Hi everyone -
I'm always a little nervous when first posting to a new group (technically this is my second post... and it really can't get any worse than the first...)
So I'll start off with something simple here.
In the first few weeks of beginning my journey into the land of electronics I've picked up a few introductory texts and the associated tools/components they call for. A few companies are nice enough to create bundles that go well with the educational material. We're talking various resistors, capacitors, diodes (including a few LEDs), 22awg hook-up wire, a speaker, and your basic run-of-the-mill ICs: 555, 324/339/741, AD5220, etc. Being new to the hardware side of things (been a career software dev for over 20yrs now), I'm not comfortable with what's sensitive to static and what's not... I've seen people refer to ALL ICs being susceptible - but the way many things have been shipped to me either indicate that this is not the case OR that some vendors are simply careless (my guess would be a little of both). I've always seen MOSFETs indicated as especially susceptible... I just don't really know which ones in this pile qualify as such!
But I do have a tangible question to be posed here: is it safe to store these basic ICs (or really anything mentioned so far) - including MOSFETs - in the plastic Plano Stowaway bins you find in the tools/fishing section at your local Big Box? I'll add one thing here: Is it safe for them to be stored "bare" meaning not stuck in the anti-static foam some of them came in? I appreciate any knowledge the group cares to disperse with!
Cheers ~ Perry
I'm always a little nervous when first posting to a new group (technically this is my second post... and it really can't get any worse than the first...)
So I'll start off with something simple here.
In the first few weeks of beginning my journey into the land of electronics I've picked up a few introductory texts and the associated tools/components they call for. A few companies are nice enough to create bundles that go well with the educational material. We're talking various resistors, capacitors, diodes (including a few LEDs), 22awg hook-up wire, a speaker, and your basic run-of-the-mill ICs: 555, 324/339/741, AD5220, etc. Being new to the hardware side of things (been a career software dev for over 20yrs now), I'm not comfortable with what's sensitive to static and what's not... I've seen people refer to ALL ICs being susceptible - but the way many things have been shipped to me either indicate that this is not the case OR that some vendors are simply careless (my guess would be a little of both). I've always seen MOSFETs indicated as especially susceptible... I just don't really know which ones in this pile qualify as such!
But I do have a tangible question to be posed here: is it safe to store these basic ICs (or really anything mentioned so far) - including MOSFETs - in the plastic Plano Stowaway bins you find in the tools/fishing section at your local Big Box? I'll add one thing here: Is it safe for them to be stored "bare" meaning not stuck in the anti-static foam some of them came in? I appreciate any knowledge the group cares to disperse with!
Cheers ~ Perry