Newbie Troubleshoot help for Temp Logger Project

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scottman
 
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Newbie Troubleshoot help for Temp Logger Project

Post by scottman »

I've built the tempo logger project but can't get the 2GB SD card to initialize.

I've made sure I have the latest files via GIT but am not sure how I should troubleshoot this issue. As the directions say it's either a solder issue or a bad card. I've tested two cards with the same failure warning.

I'm thinking I should start with the soldering of the SD card holder but was wondering how I should proceed after that.

As a newbie I need all the help I can get and any will be greatly appreciated.

scottman

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adafruit_support_bill
 
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Re: Newbie Troubleshoot help for Temp Logger Project

Post by adafruit_support_bill »

One of the most common problems is with soldering the pins on the SD card holder. If you post some good clear photos of the front & back of the board we'll take a look at for any problems.
If you are new to soldering, you may want to review the soldering tutorials here: http://www.ladyada.net/learn/soldering/thm.html

scottman
 
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Re: Newbie Troubleshoot help for Temp Logger Project

Post by scottman »

Thanks for the quick response.

I'm enclosing a picture of the back of the board and it looks like I have some cold solder joints, maybe 5 out of 7 on the card. However, it's kind of hard to tell as the joints look different as I look at them from a different angle.

This was my first soldering job and maybe I should have tried something simpler.

Thanks again
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scottman
 
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Re: Newbie Troubleshoot help for Temp Logger Project

Post by scottman »

I'm posting a picture of the other side of the SD card with the solder points. I mistook the chip points on the backside for the SD card connections in my previous picture. Sorry for the foul up.
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adafruit_support_bill
 
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Re: Newbie Troubleshoot help for Temp Logger Project

Post by adafruit_support_bill »

There are some questionable looking joints there. You should start by re-working anything that looks suspicious.
Any joint that has a rough or frosted appearance is potentially a cold joint. Those that have balled up around the pin often have not flowed well onto the surrounding solder pad.

Re-flow these joints with a clean hot iron until they flow well onto both the pin and the pad and have a smooth shiny surface. Clean the tip of your iron after every few joints. If it is a low-wattage iron (< 25 watts), give it some time to come back up to temperature between joints.

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