soldering mats ....what do you use .....

[wilhelm]

large coffe tin lid, with wick stuck in strips by heat resistant silicon....



whats that 10 squid monument mat like. cos ive tried them cheap ones....
and they are sh £te. strange that??

 

[Thermo]

i use an old fire blanket from a kitchem i ripped out. Its great, its big, its lasted ages, you can cover as wide an area as you need, wrap it around other pipes nearby etc etc and it catches any of the dripping solder

 

[Bahco]

I've got the £12 mat from monument and it is starting to get holey so don't think it will last more than a few months more.

I've got some asbestos which do the trick.Don't fancy the cancer risk though!

 

[chappers]

i got a bit of asbestos substitute that my mate a science teacher got me from school.

 

[David P]

large coffe tin lid, with wick stuck in strips by heat resistant silicon....

That isnt such a bad idea.
ALL silicon is heat resistant beyond the melting point of solder, even the clear stuff that you use for glazing and to seal baths. so I suppose in theory you could smear a thickish layer on something (like old fibreglass curtain fabric) and make yourself a soldering blanket without the aspestos. Ive made sheets of silicon by trowling it onto polythene and then peeling it off when its cured and they are remarkably strong and heatproof.