazards (not clear if there's enough lead there to be a real issue) corrosion could make the circuit stop working... paul