OK, I know it has been discussed, but... I finally decided to give it a try. Plastic bucket, table salt, water, battery charger. I covered the bottom of the bucket with salt and filled it up about 1/3 of the way with water. That was all I needed to cover the part. Placed my rusty old shock mount in the bucket and ran an alligator clip from the part to the edge of the bucket where I have the negative from the battery charger clipped to the bucket. I clipped the positive end of the battery charger to the top of a long and big bolt that stands right out of the bucket. The bolt and the part are not touching...(it would probably go badly if they did touch) I was quite goosey about trying this, so put on my welding gloves and plugged in the charger. No explosion...good so far, and the water in the bucket is starting to churn a bit and bubble. It is working!!!! I feel like a mad scientist!
I've been meaning to try this for awhile....what amperage you set your charger up when you did this? how long you leave your parts in teh water to de rust em as well...
According to the posts I have read, the process is self limiting. In other words you won't damage a part if you leave it in too long. From what I can tell it should take a few hours to over night for a big part in a big tub. I've got my charger on 15 amps at the moment and it seems to be working right. I'm impressed with how fast the water has become mucky and a layer of rust colored foam is now floating on top. I'm nervous, so I keep checking it, and I'll probably take it out in 30 or 40 minutes and look it over.
Well I guess I should have used laundry soda instead of table salt, but I've got it in a well ventilated area and I'm not breathing the fumes.
There is a good thread on this subject on here somewhere. It strongly advises caution on soft metals. You can completely dissolve some metals, quickly! It also said to use 30 amps. Where do you get that kind of amperage ? All I see are 2-3 amps. Would like to try it myself if I can get the right charger.
The caution about the chlorine gas and hydrogen is no joke. If you are using salt, make absolutely sure you do it outside. Chlorine gas is NASTY stuff. It is harmful at only 5 parts per million concentration. It is heavier than air so it will ac***ulate in low areas. Cool way to clean parts though!!
besides the thread on here and the above link which is one of the best; reading for a rainy day http://www.fboerger.com/Restoration Tips/Restoration Tips Page.htm http://www.oldgas.com/shoptalk/ubb/Forum4/HTML/000848.html http://www.htpaa.org.au/article-electro.php http://www3.telus.net/public/aschoepp/electrolyticrust.html http://myweb.tiscali.co.uk/andyspatch/rust.htm http://www.stovebolt.com/techtips/rust/electrolytic_derusting.htm http://www.thepontiactransampage.com/rust.html
From what one of the Dirtys had mentioned in a past post is that this is a line of site process so you might have to turn your item. my 2 cents worth.
I've used a similer process, used baking soda instead of salt. The negative went to the rusty part and the positive went to a stainless steel fork (anything stainless will work, garage sale silver ware is cheap) It worked great and left a nice surface on the part.
Yeah, the muck that bubbles to the top is some of the most disgusting stuff I ever did see. I skimmed the top off into a cup and poured it out elsewhere. It looked kinda thick and slimey and was a bile green color under the black bubbles and bright orange rust. Everything I have read said its line of sight but I have had surprising results without ever turning the part. I just use a battery charger. Amperage varies on each part I put in. Some show 13 amps while other pieces show 2 amps. They come out about the same. Leaving it in too long doesn't affect it. It was fun to watch how things came out. I started grabbing all kinds of old rusty tools and doing them. I probably should have left the patina alone on some of them.
Here are some before, during, and after pictures for your entertainment. The parts cam out real nice. In these pictures all I have done is take them out of the bucket, wash em off, and go over them with a small cheep hand held br*** wire brush. I took some shots, front and back, of the shock mount I cleaned and its brother, so you can see em side by side for an idea of how well this works.
If you can agitate the solution, it will even out some of the "line of sight" issues mentioned above. Fish tank bubbler is a great way to safely stir constantly. You can also reverse the leads and clean a gas tank. Fill with solution, hang an iron rod into the tank and watch all the rust from the tank move onto the iron rod.
I have a fibergl*** bath tub I've been trying to throw away for 12 years. I also have 265 block with rust. Will let you know if it works. I can never seem to get car blocks clean every where.
FYI, I switched half way through from using table salt to baking soda. Worked just as well, and I believe I was eleminating the risk of g***ing myself to death.
G***ing yourself is what makes it worthwhile. It's just like hot rodding it's self. If it's not dangerous, where's the fun?
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