Electrolysis Rust Removal - Dialup Beware

I realize that this has been covered before here and other places. Thank you to those that showed my the way to easy rust removal.

I would like to share my successful attempt at rust removal via electrolysis on the transmission support crossmember.

I replaced all the driveshaft U-Joints last week on my CJ5 and as part of getting to them I had to remove the skid pan and crossmember. I could not remove the skid pan as the bolts were all beat up, so I pulled the cross member and ground off the bolts holding the skid pan.

The crossmember was pretty rusty so I decided to clean it up before I reinstalled it. I decided to give electrolysis a try.

As I write this article the skid pan is undergoing to same process.

As a quick refresher: This process uses a plastic tub of plain water, washing soda (in my case baking soda b/c I couldn't find washing soda, a 12v DC power source (car battery charger or household plug transformer), sacrificial steel, and the part to be cleaned.
Mix baking soda into the water in a significant quantity to allow the efficient transfer of ions (I just dumped a good bit in there - its not rocket science!). Place the sacrificial metal pieces (anodes) around the part to be cleaned without touching. Place the part (cathode) to be cleaned (fully submerged if possible) in the middle of the solution without touching. Connect the negative DC lead to the part to be cleaned. Connect the positive DC Lead to the anodes(s).
The electric current will force a non-toxic chemical reaction that removes the rust from the part leaving clean steel.
Don't use stainless anodes, they will make the water toxic and illegal to dump on your lawn or down the drain.

On with the pictures!

Crossmember before picture (attached to PVC pipe to hang)


Sacrificial Anodes - made to sit in a shallow tub originally, hence their shape.
Plain old Flatbar.


Large Trash Can w/ PVC hangers
After going to Wally Word to get baking soda (big tub in laundry aisle) I saw the trash can in my driveway and thought, "Perfect!")


Ready for water and baking soda.
Notice the two anodes, one on each side. There needs to be line of sight between the surfaces of your part and the anodes.


DC Power Source
I found this in a bin at my house. Output: 12V - 2Amps
Car Battery Chargers work well, but this was the perfect power output.
I stripped the ends and added alligator clips.


Its Working!!
Notice the hydrogen bubbles forming on the part.


A Couple Hours later


The Next Afternoon
Notice how my trashcan is blown out. Brace it against something, they can't hold themselves up once full of water. (Don't ask me how I know)
Also, I connected to two anodes together with a test lead I already had lying around (plain old wire with alligator clips on both ends). Then I only had to connect the positive lead to one of the anodes.


More Scum


Cleaned and Sandblasted to get all the junk off.
After removal, scrub down the part, the old rust and scale just comes right off. I finished it off with a little sandblasting.


Painted

 

looks great, thanks for the right up. I am planning on doing the same thing to a bunch of stuff.

 

That's so pretty its a shame to mount it under the jeep.

 

looks great!


one question.
if you have to sandblast it afterwards anyway.
wouldnt just sandblasting do the same thing?
just curious.

 

Tell me about it! I've got the skid pan soaking now, thats really a shame.
I debated long and hard about whether to do the skid pan. Its in really good shape because of all the transmission oil that has leaked all over it and sealed it up. I scrubbed it down good with soap and have it soaking in the "electrolysis tank". It may end up being worse off, but oh well, it'll match!

The best part of this project is that I had everything except the baking soda just lying around the house. This project cost me about $5.

Thanks Guys!

 

Good Question. I started to sandbast it to begin with, but I have a crappy open bucket blaster (Freebie), it would have taken forever. This cleaned it up with no sweat, and I've been wanting to do this for a while.



The sandblast after just removed the slight bit of orange rust that wanted to form after I pulled it out.
This would be a great project for someone without a sandblaster as well.

 

Nice writeup!
I've been experimenting with the same thing lately. I've noticed you've got to clean rust off the anodes pretty regular if you do a lot of it.
Regarding the sandblasting, it doesn't have to be done but makes a nicer finished project. I found after rust removal a wire wheel or brush with just a moment or two of work makes quick work of what's left. The sand blasting or glass beading definitely leaves a nicer finish, but if you don't have access to that equipment it's not a huge deal. You definitely want to get your parts coated with primer, paint, whatever fairly quickly or they will start rusting again pretty quick.

 

use stainless anodes or even better a stainless container as the annode (old deep sinks work well) and you will not have to clean them.

 

I put the frame of my 1974 CJ6 in a box made with 2 x 12's. I lined it with a single ply roofing material. You are supposed to use arm & hammer washing soda not baking soda. It is a laundry soap. The website with instructions gives aratio of 1/3 to 1/2 cup of washing soda mixed with 5 gals of water. I used a battery charger set at 50A. ( the ammater on the charger varied from 10 to 30 amps.) It worked. I power washed the frame. It was black with no rust at all on the frame. I had to turn the frame over to completely submerse the frame in water. I used #14 wire to each electrode in the water. I had about 20 electrodes. I used rebar because it was cheap enough. The electrodes wer fastened to 2x4's sitting across the top of the 2x12 box. i did this about 3 weeks ago. I would do it again. I will post again with the website about electrolysis.

 

The website for electrolysis I found helpful is:
www.antique-engines.com/electrol.asp

stainless steel is supposed to be toxic according to the site.

 

All the web sites and information I've been able to dig up are very specific about not using stainless as it is toxic and illegal in some areas.

 

Agreed, Washing Soda is better (also noted in my original post), but I couldn't find any in town. So I used Baking Soda. I believe I read that Washing Soda has 4X the ionic activity, so I just used more Baking Soda. Use what you got. They both work.

Love to see your large frame setup.

Nickmil,
Agreed about the sandblasting. It made for a quick final cleanup, a wire brush would work just as well. With all the curves and such on this piece sandblasting was an easy solution.

 

i use something on the same principal to clean old cruddy military surplus rifle barrels.

nothing like cleaning something on the molecular level.

home made electronic bore cleaner is what it is called if anyone wants to google it.

 

I have read alot of websites on this subject and nobody yet points to a source for this info

I can find nothing on any reputable site that points to any significant ammount of chromium being released from stainless steel during corosion. i have seen a stainless cooking pot that has been used for this process a few hundred times and it shows no sign of any corosion which would appear as a dulling of the mirror finish inside the pot or thinning of the wall thickness.

upon further reading, Chromium takes two forms trivalent (non soluable in water) and Hexivalent (soluable in water). the chromium contained in stainless is considered in the zero valance state because it is sharing electrons with the atoms around it. in order to release it into the water as Hexivailant Chromium (associated with lung cancer in humans) the metal would have to be severly heated (welding/grinding/burning), electrolisys would only be able to release trivalent chromium if severe corsion of the metal occured and being insoluable in water would precipitate to the bottom as sludge.

I would be curious to see a real test performed to determine if this is a myth or not.

 

Sounds like a job for Mythbusters.


Or a real group of scientists, I think mythbusters would be more entertaining though.

 

At the end of the show they would have to hook up 600V @ 10A with 10 lbs of stainless just to see what would happen. R) And then maybe see if they could light the off-gasses on fire.

 

It would not be a mythbusters show without at least one explosion and Tory hurting himself at least twice R)

 

Sorry Howard but it ****es me off when someone posts something on their website that they read somwhere on another website that heard it from another website and it is now gospel. what ever happened to posting references to the technical info you post on your web site. every site I found on rust removal by electrolysis says they heard it somewhere...

the internet is an evel thing:evil: