TABOO! Rust removal

Rat Rods Rule

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just so i understand this....the anode and the part to be cleaned need to be touching....or it doesnt matter?

Not sure if I understand your question , but let me sum it up.

The part you want to clean hooks up to Negitive.
The steel rods (or whatever you use) around the perimiter of the bucket hook to Positive.

Do not let them touch!!

Using stainless puts chrome in the water and is toxic. Just use steel. When it rusts away, get some more. Clean the steel (scrap or wire brush) once in a while. You will see the difference right away with clean steel.
 
Sorry for the confusion....but you answered it perfectly.

I didnt think that the anode could touch the part and I just wanted to make sure. I will post up what im doing in another thread on here and KB cause my rat got put farther on the back burner and for once its not for drag racing....but a good cause.
 
ok, im on my way....im using a 55 gallon barrell with 40 gallons of water and 2.5 cups of baking soda...i searched for the washing soda but couldnt find any.

Question....im barely seeing bubbles coming out of the solution after about 25 minutes. does this get more bubbly or should there already be more bubbles?

2nd Q...i stuck a leaf spring in the tank and about 8 inches of it are exposed,does that matter???
 
I did my ford 9 inch housing. I had to do one end and them flip it over. The part in the middle that got it both times came out cleaner. I should have left it in longer. If I had, it would have all been one uniform color. I may do it again before I build it.

How many amps are you using.
Sometimes if its a small part I use 2 amps. Bigger parts I bump it up to 6 amps and sometimes just to make sure everything is working I switch it to 20 amps for 15-30 min. It realy works my little battery charger though.

I rigged up a thing and did all the leafs of a spring pack at the same time.

Distance between the rods and the part makes a difference but if you have some time, and its bubbling, then its working. Leave it for a couple days. It wont hurt it.

Sounds like you have enough baking soda. I hooked up an amp meter and check the amperage with no baking soda. Then monitered the amps as I added more and more baking soda. The amps did go up. Dont know what the limit is, but again, you cant hurt it.
 
Isnt this..

Didnt someone here first introduce this,then went onto it having shown in a magazine..??
 
I have 40 gallons in the barrel. I have two 1/2 rods, one on each side of the drum connected together with a wire.
Positive clamp on the steel, Negative clamp on the part. I barely see bubbles, but i know its working as my steel rods are getting crusty. My water is a little dirty but not bad. I even stirred it up again just to see if that helps.

As far as the amps go, ive been everywhere from 2 to 40. The gauge on my charger is barely moving and i double checked it by hooking it up to my dragster battery and making sure it works.
 
Surface area on the rods makes a difference. Try some straps, maybe 2" wide or an old leaf spring or anything that gives you more surface area.

Also it only works by line of site, so more rods/straps are better. I use 3 in a 5 gallon bucket and 4 or 5 in a drum.

It also works better if they are closer together.

But if your patient, it will work even if you do nothing more. Everything you do will speed it up.

When you finally make the change that is needed your amp meter will go up on your battery charger. I think its too little surface area.

I have had to sand/grind a shinny spot on the part and the rods to make sure its a good electrical connection.

The water will get down right funky looking:eek: but no need to change it. It will keep working just fine.

I have also noticed that sometimes it starts out slow then really gets cranking.

When it comes out and you clean it with a pressure washer or like I do, a 3m pad and water hose, the remaining gunk will just fall off. Blow dry it with shop air right away because it will surface rust very quickly. I read somewhere not to use hot water or a heat gun for some reason, I forgot.
 
I have found that the amperage doesn't mater as much as the voltage. I use a variable power supply that goes from 3 V DC up to 35 V DC...the best spot seems to be right about the 6v mark as measured with a volt meter on the positive anode and in the water. My parts always come out black, anyone else get black parts?
 
Yeah, the black is iron. It was iron oxide, but now its iron. You have converted some of the rust to iron.
I usually 3M most of it off with water.

Interesting on the voltage.
I only have a 12V battery charger. Usually use 3 amps.
 
i have used this on the inside of old rifle bbls.
i put a metal rod into a plugged bbl. and fill it with solution.
oh yes
it works great!
in this application i use 2 d cells
 
resurrecting an old thread here, but it was new to me, so I tried it. Used a bucket and a battery charger. Hooked it all up per previous post instructions and let it go. And go. For about 3 days, and almost no action. Then I remembered somewhere about charging a dead battery. If the charger doesnt realize that charging is happening, it doesnt send electricity. So then I put a car battery between the charger and bucket, with jumper wires from the battery to the rusty part and to the sacrificial anode. INSTANT bubbling and within an hour, most of the rust was gone.
Just thought that little detail might help some other electrically-challenged people out there.
One note: when rinsing off the no-longer rusty part, the black iron deposits really turn skin dark for a while. I will try latex or some other rubber gloves in the future. [cl
 
Stumbled upon this great thread and had a question/idea? If using a steel tank or 55gal drum couldn't we just bolt one side of the power source right to the drum rather than using a sacrificial anode? I realize that the tank will deteriorate over time but it is has so much surface area that i don't think this will be an issue- especially for what little use most will see. Any comments or ideas?
 
Stumbled upon this great thread and had a question/idea? If using a steel tank or 55gal drum couldn't we just bolt one side of the power source right to the drum rather than using a sacrificial anode? I realize that the tank will deteriorate over time but it is has so much surface area that i don't think this will be an issue- especially for what little use most will see. Any comments or ideas?

It would work, the drum would eventually leak, but you know that.
 
I was using 1/8 wall square tub for anode and it made a hole after only a couple days of use. A barrel would not be your best friend in this as you could/would lose all your soap solution. Your anode can be any iron scrap you have laying around that you don't need.
 
Just tried this out today, started small with a carb hat full of water and a little baking soda, a rusty bolt and a small piece of scrap. Within an hour most of the rudt was gone and a quick swipe with a wire brush (I pulled the bolt out to check it) reinvigorated the process. I was so pleased I went out and bought a 32 gallon plastic trash can and started cleaning a whole host of rusted, dirty parts. Thanks to all who shared info.
 
grrreattt

wow, this is the best idea since slicing bread. i have already done my light buckets and now i have the headlight shells in the tank(s). im actually doing it all in 2 buckets. maybe tomorrow i will get a small plastic trash can. i have had to clean the steel anodes already, what a bunch of gunk that is, with the sanding wheel on my grinder.
 
thanks olcarguy, i was telling a friend about this process today and he asked me why am i removing the rust, just to have it re-rust. i told him i had nothing better to do.how does this work on cromed rings and stainless???
 

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