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Ultrasonic cleaner fluid suggestions

M

Mcgyver

Ultra Member
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?
 
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I use Pinesol for cleaning carbs. Works great, shop smells awesome afterwards D. I've also used glass with solvent (thinners or IPA) in glass jars too with good results.

I only have a small one, but would like to get a larger one too. Mainly posting as a bookmark for myself to see what comes up for the same reasons as you.
 
I started off straight, but have diluted it a bit due to having lost some. I have no idea what concentration i'm at now, but maybe 1/3 water at this point? Still works great, so I would probably start off diluted next time I need to buy more.
 
Awesome thanks Dan
One of the guys I work with boils carbs in a turkey fryer for about 20 minutes in CLR solution.
Says it works, I haven't tried it.
 
Mcgyver said:

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.
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My experience as well. Aluminum comes out dull (mildly etched and/or corroded). I also found most of the Happy Sunshine Eco Citrus stuff is brutal on the hands in full strength general cleanup. It removes oils in the skin so thoroughly it can trigger eczema. Wear gloves.

I'm getting pretty good results with dishwasher detergent in hot water. I'm led to believe it will make an unfortunate duckling shiny & new again after an oil spill mishap. (Not as effective on windmill blades but I digress). You may have to play with concentration, some foam more than others. Start with what's in your kitchen. The bath is providing high frequency vibrations & the soap is a surfactant (as opposed to a solvent). Ultrasonics do have limitations for stubborn or caked on. The other thing I learned (duh) the hydrocarbons float to the top due to density. So you grab your shiny clean part submerged in water and drag it THROUGH the oil scum. Need to noodle upon that some more.
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A water flosser might make a useful shop accessory for finicky parts. There are systems that feed off a larger reservoir that could be adapted (vs ones with integral reservoir in the handle). I noticed AliExpress carries all kinds of dental instruments, maybe they have something industrial with even more power.
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My bike mechanic buddy got me onto the pinesol, and I've used it ever since. It will discolour some carbs though, so beware if you're doing a concourse restoration..... lol. I've used Berryman, and Yamaha carb dips in the past, and IMO the pinesol does almost just as good of a job. Without the potential cancerous side effects
 
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.
Click to expand...

I remember as a kid I used to strip the old floor wax from my mom's hardwood floors every 3 months with varsol.. then I'd use it for all sorts of other things. I worked at a place that made "cultured marble" sinks and vanities and washed everything liberally in acetone and considered silica dust as a mere annoyance... I'm glad that humanity is collectively starting to learn about safety of the products we use.

I've used water, and evaporust in the ultrasonic cleaner with satisfactory results. I got better results on greasy parts by adding a little dawn dish soap.

When I finally get a big cleaning tank to use in my brother's basement I plan to use a water based alkaline citrus cleaner "Oil Eater Brand" diluted no more than 3:1 because it is the alkalinity that helps to break down the grease into smaller particles. The citrus oil acts as a solvent as well and other factors help separate soils from grease.

There are zero VOCs, it smells okay and it is cheapish at about $20 a gallon... you can filter the product and top up as needed and use test strips to monitor the pH
 
I only have small a small unheated unit and have always used the commercial cleaner.

Keith Appleton uses a carb cleaner that’s designed for US. I’ve heard the the Purple degreasers sold at HF (PA up North?) and Sam’s Club work well.

Whatever you use you should place part(s) in a container with the cleaning solution rather than directly in the US; plastic zip bags work well.
 
I don't know much about Pinesol, I assume you rinse it off? After doing so, is it like degreaser where it leaves things so oil free you get rust starting instantly?

I’ve heard the the Purple degreasers sold at HF (PA up North?) and Sam’s Club work well
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They do, too well (point 1 in my first post). Parts come out, you rinse and rust starts flashing within a minute. Say with a dozen small parts in the basket, they get rinsed, hit with compressed air and by the last part 50 seconds later I'm seeing rust start to flash.
 
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It actually leaves a bit of a thin oily film on that I usually blast with brake cleaner and blow off with an air blast. I don't know if it would be a rust preventative, but I can dip a chunk of steel in it to give it a try and see what happens after a while.
 
Thanks, I 'm not looking for any great preservative performance, just that the degreasers seem to prepare the surface for hyper fast rusting.
 
I use this Loctite product diluted in water & occasionally neat. It cleans as/more effectively as other products but does not etch my aluminum parts for whatever reason. But it was about half the current price at the time & I used KBC discount coupon, so I better savor it. I wont use any of these water-based products on bare steel or CI. I thought I would try it to remove lapping compound but they resemble the Titanic within minutes.

Chemistry is evolving over time. Who would have thought 'pre catalyzed water based polyurethane paint' years ago? Having said that, I find these some of these products a bit of advertising Bs or lets just say 'application specific'. I still have remnants of standard auto prep solvent & it seems to always pick up residue that weaker products missed. Just use common sense handling it. Lacquer thinner (and gun wash cousins) are kick butt but I cant stand the smell of one of the ingredients, toluene maybe. But I have cleaned guns & orifices that acetone didn't get fully removed.
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ChazzC said:
I only have small a small unheated unit and have always used the commercial cleaner.

Keith Appleton uses a carb cleaner that’s designed for US. I’ve heard the the Purple degreasers sold at HF (PA up North?) and Sam’s Club work well.

Whatever you use you should place part(s) in a container with the cleaning solution rather than directly in the US; plastic zip bags work well.
Click to expand...
IIRC all of our Sam's Clubs closed. Shame cause they had a great corn dog that came frozen in bags of like 30...

Thanks to California water based alkaline citrus, pine and other organic based solvent oil based degreasers are commonplace. Pick the smell you prefer.

I blow my parts dry and then pop into toaster oven to totally dry. When I pull them out of the oven I spray a wax based lubricant designed for cast iron beds of woodworking tools. It prevents fingerprints in fresh metal surfaces and seals decently against rust until I get them installed in a system that typically gets covered in oil
 
@TorontoBuilder, ah, the good old days. My first serious job was counter sales in a plumbing wholesaler. Sold 50lb bags of asbestos, lead in sheets and bars, every solvent known to man, acetone in drums, pipe dope made of powdered lead and grease, and a drain cleaner called Zonk that was basically hydrochloric acid and some green dye.

And yet, I’m still here.
 
I rebuild a lot of carburetors for car/truck and motorcycle applications and I've tried quite a few cleaning solutions. In my experience all the solutions that are acid (citrus) based and the ones that are alkaline (detergent) based will cause damage to the finish on cast zinc, pot metal carb bodies and parts. Years ago you could buy carb cleaning solutions that would strip all the varnish, carbon and dirt off just by soaking for an hour or maybe 2 for a really gross one. The carb body parts would come out looking like new. Of course those solutions are way too unfriendly to the environment to be available today. The only thing I have found that is similar to those old school cleaning solutions is Berryman Chem Dip which has a similar odor but is about 10% the strength. I have used it for many years and it does clean well but I find it takes 24 to 72 hours of soaking to get a good result. It's also getting hard to find and quite expensive at about $100 for a 3.78 litre can last time I checked. So like others here I am on the hunt for a product that will give the results I need and be more affordable. The closest I have come is just using 3 Cascade dishwashing pods in very hot (80 degrees C) in my 15 litre Ultrasonic cleaner. The cleaning is good but the cast carb bodies still discolor, turning dark. I have heard of good results using Simple Green Extreme Aircraft which apparently has corrosion inhibitors to prevent discoloring aluminum. I'll let you know when I get some and try it.





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Simple Green Extreme Aircraft and Precision Cleaner, 1 Gallon Bottle 13406​

Description:

Extreme Simple Green Aircraft and Precision Cleaner's breakthrough formula cleans and degreases without corrosive chemicals. Its combined high soil capacity, superior grease-cutting ability and clean rinsing formula prevents redeposition of soils, ensuring fast, effective and high precision cleaning. The non-corrosive formula is safe for use on aluminum, carbon fiber, high tech alloys, structural metals, paints, protective coatings and more. It contains no reagents that oxidize finishes, cause rust within the fluid or degrade plastics making it ideal for maintaining structural metals, hoses, seals and factory finishes.



  • Cuts through tough soils
  • Contains no harmful chemicals
  • High soil capacity
 
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John Conroy said:
Years ago you could buy carb cleaning solutions that would strip all the varnish, carbon and dirt off just by soaking for an hour or maybe 2 for a really gross one. The carb body parts would come out looking like new. Of course those solutions are way too unfriendly to the environment to be available today.
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I still have a gallon can (like a paint can) including the original dip basket of the good stuff, used only twice on small engine carbs. I wonder what it’s worth today?
 
You could also try automatic dishwasher soap, it is an incredibility strong detergent and doesn't foam up, also plain old lye, sodium hydroxide is cheap and very effective.
 
Yes the Cascade pods I used clean well but don't play well with aluminum or zinc alloy castings. If you are just cleaning steel they work fine.
 
I use simple green. Parts in baggies just big enough to hold the part fill with simple green. Run till clean. In my ultrasound cleaners just distilled water. Keeps the cost and Enviro down.
 
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