E-Tank alternative

[squonk 41,145]

For those of you who might not want to do an e tank, don't have a good enough charger, or a good place to have a tank cooking, you can de-rust and strip paint with an office trash can and white vinegar. Plus your garage will smell like an Eye-Talin restaurant!

 

I have this wheel I want to strip and paint. Not too bad a shape but bad enough I want to clean it up. This picture is how it looked after it soaked for 4 days.

 

 

4 gallons of white vinegar in my electrolysis /office circular file can.

 

 

 

Put the wheel in Tuesday and pulled it out today. 5 minutes with the pressure washer

 

  

Edited August 20, 2022 by squonk

[ACman 7,618]

…..plus when you’re done you can add epson salt some dish soap and have a good organic weed killer to use around the house .

Edited August 20, 2022 by ACman

[ri702bill 8,327]

Mike - plug up the holes and use can use it now for a salad bowl, with breadsticks and soup, of course...

 

[stevasaurus 22,764]

Looks like you turned it into Gold.  

 

Don't spray that on weeds in the grass (like dandelions).  I still have brown spots where Chris sprayed a few weeds last Spring.  Serious about that.  

Edited August 20, 2022 by stevasaurus

[squonk 41,145]

Coated it with etching solution. When it's dry. It will be time for prime.

 

 

[squonk 41,145]

7 minutes ago, stevasaurus said:

Looks like you turned it into Gold.  

I think it was the oregano! 

[ACman 7,618]

28 minutes ago, stevasaurus said:

Looks like you turned it into Gold.  

 

Don't spray that on weeds in the grass (like dandelions).  I still have brown spots where Chris sprayed a few weeds last Spring.  Serious about that.  

if it works that good I’ll start using that . I have been getting hot mixed farm grade $$$ herbicide and had to go back three times now over spots.

 

‘’Looking good Mike  . I’ll be waiting for more updates 

[wallfish 17,011]

More expensive (but not by much) but cider vinegar seems to work even better.

Don't forget to rinse anything off well then rinse with a mild solution of water and baking soda to neutralize the acid and then dry immediately or it will continue to rust.

This method works great for the inside of metal gas tanks. 

[EB-80/8inPA 1,653]

This topic is further proof that one never knows what kind of useful information is likely to pop up around here.  I’m trying that weed killer for sure.

(s)

[squonk 41,145]

Primed for action!

 

 

First coat of Almond Joy!

 

 

 

[squonk 41,145]

1 hour ago, ACman said:

…..plus when you’re done you can add epson salt some dish soap and have a good organic weed killer to use around the house .

I have a nice big funnel with a screen. going to put it back in the jugs and save it for another time. 

[Pullstart 62,905]

Am I the only one here that nearly dry heaves at the topic of vinegar?  Yuck!  I can’t even be in the house when my coffee machine is getting a cleaning!

[squonk 41,145]

31 minutes ago, Pullstart said:

Am I the only one here that nearly dry heaves at the topic of vinegar?  Yuck!  I can’t even be in the house when my coffee machine is getting a cleaning!

Yes you are! Now we know your kyrptonite! 

[squonk 41,145]

Almonded and cleared.

 

[Pullstart 62,905]

31 minutes ago, squonk said:

Yes you are! Now we know your kyrptonite! 

Vinegar would eat kryptonite!

[ri702bill 8,327]

42 minutes ago, squonk said:

Almonded and cleared.

 

Did you clear coat the entire inside of the rim or just the edges and the outside??

[squonk 41,145]

Only the outside and edges

[8ntruck 7,015]

Does that organic weed killer work on creeping Charlie?

[sjoemie himself 3,068]

4 hours ago, Pullstart said:

dry heaves

You and me both!

My mom cleaned floors and sinks with it.. just what you want to smell when you got home 

 

@squonk thanks for sharing. Do you know if this works for stuff that's powdercoated aswell?

Edited August 20, 2022 by sjoemie himself

[EB-80/8inPA 1,653]

6 hours ago, squonk said:

Primed for action!

 

 

First coat of Almond Joy!

 

 

 

Sometimes you feel like a nut,

sometimes you don’t!

[cod 120]

Oddly enough, this past weekend I was trying to clean some rust out of a steel gas can and my attempts with electrolysis were rather dismal. The main issue seemed to be that I couldn't get or keep the voltage high enough for the process to really work.  Any recommendations on what type of charger may lend itself to future projects?  I have an Allstate model from the 50's that runs at 6amps and can do both 6 and 12 volt batteries. It kept tripping off so I tried a new model but without a battery to charge it wouldn't come on. I finally dumped a mixture of vinegar and salt, added some pea gravel, and then shook the can for about 30 minutes, and it cleaned up nicely. I think I'll try and coat the metal to prevent to rust so any info on rust blockers that can stand up to gas would be great too.

 

Thanks

[ineedanother 1,369]

35 minutes ago, cod said:

Oddly enough, this past weekend I was trying to clean some rust out of a steel gas can and my attempts with electrolysis were rather dismal.

 

Electrolysis is a line-of-sight process (surface of the anode to surface of the cathode). Unless you suspended an anode in the tank, your efforts would not have any impact on the inside of the tank.

Edited August 23, 2022 by ineedanother

[ineedanother 1,369]

45 minutes ago, ineedanother said:

Unless you suspended an anode in the tank

 

Which is something I would likely do BTW...

 

I like electrolysis. Unlike acids or mechanical cleaning (sanding, grinding, shaking a bunch of rocks around), the remaining steel is preserved.

[wallfish 17,011]

15 minutes ago, ineedanother said:

 

Which is something I would likely do BTW...

 

I like electrolysis. Unlike acids or mechanical cleaning (sanding, grinding, shaking a bunch of rocks around), the remaining steel is preserved.

What do you mean by "steel is preserved" ? If you leave that black stuff it will end up in the carb? How do you get all that mess out that's stuck in there?

Just like a vinegar bath if you don't dry it off immediately after rinsing - the surface will begin to rust rather quickly.

The inside of most metal tanks aren't heavily rusted so the vinegar works quick too. Most over night. Plus it's no where near as a messy clean up. It's not hazardous waste so it's rather simple to dispose of or re-bottle and re-use. (It does get weaker though) Plus no hazards of the off gassing from the electrolysis. I have lit those gasses just to see what's going on. I typically fill with some 2 stroke oil in the gas to coat the entire inside of the tank which seems to work well too.

I have done both and absolutely prefer the vinegar method for inside tank rust removal but that's just me. Try them both and see what works best for you.

[ineedanother 1,369]

9 minutes ago, wallfish said:

What do you mean by "steel is preserved" ? If you leave that black stuff it will end up in the carb? How do you get all that mess out that's stuck in there?

Just like a vinegar bath if you don't dry it off immediately after rinsing - the surface will begin to rust rather quickly.

The inside of most metal tanks aren't heavily rusted so the vinegar works quick too. Most over night. Plus it's no where near as a messy clean up. It's not hazardous waste so it's rather simple to dispose of or re-bottle and re-use. (It does get weaker though) Plus no hazards of the off gassing from the electrolysis. I have lit those gasses just to see what's going on. I typically fill with some 2 stroke oil in the gas to coat the entire inside of the tank which seems to work well too.

I have done both and absolutely prefer the vinegar method for inside tank rust removal but that's just me. Try them both and see what works best for you.

 

I'm not a chemist so I'm not looking for a debate necessarily, but you're advocating the use of an acid (proven method, again, no argument because it does provide results), but electrolysis removes the rust without taking surface metal which (most) acids do. They all require cleanup. If you prefer using vinegar, then use vinegar, or whatever acid you chose. I prefer using electrolysis and think it's best, especially when trying to preserve what I am restoring.