20090131
Rust Removal
I was looking around instructables the other day and saw a great howto about rust removal using electricity. "Hmm", I thought to myself. I sure like to electrocute things. My neighbor gave me a rusty pipe wrench which came out impressively rust free after a few hours of soaking. I used a 12V .5A power supply and attached the negative end to the pipe wrench and the positive end to a old piece of steel remesh. Both pipe wrench and remesh were put in a bucket of water that had some baking soda. After a few hours of bubbling I removed the pipe wrench and let it sit for a hour in a vinegar bath.
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10 comments:
impressive.. does it even adjust smoothly?
Yes, the pipe wrench has a smooth adjustment. Feels like a new tool.
electrolysis is the perfect rust removal technique. it can even restore some rust back into metal, but not all. if you can scrape off the rust with your fingernail or with a tool easily, then electrolysis will just do that work for you, but underneath, the oxidized metal that hasn't yet corroded to the point of no return; that can be brought back with electrolysis.
but, if you coat your bare metal, non-chromed tools with light oil once in a while you'll never have to worry about it at all.
What type of light oil works well for protecting the tool?
I've always used a little squeeze can of 3-in-1 household oil. It has a nice, non-petroleum smell that I've come to associate with the feeling of "my tool is taken care of".
http://www.3inone.com/
what does the vinegar do?
David, the vinegar had a little bit of acid taste to the salad ...
It'a an acid base so it dissolves the last dirts after electrolysis to clean the tool.
3-in-1 works... but I always go for a shot or two of WD-40. Since I ALWAYS have a can or two handy, it works perfectly in all the cracks and crevices of the tools...
WD-40 is OK for some applications, but a few machinists and a mechanical engineer I know feel that it can be corrosive on equipment that needs tight fits or close tolerances. I wouldn't use it on a lathe, drill press, or any power equipment. I would have no problems using it on a say a monkey wrench or a cart axle.
Putting a rusty tool in lemon juice, or vinegar for some hours and then applying a thin oil film is how I do it. I'll try the electrolysis...
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