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Ultrasonic cleaner fluid suggestions

Some photos.

Second one shows the basket from other cleaner, this thing is huge! I have it on a wheeled cart which is the perfect height to drain it. It would be almost to much carry it over to the sink and drain like the smaller one so this should work well. Need to find a shelf for it between uses.

Overall pleased. Lid and tank are light gauge so the tank probably is as well, but hey it was 200 not 1200 and it's only going to see occasional home shop use. Cleaning action seems aggressive. Last photo shows a spindle with room spare - so far so good!


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Mcgyver said:
It would be almost to much carry it over to the sink and drain like the smaller one so this should work well. Need to find a shelf for it between uses.
Click to expand...

Keith Appleton keeps & uses his on the counter next the the sink with the drain over the edge of the sink. If you only have a utility sink you could add a drain board on the side to be a home for the cleaner.
 
Ok, I thought I should put the ultrasonic cleaner through its paces before I break down the cardboard box.
It's so big I had to put a bucket in it to bring up the level of the cleaning solution, I dumped in a gallon of Zep industrial cleaner, their masonry cleaner and heavy duty degreaser are all the same stuff, Lye or sodium hydroxide.
I had to take it outside the garage because of the fumes.
The test piece is from a Logan lathe, hasn't been cleaned in 70yrs, with the heat on full I let it cook for an hour, probably could have pulled it out in half that time.
The solution only came half the way up the piece but there was no definitive clean line because the vapors melted the rest of the grease off, I was impressed.
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While the solution was still hot I threw in a handful of greasy rusty fasteners, half an hour later they are clean, the little bit of rust that was left on them came off immediately on the wire wheel.
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I emptied the reservoir of the lye cleaner, you can see heat marks where the heat element is touching the SS tub, I will open it up and see if I can reposition the element.
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Next I thew in a couple of gallons of citric acid and salt solution that I made up this morning, it doesn't work very quickly when the water is cold, the change gears were soaking in it for a few hrs before I dumped it into the ultra sonic bath,
Half an hour lather I rinsed them off, even more impressed.
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Things I don't like, the lid is just a little thicker than tinfoil, the plastic hose adapter is garbage, just throw it away.
Thinking I might by a second one to put up on the shelf for when I burn this one out, it's going to get a lot of use.
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ChazzC said:
Keith Appleton keeps & uses his on the counter next the the sink with the drain over the edge of the sink. If you only have a utility sink you could add a drain board on the side to be a home for the cleaner.
Click to expand...

The problem is, I have no side. No side to the sink that is. This small room doubles as wood shop and beside the sink is the parking spot for table saw, drill press and bandsaw. This will have to find a home on a shelf and used on the cart like above. If that ends up a pita, I might weld a bracket and mount it on the wall over top of the table saw near the sink (parking spot, not where its used, everything is on casters) A 6' length of garden house on the sink faucet made filling it easy.
 
I got a Vevor 6 litre several years ago and am quite happy with it. Not big but it is easy to store and works great on small parts like a chain saw carburetor.
I tried diesel, varsol, soap and water, SuperClean degreaser, and pine-sol (50%water). I prefer either the pine-sol or varsol. Maybe I’ll try the 55$ cleaner from Northwest (Amazon). Next time, for rust, I plan to try 100gm citric acid with 40gm baking soda per litre of water (see CHMW thread below)

The good news is - now I know where to go if my little cleaner is too small:
Stuart Samuel said:
Ordered
Click to expand...

PatrickT

Tips/Techniques Post in thread 'Rust removal on the cheap, but better than evaporust'

Really great info!! I have a ton of stuff to dip, this will save a ton of money. Thanks for sharing the vid!
 
I found Simple Green in Vulcan at the Home Hardware. Same area/shelve as the Spray Nine, oven cleaner and other such. The Pine Sol and such is rite there too. Note, this was a few weeks ago.
Anyone tell me what the size of these 30lt. unit are on the inside? Take an 11 inch brake rotor?
 
Bandit said:
I found Simple Green in Vulcan at the Home Hardware. Same area/shelve as the Spray Nine, oven cleaner and other such. The Pine Sol and such is rite there too. Note, this was a few weeks ago.
Anyone tell me what the size of these 30lt. unit are on the inside? Take an 11 inch brake rotor?
Click to expand...
Forgot to pick mine up from Walmart when I was over there yesterday, will swing by today after work, pick it up, and let you know.
 
Thanks, now if if I could find and afford one to take a model "A". LOL. Dam, more money coming in, heated pool/hot tub in the "off season". May have to skip the Pine Sol!
 
Bandit said:
I found Simple Green in Vulcan at the Home Hardware. Same area/shelve as the Spray Nine, oven cleaner and other such. The Pine Sol and such is rite there too. Note, this was a few weeks ago.
Anyone tell me what the size of these 30lt. unit are on the inside? Take an 11 inch brake rotor?
Click to expand...
Being a bit conservative, I'd call it 18 1/2" x 10 1/4" x about 7" deep.
 
Bandit said:
Take an 11 inch brake rotor?
Click to expand...
Stuart Samuel said:
Being a bit conservative, I'd call it 18 1/2" x 10 1/4" x about 7" deep.
Click to expand...

So it would prolly fit on an angle.

But my question is: Why do you want to ultrasonicly clean a brake rotor? Did you get silicone on it?

What nefarious thing are you up to now Bandit?

Mill tramming? If so, you are WWAAYY better off buying a new one. The used tolerance is 3-6 thou depending on car make/model. New are subthou. Depending on the car model, they are not expensive. A cheap new non-ventilated rear rotor is the best tramming tool ever!
 
Thanks for the measurements Stuart Samuel!
No, I am not tramming a mill. Not yet anyway. Working on a model A rod along with the mill project and 99 other projects
Anyway the "A" has rusted rotors, including the inner bores for the bearings, the bearings and the spindles. Now while I could go out and buy new rotors, bearings and such, the main "problem" is figuring out what I am working with. Cleaning up the spindles is old hat, elbow grease, emery cloth, wire brushes.., etc. So I need things clean, able to be put together, have to check the rotor on the spindle, confirm rite bearings are in the rotor, the rotor is spaced away from the spindle back rite amount, deside weather to use a ford or a chevy caliper, get the proper caliper mount to go from the pinto/mustang 2 spindle to the caliper. Now, as the mustang 2 front end is not a completely stock unit, the spindles are stock (appear to measure up rite), the rotors are off a ford monarck, larger then stock mustang/pinto (early years). While many of these things have been done by others before, and there is some info on it, the small details are not always there. And this is while I am waiting for an engine to replace the full of rust one that came in it. Likely to be a small block chevy, but this will weigh more then the v6 that came in the door, (full of rust). More weight on the front may require a change of coil springs to level up control arms. Need the engine so steering can be revamped and clear the engine this time! Need the steering roughed in so seating can be figured, as the owner is not small, need leg room to operate brakes etc. Seating will be moved at least 6 inches back of stock and lowered. Can not rough out the seats as no floor, no floor cause no body sill frame to put it on, (large amounts of air in areas).
In other word a job that will take a while, owner not sure what he wants, and not knowing how to do things. So try to spend money once, limit the number of repeats to get to an end point, make sure owner has his input, and not always say " can't do that". He wants a certain look, but still a "rat rod".
However!?, always one of them or more! The car will have to be inspected as was not registered and licensed, previous person building unknown, some things a "little strange". So, try to do things rite, once, get "IT" passed, though inspection, etc. Then he can "be wild"?????.
And another major project has surfaced, pushing all projects back by at least 5, maybe 10.
Not always Fun, FUN, FUN!
Another long story.
THE HOPE is a larger ultra sonic cleaner may help with some of the car stuff, mill clean up, rebuild, and some motorcycle projects that are lined up against the wall. To say nothing of "all" the other things I would like to try or do!!! I know, some of the things are dreams, some of the things "could" disappear in the ultra sound. Some may walk back out the door, I do keep that locked!! just to keep people, projects out ,and a very big dog for an alarm by it!!.
Time to sign out.
 
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Followup.

Seeing as how clever a fellow Dan is, I tried the pinesol. Fairly light concentration, 1/2 bottle into the 30l tank. Ran it heated for about 1/2 an hour. It did a great job, but it also stained the parts.

Here's a shot while disassembling the HS, everything nice and bright



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and the parts after cleaning .... a new bluing formula!

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It also took the paint off - while ultrasonic cleaning will that, it seem aggressive because of the pinesol.




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No harm no foul as the bluing won't matter for internal parts and the HS is getting painted anyway, but if using Pinesol be aware of this.

It is so nice having a tank this big. Fits a whole spindle or HS!

Did some more today and used the Zep purple cleaner Skippy showed, well diluted. It had been my standby but also the process that led to rust literally seconds after rinsing. This time, laundry tub full of water, part picked from clean, blown off, swished in water, blown off, the dropped in a bin of alcohol. Seems expensive using so much whisky (kidding) er methyl hydrate but I have a still at work so can eventually get most (distilling doesn't get it all) of the water out and keep reusing it.

Good results today and no flash rust with that process so carry on this way until something better appears
 
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That has been my experience. If the result was just blue-ing it might not be too bad, maybe even desirable. But I had some parts with fur texture (aka rust). Maybe hardened and/or polished/ground parts are less susceptible? You should try some other coupons while you have your brew. Plain carbon steel, cast iron. I think my 6061 turned a dull etch matt tone. Again may be desirable for aesthetics or pre-anodizing but just know its potentially there.
 
:oops: Sorry about the paint, and staining problems.....I've never used it on anything painted, so I had no idea. Mostly just small engine/motorcycle/snowmobile carbs. My friend that recommended it to me only ever used it for the same stuff too. I'd never noticed steel parts getting blued like that.

The bluing is an interesting uninteded consequence, that might be a usefull feature moving forward. I wonder why? Leaded steel, or some other alloy reacting, but which?

I wish I would have jumped on that ultrasonic deal. I really need to get a big one like that.
 
Mcgyver said:
These lower cost large offshore ultrasonic cleaners were mentioned in another thread. Kind of want one. Use would be cleaning anything that fit in it such as machine parts

Seems to me the ideal fluid is low cost, no vapour or harmful stuff evaporating (indoor use) and leaves a bit of a rust protecting film. Here's what I have used in my small cleaner, but none seem ideal for a larger tank.

1) Water with some degreaser or Simple Green.​


Works well, but after rinsing, parts start to rust in seconds. No exaggeration. For clock parts I quickly rinse and dump in alcohol, but for a large cleaning, it would be too big a tank of alcohol.

2) Solvents (kerosene, mineral spirits, alcohol).​


Works well, but don't like heating solvents and air quality (this is in the basement) is a concern. I could fill and drain the tank every time, but that is a lot of extra time.

3) Water with parts placed in a glass beaker or test tube containing solvent.​


Works great (ultrasonic waves travel well though glass, a lot less so with plastic) but not going to work for large stuff (why I want a large tank)

4) Commercial ultrasonic cleaning fluids, e.g. L&R.​


Expensive enough i'm reluctant enough to use it in the small cleaner let alone a large one.

So...... is there some silver bullet solution that isn't too much money, doesn't fill the house with smelly VOC vapours, works and leaves a bit of a rust protecting film?
Click to expand...
New Member. Simple Green bad for Aluminumn blackens Carb Bodies. BUT the simple Green PURPLE works surprisingly Better. I use a cup with a tablespoon Dawn Dish Soap with Distilled Water in my Ultrasonic Cleaner with Great Success Primarily Clean all sorts of carburetors for my Drag bikes and Sled Engines.
 

I have used this ultrasonic carb cleaner, I have a 30l tank, I place the carbs in a smaller sealed plastic container with the cleaning solution and then fill the tank with tap water.
For very dirty carbs this works much better than PineSol without the smell. Reuse the cleaning solution over and over again.
 
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