Questions on electrolysis rust removal

I found various instructions on the process on how to do this, but I have a couple of questions not covered in the sites/articles I found that I am hoping someone can help me with:

1) Base additive: the instructions I found called for crystal lye (such as Red Devil pipe cleaner) or "washing soda". I searched around and could not find anyone in the are that sells either. I did find some 100% liquid lye at a hardware store. What ratio do I use with the liquid lye? Is there a danger in using too much? I assume too little will make the process slow and inefficient.

2) How much current should be provided? I have a 6 amp 12 Vdc charger, also a 1.5 Amp charger. I also have a number of computer power supplies lying around.

3) How long should it take/what "maintenance should I perform while doing it.

4) As the slug develops that I have seen in photos, does that need to be removed? Does the anode (diode? I forget which) need to be cleaned periodically?

Thank you.

 

Hey, can't answer all of your questions, but liquid (or crystal) lye is highly caustic and therefore dangerous to YOU. Its a sacraficial anode (or cathode) but not diode (which control the direction of current in a circuit). I did the chemical clean, etch, seal method and it seems to be holding up quite well.

 

Thanks, KTcubed.

I am aware that it is caustic and dangerous - that's why it is normally used as a drain cleaner. :-;

Yes, I confused cathode and diode. The pole that you insert into the tank ... I can't remember if that is the anode or cathode.

 

Use Arm & Hammer Washing Soda. Hopefull thisis a link to the stuff but it's available at your super market.

This explains what you're trying to accomplish and elsewhere you'll find folks using regular old Arm & Hammer Baking soda to accomplish the same thing. Both products work. No need to use lye or really caustic stuff and by using the products I mentioned, you can toss it on the lawn without harming anything.

Almost forgot -- The 6amp battery charger should work just fine and it doesn't take a lot of juice to get rid of the rust. You'll need to clean the anode when it gets really nasty. You're probably aware that the process is "line of sight" so you might have to reposition the anode to get all side of whatever you're cleaning done.

I did see a cautionary note about this process and it referred to smoking while you're doing it. You are generating a little hydrogen gas so it might not be a good idea to peer at your progress with a cigarette in your mouth.


Hope that helped.

Mike

 

Here is a pretty good description of the process. Looks to be the same diagram that Ican provided but has a few more details in the write-up.

http://www.altelco.net/~jacil/clay/moto ... Setup.html

Also, I haven't read anywhere where you could use baking soda unless you convert it chemically. If you can't find washing soda, you can spread the baking soda on a cookie sheet and stick it in the oven. I don't remember the details that I read on time and temp but it should be easy to find. Baking soda is sodium bicarbonate and washing soda is sodium carbonate. The heat creates a reaction that converts the sodium bicarbonate to sodium carbonate.

 

Baking soda work without a problem straight from the box. 1 or 2 tablespoons per gal of water and you're in business but the exact proportion isn't critical. Example here.

 

I don't know what difference there is between using sodium carbonate and sodium bicarbonate (washing soda vs. baking soda). I did read in a couple of places that sodium bicarb was not the thing to use, although I also know it to be a very common base. It is some 25 years since my college chemistry ...

I did look in the local stores - grocery and hardware - for washing soda. No one had it. Thus the lye. I already bought and have the lye so now I am just trying to figure out how much of that to put in with 5 gal of water (it is a 5 gal tank) ... I don't know how 1tsb of crystal lye equals what amount of liquid lye.

In order to improve "line of sight" and coverage of the tank, would it be of help to attach a second charger at a different point to increase amp to the tank and a more spread out charge? I have a 6 amp and a 1.5 amp charger ...

 

Baking soda works great. Use your 1.5 amp charger and just let it sit for twelve hours at a time and clean the electrode(s) and fire it back up. When I tried useing a 10 amp charger I ended up eating through a tank so take it slow.

 

I believe you'd be okay with one tablespoon of lie. As this points out, it is the electrical current that is doing the cleaning, not the solution. The solution's only purpose is to conduct electricy and the process is "self limiting," BTW. It's not going to eat through unless the rust goes all the way through.

I'd use the 6 amp, set it on the lowest setting because we're not trying to arc weld. I don't know what you're trying to clean but I don't believe a second source anode would be a problem in the same solution. Some things can be surrounded and folks bend the metal anode to surround being cleaned. A gas tank is another story but you can just reposition the anode and let 'er rip.

Oops! Had to run to pick my kid up from track meet so I screwed up a sentence or two above. I've edited the last paragraph but the meaning was about the same.. Sorry
Tumbleweed.

Really, I see no reason why a series of sacrificial anodes couldn't be connected with a single wire and hung around a container of solution. The electricity (and rust) is still going to flow to the nearest anode.