Electrical – Thermal relief for thick PCB traces

kicadpadsthermaltrace

A PCB trace that carries considerable current (~5 Amps) needs to be wide, on the order of 4mm. I am concerned that this wide and thick (70mil) trace may cause problems during hand soldering, but can not figure out a way to make thermal relief for the pads in Kicad. It is easy for copper fills, but that would mean drawing by hand outline for each trace. Is there a less laborious way?

Best Answer

There are two cases:

  • the current needs to run through the pad: you don't want thermal relief
  • the current doesn't need to run through the pad: there is no need to connect the pad directly on top of the trace