I have been experimenting with electrolysis to clean metal.
These days I have more time on my hands than I want or need. My family owns some land and a house in Texas, where we are having the bathroom refurbished. We own some antique cast-iron tubs, but the metal claw feet are rusted and the paint has largely flaked away.
So, to take up some of my spare time I have been using electrolysis to clean the feet.
In short, electrolysis “involves using the passage of an electric current in an alkaline solution, or electrolyte, to do the job of trying to reconvert some of the corrosion products back into sound iron, whilst loosening the remaining corrosion by converting it to a loosely bound compound.”
Basically, you hook a cathode, or negative current point, to the object to be cleaned, and an anode, or positive current point to some other expendable metal and submerge them both in some kind of alkaline solution, all in a plastic bucket. The anode and cathode should not actually touch. You then turn the current on…
…and wait.
While it is interesting process, real life does not run on the time table of a Michael Bay movie, so this process takes a little while.
Bubbles – teeny, tiny bubbles, like in the song – form on the object that is undergoing electrolysis. If they are forming on the expendable metal anode, then you’ve got the apparatus hooked up backwards.
The bubbles, by the way, are pure oxygen and hydrogen. So far I’ve not generated enough to pose a fire hazard. But I keep trying.
Before I started with the tub feet – or an antique iron skillet and old kettle for tea, both of which need cleaning – I tested this on some rusty rebar.
I’m using a copper anode – from a heavy wire I stripped the plastic off – because it seems to conduct electricity better than iron. I’ve also tried using baking soda, white vinegar and some granulated pool treatment bleach as an alkaline. I read somewhere on the internet that baking soda would work, but they guy who posted that did not know what he was talking about. The granulated pool treatment bleach – I only did this outside – turned the water foamy, so much so that the foam formed a skin on top of the water. But I could not tell that it was being effective (or really doing anything) on the rebar I was experimenting on. So I am sticking to using white vinegar for the moment.
I bought a set of four-in-a-pack wires, with alligator clips at either end, at Radio Shack for about $5. We also own a car battery charger, and a spare car battery, which I use to deliver the current. I get results I feel I can let out of my sight at about 12V and below.
When I was testing with the granulated pool treatment bleach, I wore rubber gloves. But the white vinegar is so mild, so usually do not bother with gloves when working with it, I just wash my hands a lot.
The only goof up so far was when I had it hooked up to the battery charger and the anode and cathode touched directly. The current without the resistance of the alkaline solution, the current heated the wires enough to melt the plastic of the little wires with the alligator clips. I was standing over it was the time and quickly unplugged the charged and unhooked the wires, so the damage was minimum.
I also discovered an old metal pot was copper plate over what is probably steel or iron. Intending to just clean rust off the iron handle, I submerged the pot in the container, hooked it up and wandered off to mow the front lawn. I came back, unhooked it all, fished the pot out, went to the sink to wash the handle with soap and water… and I started seeing bright, coppery pink all along the sides of the pot itself all the patina of tarnish and decades of dirt came off.
There is also something masculine about this. I don’t even need any damned power tools, I use raw electricity to clean my stuff!![:]](http://www.enworld.org/forum/images/smilies/devious.png "Devious :]")
Once I get a better handle on this, I may try metal plating…
These days I have more time on my hands than I want or need. My family owns some land and a house in Texas, where we are having the bathroom refurbished. We own some antique cast-iron tubs, but the metal claw feet are rusted and the paint has largely flaked away.
So, to take up some of my spare time I have been using electrolysis to clean the feet.
In short, electrolysis “involves using the passage of an electric current in an alkaline solution, or electrolyte, to do the job of trying to reconvert some of the corrosion products back into sound iron, whilst loosening the remaining corrosion by converting it to a loosely bound compound.”
Basically, you hook a cathode, or negative current point, to the object to be cleaned, and an anode, or positive current point to some other expendable metal and submerge them both in some kind of alkaline solution, all in a plastic bucket. The anode and cathode should not actually touch. You then turn the current on…
…and wait.
While it is interesting process, real life does not run on the time table of a Michael Bay movie, so this process takes a little while.
Bubbles – teeny, tiny bubbles, like in the song – form on the object that is undergoing electrolysis. If they are forming on the expendable metal anode, then you’ve got the apparatus hooked up backwards.
The bubbles, by the way, are pure oxygen and hydrogen. So far I’ve not generated enough to pose a fire hazard. But I keep trying.
Before I started with the tub feet – or an antique iron skillet and old kettle for tea, both of which need cleaning – I tested this on some rusty rebar.
I’m using a copper anode – from a heavy wire I stripped the plastic off – because it seems to conduct electricity better than iron. I’ve also tried using baking soda, white vinegar and some granulated pool treatment bleach as an alkaline. I read somewhere on the internet that baking soda would work, but they guy who posted that did not know what he was talking about. The granulated pool treatment bleach – I only did this outside – turned the water foamy, so much so that the foam formed a skin on top of the water. But I could not tell that it was being effective (or really doing anything) on the rebar I was experimenting on. So I am sticking to using white vinegar for the moment.
I bought a set of four-in-a-pack wires, with alligator clips at either end, at Radio Shack for about $5. We also own a car battery charger, and a spare car battery, which I use to deliver the current. I get results I feel I can let out of my sight at about 12V and below.
When I was testing with the granulated pool treatment bleach, I wore rubber gloves. But the white vinegar is so mild, so usually do not bother with gloves when working with it, I just wash my hands a lot.
The only goof up so far was when I had it hooked up to the battery charger and the anode and cathode touched directly. The current without the resistance of the alkaline solution, the current heated the wires enough to melt the plastic of the little wires with the alligator clips. I was standing over it was the time and quickly unplugged the charged and unhooked the wires, so the damage was minimum.
I also discovered an old metal pot was copper plate over what is probably steel or iron. Intending to just clean rust off the iron handle, I submerged the pot in the container, hooked it up and wandered off to mow the front lawn. I came back, unhooked it all, fished the pot out, went to the sink to wash the handle with soap and water… and I started seeing bright, coppery pink all along the sides of the pot itself all the patina of tarnish and decades of dirt came off.
There is also something masculine about this. I don’t even need any damned power tools, I use raw electricity to clean my stuff!
Once I get a better handle on this, I may try metal plating…
