Degreasing

Well, got another question for the gang. I have some parts that need to be degreased, and gas just dont cut it. I dont have the space for electrolysis. I've heard of soaking stuff in draino? Anybody use this method? I was wondering if anyone ever tried soaking stuff in Toilet bowl cleaner; it removes.....deposits...for the lack of a better word. I tried Heavy Duty Industrial take your skin off kind of stuff, That worked great. Could only get a gallon though. What are some other soaking suggestions?? Thanks in advance!!! Frank Y

Try Easy Off oven cleaner. It will take off the grease but may take paint too. If you want to strip all the way to bare metal, this works great.Works good for me.

Forgot to say, spray it on, let it sit a while and hose it off.

I have used draino or lye (basically the same thing) to clean old griswold cast iron skillets. Works great on that burnt on grease, so should work okay for what you need. It to will probably take it down to bare metal, so it will depend on how far you want to take the clean-up weather you want to use this or something else.

For Petes Sake don't put any aluminum parts in the lye or draino. Not only will the part dissapear you will also Kill the lye... Reminds me of many years ago my friend's mother saw the lye bath and put her aluminum frying pan in it when we weren't looking. All she had left was the handle and the lye was dead.

Ken, thanks for the heads up on the aluminum. For sure, I would have probably tried that someday.

i use some stuff called super clean made by castrol. buy it at wally world. use it full stregth to soak greasy parts in. works for me.wash with hot or cold water. wear some gloves it will tell you where a cut or scratch is.

Been using plain ole K1 kerosene in the parts washer for years. Get it for about $0.85/gal at the local oil company. Let it soak overnite and next day parts are clean right down to the paint.

Cheers! NICK

Just keep it away from anything made of pot metal or aluminum. Oven cleaner will dissolve it.

We occasionally use Simple Green here at work. I don't know if it affects paint because we are dealing with bare metal. It's also available at Wally world and most home improvement stores. I use kerosene on engines, especially if I want to preserve old paint. Good luck, Mike.

I use Cascade dishwasher liquid mixed with water. Depending on the degree of crude I will use less water. I try to cover all parts with the pure stuff in a pail then I add water. Let soak for a day or two days, sometimes a week. I've cleaned alum., brass,carbon steel, stainless, cast iron. It also works great on wood working blades and router bits. Super job cleaning the pitch off chain saw blades.

Thanks very much for all the responses!! Apparently noone tried toilet cleaner. Ill let you'ze know how it works. I tried simple green and super clean but to no avail. Us Pennsylvania hicks really know how to get greasy, dirty, and sticky grease!! Im going to try draino, cascade, easy off, and toilet cleaner. I'm not doing any aluminum just cast and I want all paint removed. Again, thanks for all the suggestions. And Thank you HARRY!!

Most toilet cleaners tend to be acid based, and don't really cut grease all that well. Best cleaner for a dirty toilet is half a cup of Muriatic acid, although it isn't recommended for frequent use cause it will etch porcelain. Thing to remember about degreasing is it didn't get all greasy over night, so you really can't figure on removing it all overnight.

Carefull on the muratic acid..Will take your breath away and damage your lungs..Simple green will take some paint off.Toilet bowl cleaners that has acid base works good on brass,copper and i think gas tanks..

ZEP makes a good degreaser.(they sell two kinds)you want Industrial purple cleaner degreaser it works good comes in 1&5 Gal. cans.It will also take off paint. You can get it at home depot.BobRR

Nick, K 1 kero is over 2.50 a gallon here in Iowa. We should get together.It would'nt be bootlegging would it?

I usually use kerosene to take the worst of the grease, oil, and dirt off then use Simple Green to take the kerosene off, being sure to rinse the parts well with plain water.

If you use a soft brush Simple Green doesn't harm paint, at least not in my experience. I have had some paint come off but it has been on parts that soaked for MANY years in the old grease and oil.

Bob,does Zep still make the rust/calcium remover in the 1 gal container? I have heard this is good on cast iron or pot metal carbs as long as they arent corroded as it will eat it away.John.

Hey Guys,

for those of you who dont know I work for a Chemical company who makes a vast range of degreasers and lubricants which lead the industry making some of the products mentioned in previous posts in this string.I wont mention my companys name but ill say this.

The stuff we make is the best on the market, highest quality and super concentrated and naturally because of that last point we charge for it as the "educated user" can make some serious cost savings by using correctly ie not over using and effectivly the cheaper stuff actually becomes more expensive when you break it right down.

My advice if your going to use the best use it properly, if your going to use the cheap stuff realise you will need more to do the same job and then you will have to dispose of it.

The point is almost anything will work if you leave it long enough and use enough of it.

Things to check 1. What am I cleaning - ie metal type 2. What sort of soil - what is actually on it 3. How bad is the soil 4. Check the dilution rate

Use the pH scale for your product choice.

RULE OF THUMB

USUALLY SELECT PRODUCT OPPOSITE pH TO SOIL

Animal and vegetable fats are Acid - Use an ALKALINE product

Scales, residues, corrosion are ALKALINE Use an ACID product

Strongly Alkaline Products - pH 11-14

Chlorine Products - pH 10-12

Alkaline non-caustic products. - pH 8 - 11

Neutral products - pH 7

Weak Acid products -pH 6-4

Strong Acid products - pH 4-2

Hope this helps in making an informed choice and remember the cheapest at your local store although it works will cost you more in the long term and you dont have the service supplied by the slighly more expensive brands.

Kindest regards,

Adam

[Grape]

I just tired something last night for degreasing parts. I had a few cast bearing caps that were covered with 50 years of crud and the iron was saturated with oil. There is no way paint would ever stick.
I removed all the big chuncks with a brush and then put the parts in an old discarded pan on the stove top. When it all got to a good boil I added dawn dish soap and let it boil for about 25 minutes. It didn't foam up and came out as clean as a baby's butt. And the residue has no harmful chemicals to dispose of.
It works great for small parts but may be more difficult for larger items.
-Phil-