Yep, welcome to a developing country , some years ago before some environmental laws were in place thanks to NAFTA, it was very common to buy chemicals such as muratic acid and caucstic soda to clean stuff, mostly the toilett bowl and the stove oven. But it was over 11 years ago, thank God. Now we are in the Twilight Zone between the first and third world... it's weird .

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My other car is... another DUSTER!!! .·.

True. As I understand it, most new Mexican cars ran on leaded gasoline until 1990, and R12 Freon is still available...

Get amazed with contrast , we have our own space program, over 22 satellites in orbit, and in some southern towns you can still see horse pulled wagons (but not Amish... if you know what I mean) in the express way... As I said before IT IS WEIRD

Glad I own a Slant

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My other car is... another DUSTER!!! .·.

This is also one of the reasons the big fortune 500 companies will close a plant in Can. or the US and relocate to mexico, china etc. Complying with environmental laws cuts into the bottom line and in the name of the almighty dollar, free market capitalism etc. human life and the environment are an inconvenience. New environmental laws can mean the difference between a govt party creating 50,000 jobs and the same party raising the unemployment level. Short term versus long term.

I remember when the massive power outage up here completely shut down industry. Traffic patterns werent affected much but the smog in Toronto disappeared. On the Burlington skyway you had a beautiful clear view right to Toronto. That is why I don't mind much driving my pre emissions car over getting a Prius. I know who the big polluters here really are.

Funny though; I still find SUVs extremely offensive.

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I've been calling it as i see it for my entire life and that's not about to change. Take it or leave it.

Very good point about the power outage, now that you mention it. Seeing the stars at night (no light pollution) in Toronto was an amazing and rare experience -- and it was wonderful to have it both dark and quiet at night, right in the city.

Trudging up 21 storeys to feed the cats wasn't so much fun.

Here is what we did to clean gunk and rust off several large parts on Aaron's "Dartster". It works slowly, but effectively, and uses non-toxic laundry soap and a battery charger.

Rotors were a mess


This is the gunk floating on top after cleaning the brake calipers about 4 hours


You can see the bubbles rising


I was trying to figure out a way to drive the whole car off into a pool and do it all at one time, instead of piece by piece.

Jerry

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There's a difference between ignorance and stupidity.
Ignorance is not knowing any better.
Stupidity is knowing, yet doing it anyway.

Interesting electrolysis tank. Tell us more about your setup, will you? What was the amperage of your battery charger? What kind of laundry detergent did you use?

Please, I always wish I still lived in CA with my friend that had both an electrolysis tank and vibration cleaner from his chemical lab. That's a cool idea!

Please jerry share

MJ

Hey Jerry, is there any risk involved in the process, I mean you are tampering with electricity, water and metal. I believe voltage is low, (12 volts maybe?). But just want to be sure.

Would it get better results if some salt is added to the solution?. Just a thougth.

Ed

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My other car is... another DUSTER!!! .·.

I wish I could take credit for being smart enough to come up with the process, but I admit I saw it being discussed over at slantsix.com and thought I would give it a try. Works like a charm.

Here are two web pages which cover the topic of electrolysis rust removal:

http://antique-engines.com/electrol.asp
http://www.bhi.co.uk/hints/rust.htm

Read thoroughly before trying (especially about the reason for not using salt). I just used a large plastic storage tub, 3/8" concrete reinforcing bars wired together for the grid, Arm and Hammer laundry soap (powder), and a standard 12V battery trickle charger. Do it in a well-ventilated area, because those are hydrogen bubbles it generates (preferably outdoors). Make sure you pay attention to the instructions for polarity... negative cable on the work piece, positive cable on the electrode (wire grid).

The biggest drawback was the time it takes to clean a larger part (3-4 hours for a decent job). So, don't get in a hurry. Small parts might not take as long, and you can do it in a smaller plastic bucket. I did my first test run on a brake caliper in a 5 gal. paint bucket. Clean up is simple, just rinse under water, and give the part a good wipe down. Some really badly rusted areas might need a little wire brush action.

Like I said, the sludge (and I do mean sludge) isn't caustic, like using lye or acid. I guess the iron content might even be OK for your grass.

Some of you give it a try and let us hear the results.

Jerry

_________________
There's a difference between ignorance and stupidity.
Ignorance is not knowing any better.
Stupidity is knowing, yet doing it anyway.

Thanks Jerry, very informative... I will make a similar set up this weekend and give it a try.

Ed.

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My other car is... another DUSTER!!! .·.

Jerry, thanks for the links. One thing: The articles you link to confirm my suspicion—this setup uses washing soda, which is not at all the same as laundry detergent/soap. Washing soda is just conveniently packaged, powdered caustic soda.

Another option

Dan, you're absolutely correct, as usual. I was sitting here trying to remember what it was we used two years ago. I'm 47, and the old thinker isn't what it used to be.

I think one of the articles actually refers to Arm and Hammer's (r) product as washing powder. Honestly, I didn't know there was a difference. All I know is it works, and that's what counts.

Jerry

_________________
There's a difference between ignorance and stupidity.
Ignorance is not knowing any better.
Stupidity is knowing, yet doing it anyway.

mmm, caustic soda reacts violently when in contact with water... it heats up amazingly fast... you can add caustic soda to water, but not the other way around... (get it? )

Dan, is washing soda as concentrated as regular caustic soda and only powdered and differently labeled?

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My other car is... another DUSTER!!! .·.