Very interesting setup. I'm sharing this with my buddy and we will set one of these up in one of our shops. I really like not having to use elbow grease and harsh chemicals that splash over everything. Keep up the great videos.
Thanks John. I'm no expert by any means but this seems to work pretty well. One thing to keep in mind is good ventilation, which I neglected to mention in the video. Although the amount of hydrogen released is extremely low, it's important to have a fan or something running just to make sure it doesn't collect in one spot and become an explosion hazard. A simple box fan is more than adequate to disperse it - just keep the air in the shop moving and you'll be good to go.
Great video. I have 4 vintage tool chest that I will be restoring. I think after soaking I will use my pressure washer to clean the loose paint. I will be using a 48 volt golf cart charger. What is the source for the graphite?
@terrycannon570 pressure washer definitely makes the loose paint easier to deal with! It's been a minute, but I got those graphite rods on ebay. Lots of various sellers had them listed back then. I'd imagine several still do. They worked pretty well but they tended to erode pretty quickly and turned the water really dark. If push comes to shove, just use some old scrap steel if you have any laying around. Brake rotors work fine if you have a big enough tank to accommodate a couple of them. Thanks for watching, much appreciated!
Hi JB, Have you had any issues with painting cast iron parts after the electralisis process? I've restored several old tools using an e-tank with great success. Now I have a set of cast iron feet from an antique cast iron tub. I've seen a few comments about the electrolyte leaching into cast iron and later leaching out, ruining the paint's adhesion. This is a paying job so I really don't want to screw it up... Thanks for any insight you can provide.
Hi Tag, this is a great question! I have had really good success painting over parts that were electrolytically stripped. I think the biggest key to the whole thing is to make sure that you de-grease any parts going into the solution really, really well before they get anywhere near the tank. The process will usually dissolve grease and grime to a certain degree, so if that is allowed into the tank then it will be circulating in the water and can leech into the metal a little bit, causing issues down the line. Another big factor is using too much washing soda/TSP in the tank. You really don't need all that much of either chemical to have good electrical continuity in the solution, and having too much can cause the heavier salts to precipitate out of the solution and cause a crust around the rim of the tank (in this video, the solution I was using had way too much TSP in it!). If that happens, the chemicals will definitely leech into the base metal of the part you're stripping and can cause adhesion issues. Less is almost always preferable in this case - you can always add more chemical if you need to, but once it's in there, it's in there until you drain and refill. A good rule of thumb I've been using lately is 1 tablespoon of washing soda and one half tablespoon of TSP per gallon of water (so 1.5 tablespoons per gallon, total). This provides a good conductive solution, and the TSP helps with flash rusting a little bit (you still need to dry your parts thoroughly upon removal though). Adjust the concentration as necessary if you aren't getting good conductivity, but going much beyond 3 tbs/gal will oversaturate the solution pretty quickly. Rinse all parts in clean water, then dry using heat if possible. From there, use a good DTM primer and the topcoat of your choice and you should be good. I stripped my entire Logan lathe using electrolysis (disassembled of course), and primed/repainted afterwords. I used rustoleum professional primer and paint, and other than normal wear I've had no issues with adhesion, even with cutting oil and swarf getting all over it over the last 4 years. Sorry for the long winded response, but I hope that's helpful for you!
@@AllThingsMech No need to apologize, this is a great answer full of important Information! Thank you. Also, can you give me some guidance on how much to charge for 4 heavily rusted cast iron tub feet? Just rust removal, no painting. Thanks again for sharing your expertise.
@@tagsmyser4299 being completely honest, I've never done any electrolysis for a client - only personal projects. However, I'll spitball a bit here and apply the same logic to this as I would to something like a fabrication or repair project: The more time, complexity, and difficulty there is, the more I would charge. In this case, I'd evaluate the overall cost by the general condition of the cast iron parts, and what exactly the customer wants as the end result. How big are they? How heavily rusted are they? If it's just surface rust they can probably go directly into the tank, but heavy rust/scaling will need to be manually removed before electrolysis to 1) evaluate the base metal to make sure there aren't any huge defects/cracks/damage/pitting that would be made worse by the process and 2) to get a better overall end result (the less total rust there is, the less work your power supply and solution have to do, which makes everything work better and provides a better product in the end). Is there only rust, or will they need to be degreased/stripped of other contaminates before they go into the tank? I know you said you wouldn't be painting them, but does the customer want any other finishing work done once they come out of the tank, like wire wheeling, sanding, filing to remove casting marks/defects, etc? In the end it's entirely your call, but I would say a base price of $75-$100 would be fair for a basic prep and strip job. If the customer wants additional detail work done, your time is valuable and you should charge according to how many hours you'd need to put into the project. Also let them know that working with old cast iron can be tricky business - it's very tough stuff, but the grain structure of the metal is very good at hiding cracks and casting defects that might not be visible at all during inspection, but could appear during the electrolysis process. Cracks aren't the end of the world and can be repaired most of the time, just make sure they are aware of the risks and won't flip out on you if you discover something that they weren't previously aware of. I hope that gives you a little bit of an idea. Of course, feel free to adjust my suggestions however you need to in order to secure the job, but don't undervalue yourself. This is a pretty niche process, and lots of folks think electrolysis is as simple as throwing something in a vat and letting it cook. But, the prep and post work is where the elbow grease comes in (and, as such, is where the money should be made). It's incredibly satisfying to bring old items back around though - sounds like a very cool project! 😎
@AlexKost-tq6bj yes, heat will definitely speed up the process. I generally don't add an external heat source simply because there are already so many wires and leads in the tank, and the fact that the process itself creates a pretty warm solution over time so I haven't ever found it necessary in my case. Evaporation also becomes a bigger concern with a heated solution, but as long as you're monitoring your levels fairly often and keeping the tank topped off as needed, you should be fine.
Technically yes, the process will remove rust from chromed parts. The problem is more about the hydrogen gas that gets released during the process...while electrolysis won't actually remove chrome, the gas can end up getting under the chrome plating and cause it to bubble and flake, making the part look terrible. I personally wouldn't use it to clean chrome but your mileage might vary.
There's a big chunk of land for sale right next to the tracks out here near Osino, I was half tempted to call Sam and tell him he should build a B&P shop out here that I could run for him. 🤣
Thank you for explaining it. My good man, it helps so much knowing the science behind the madness.
Madness indeed! Restoration work is a bit of an addiction, but a good one. 😎
Very interesting setup. I'm sharing this with my buddy and we will set one of these up in one of our shops. I really like not having to use elbow grease and harsh chemicals that splash over everything. Keep up the great videos.
Thanks John. I'm no expert by any means but this seems to work pretty well. One thing to keep in mind is good ventilation, which I neglected to mention in the video. Although the amount of hydrogen released is extremely low, it's important to have a fan or something running just to make sure it doesn't collect in one spot and become an explosion hazard. A simple box fan is more than adequate to disperse it - just keep the air in the shop moving and you'll be good to go.
Old bed frames are hard to remove paint from to
Great video. I have 4 vintage tool chest that I will be restoring. I think after soaking I will use my pressure washer to clean the loose paint. I will be using a 48 volt golf cart charger. What is the source for the graphite?
@terrycannon570 pressure washer definitely makes the loose paint easier to deal with! It's been a minute, but I got those graphite rods on ebay. Lots of various sellers had them listed back then. I'd imagine several still do. They worked pretty well but they tended to erode pretty quickly and turned the water really dark. If push comes to shove, just use some old scrap steel if you have any laying around. Brake rotors work fine if you have a big enough tank to accommodate a couple of them. Thanks for watching, much appreciated!
What is your mixture ratio 😊 yet
Hi JB,
Have you had any issues with painting cast iron parts after the electralisis process? I've restored several old tools using an e-tank with great success.
Now I have a set of cast iron feet from an antique cast iron tub. I've seen a few comments about the electrolyte leaching into cast iron and later leaching out, ruining the paint's adhesion. This is a paying job so I really don't want to screw it up...
Thanks for any insight you can provide.
Hi Tag, this is a great question! I have had really good success painting over parts that were electrolytically stripped. I think the biggest key to the whole thing is to make sure that you de-grease any parts going into the solution really, really well before they get anywhere near the tank. The process will usually dissolve grease and grime to a certain degree, so if that is allowed into the tank then it will be circulating in the water and can leech into the metal a little bit, causing issues down the line. Another big factor is using too much washing soda/TSP in the tank. You really don't need all that much of either chemical to have good electrical continuity in the solution, and having too much can cause the heavier salts to precipitate out of the solution and cause a crust around the rim of the tank (in this video, the solution I was using had way too much TSP in it!). If that happens, the chemicals will definitely leech into the base metal of the part you're stripping and can cause adhesion issues. Less is almost always preferable in this case - you can always add more chemical if you need to, but once it's in there, it's in there until you drain and refill. A good rule of thumb I've been using lately is 1 tablespoon of washing soda and one half tablespoon of TSP per gallon of water (so 1.5 tablespoons per gallon, total). This provides a good conductive solution, and the TSP helps with flash rusting a little bit (you still need to dry your parts thoroughly upon removal though). Adjust the concentration as necessary if you aren't getting good conductivity, but going much beyond 3 tbs/gal will oversaturate the solution pretty quickly. Rinse all parts in clean water, then dry using heat if possible. From there, use a good DTM primer and the topcoat of your choice and you should be good. I stripped my entire Logan lathe using electrolysis (disassembled of course), and primed/repainted afterwords. I used rustoleum professional primer and paint, and other than normal wear I've had no issues with adhesion, even with cutting oil and swarf getting all over it over the last 4 years. Sorry for the long winded response, but I hope that's helpful for you!
@@AllThingsMech No need to apologize, this is a great answer full of important Information! Thank you. Also, can you give me some guidance on how much to charge for 4 heavily rusted cast iron tub feet? Just rust removal, no painting. Thanks again for sharing your expertise.
@@tagsmyser4299 being completely honest, I've never done any electrolysis for a client - only personal projects. However, I'll spitball a bit here and apply the same logic to this as I would to something like a fabrication or repair project:
The more time, complexity, and difficulty there is, the more I would charge. In this case, I'd evaluate the overall cost by the general condition of the cast iron parts, and what exactly the customer wants as the end result.
How big are they? How heavily rusted are they? If it's just surface rust they can probably go directly into the tank, but heavy rust/scaling will need to be manually removed before electrolysis to 1) evaluate the base metal to make sure there aren't any huge defects/cracks/damage/pitting that would be made worse by the process and 2) to get a better overall end result (the less total rust there is, the less work your power supply and solution have to do, which makes everything work better and provides a better product in the end).
Is there only rust, or will they need to be degreased/stripped of other contaminates before they go into the tank? I know you said you wouldn't be painting them, but does the customer want any other finishing work done once they come out of the tank, like wire wheeling, sanding, filing to remove casting marks/defects, etc?
In the end it's entirely your call, but I would say a base price of $75-$100 would be fair for a basic prep and strip job. If the customer wants additional detail work done, your time is valuable and you should charge according to how many hours you'd need to put into the project. Also let them know that working with old cast iron can be tricky business - it's very tough stuff, but the grain structure of the metal is very good at hiding cracks and casting defects that might not be visible at all during inspection, but could appear during the electrolysis process. Cracks aren't the end of the world and can be repaired most of the time, just make sure they are aware of the risks and won't flip out on you if you discover something that they weren't previously aware of.
I hope that gives you a little bit of an idea. Of course, feel free to adjust my suggestions however you need to in order to secure the job, but don't undervalue yourself. This is a pretty niche process, and lots of folks think electrolysis is as simple as throwing something in a vat and letting it cook. But, the prep and post work is where the elbow grease comes in (and, as such, is where the money should be made). It's incredibly satisfying to bring old items back around though - sounds like a very cool project! 😎
Would keeping the water HOT speed the electrolysis up? I have one of those submersion water heaters, wondering if I should put that in my tank.
@AlexKost-tq6bj yes, heat will definitely speed up the process. I generally don't add an external heat source simply because there are already so many wires and leads in the tank, and the fact that the process itself creates a pretty warm solution over time so I haven't ever found it necessary in my case. Evaporation also becomes a bigger concern with a heated solution, but as long as you're monitoring your levels fairly often and keeping the tank topped off as needed, you should be fine.
Does it work on aluminum?
Great job on the video
What's the trisodium phosphate for?
It aids with the cleaning process and helps eliminate flash rusting after you remove the parts from the tank.
can you do this on chrome parts? Will the chrome come off or be damaged?
Technically yes, the process will remove rust from chromed parts. The problem is more about the hydrogen gas that gets released during the process...while electrolysis won't actually remove chrome, the gas can end up getting under the chrome plating and cause it to bubble and flake, making the part look terrible. I personally wouldn't use it to clean chrome but your mileage might vary.
This is great, let's make one that fits a rail car and sell it to you-know-who lol
There's a big chunk of land for sale right next to the tracks out here near Osino, I was half tempted to call Sam and tell him he should build a B&P shop out here that I could run for him. 🤣