Phosphoric acid question

[nhusa]

You have to be very careful with molasses -
On January 15, 1919 21 people were killed and 150 injured in Boston because of a molasses flood.
( MY T was built in July of 1919 so it can't be blamed for the problem)
The early newspaper lists 11 and 50 but in the end it was more.

Looks like some people came to a sweet end and Boston harbor is still polluted!

Interesting article in the newspaper about only needing one more Dry state

 

[norson]

I used molasses for three years, but had to quit because the neighbors were complaining about the smell. Molasses has a sticky sweet smell from day one, but when it sours it's real bad. It grows a heavy mold that can be a problem to get rid of. It stains your clothes and hands, but works great. After the parts are washed off with water I treat with Prep-n-Etch from Home Depot. The enclosed pictures are of the last batch I did last fall.

 

[norson]

An Australian clued me in on Citric Acid. It is a mild form of acid used in the food industry for soft drinks, baking and in wine making. I visited the Oz Rodders site to get the information I used to get started. I use a 300 gallon stock tank, the same one I used for Molasses. I found Citric Acid in a 50 pound bag at a brewery supply store for $105. The molasses was costing me $99 so it's just about a wash. I was unsure of the mix ratio because the info I got from OZ was a little sketchy. I was afraid 50 pounds might be too weak but I was wrong. The molasses took eleven days to two weeks to clean my parts. The Citric acid takes four to five days. I wash it with a cheap electric pressure washer and treat it the same way with Prep-n-Etch. It's clean and doesn't smell bad. I have a more detailed thread on the HAMB.(Rust Busting). These are my first batch of parts using citrus.
Norm

 

[Growley bear]

I have been trying to separate some rusted together sheetmetal panels from the rear part of my 29 CCPU. I have been soaking the panel in a trough with EvapoRust in it for about 3 weeks. The EvapoRust is gets rust colored after changing it three times, but appears not to be doing much good - i.e. dissolving the hard rust. I was thinking of using phosphoric acid in the trough to dissolve the rust holding the pieces together. My question is: Will phosphoric acid only attack the rust or will it also go after the good metal?
Thanks for any help.
Rusty Nelson

I use vinegar and patience. EvapoRust didn't work well for me and is much too expensive. My experience is that vinegar softens the rust and lasts longer than evaporust although neither seem to attack the iron. I rinse immediately with a solution of water and baking soda dry and depending on the part prime or spray on a rust inhibitor and store. Here on the coast metal corrodes rapidly and this is what has worked for me.
Good luck on your project,
Chet

Chet

 

[poweredbylincoln]

White viniger at costco!!!