parts cleaning

[ED WHITFORD]

Got a question & looking for some help.

My dad washes all of his metal parts in a parts washer, How ever the solvent he uses starts my asthma kicking in so I can not use such a item in my basement to clean parts with.

My question is do you think I could run a delution of simple green in a parts washer in my basement so it would have no effect on me or is there something else I could use.

I am looking for any & all suggestions on this as I would like to do everything in one place instead of going from garage to basment every time I get something that needs fixing.

Thank you for your time.

Ed

[thor]

I know nothing about what makes asthma kick in, so what's the solvent your dad uses? Carbon tet? Kero? Alcohol?  Acetone? -  Those are the ones I use for metal parts cleaning.

Carbon tet (dry cleaning fluid) is dangerous to anyone ESPECIALLY smokers (it converts to phosgene in the presence of combustion).

Kero is my personal favorite, its cheap, it cleans well and you can even buy purified kero which hardly smells at all.

Alcohol is a good solvent also cheap.

Acetone is great for awkward stuff, I use it for carb cleaning but it melts plastics.

That stuff you mention Simple Green, never heard of it, is it one of those orange peel smell water based solvents?  I don't use water based solvents very much but of course dishwashing soap and ammonia are both useful for grease. Ammonia would probably do a number on you though.

Thats about it for the common solvents I can think of. BTW at an autoparts store you can buy a can of parts cleaner with a basket in it, you pop the bits in and put the lid on and leave it for about 15minutes but PC states like California and NY wont allow it to be sold, you can get it in VA though and probably anywhere else thats not over protective!

[Mimbrogno]

If you are just cleaning grease off of metal parts, my best suggestion is to use steam. Yes steam, and I mean real steam, not just warm water vapor like on a carpet cleaner. There are some pretty good steam cleaners on the market, which are sold for general house and bathroom cleaning that work pretty well. Make sure they are true steam cleaners that don't use any chemicals or additives.

I have a "Steam Shark" I bought at Sears a couple of years ago for $99.00 that's served me very well. It's basically an electric boiler with a hose and nozzle for general purpose cleaning. The nice thing about it is you don't have to buy any cleaner or chemicals, and even better is you can use it to clean just about anything in the house. It's really great for cleaning metal parts prior to painting, as it litterally scorches off any dirt and there's no chemical residue to interfear with the paint. The only problem is you have to handle any small parts you are cleaning with a pair of pliers or tweezers so you don't burn yourself, and you can't use it on anything that won't withstand 250* temperatures.

I wish you good luck on all of your modeling projects!
Matthew Imbrogno
-Mechanical Vollenteer, Arizona Railway Museum (yes, you can bet I've dealt with many cleaning projects and many different cleaning solutions!)
www.azrymuseum.org

[More to restore]

I agree with Matthew that steam does a very good job. You will need a long pair of tweezers to hold the object and not to burn your hands. These appliciances are sold here as "steam chickens" (I know it is a strange name), you have to wait for 10 minutes to let the pressure build up and off you go. The fun that you see the grease melting away in front of your eyes. But remember to have something like an old tray under your object, because the dirt drops off your object on the tray / floor or whatever is below.
Thor gave a good summary of the solvents you can use. Indeed do not work with carbon tetrachloride it is simply to dangerous for your own health. Some kerosine or petroleum ethers work very good and you could try a double distilled one with a fairly high boiling point, to see if you will not get an allergic response.
Some so-called green solvents are based on Limonene (smell of oranges). It removes inks and tar great but it is vurnable to oxidation and some people are known to respond allergic to these oxidized Limonenes. So, you can try it, but I would avoid old "orange oil".

Asthma is a strange condition. I have a mild variation. I respond primarily to dusty air (that is why I like to de-rust outdoors) but fortunately not to solvents. Good luck!

Egbert

[andregg1]

Hi
I use imagil oil, it is a component for some printers machines.
The good this are: not smell
                            not corrosive
                            dielectric
                             and clean pretty well.
Bad thing: Dry your skin quick.
Andre.
                

[jpelosi2002]

I like to use lighter fluid, sold in hardware stores as Naptha. It evaporates instantly and cuts thru oil and grease like a hot knife.

[ED WHITFORD]

The solvent my dad uses is something like mineral spirets. works well with just about anything you but in it but the odor can trigger my breathing issues. I am looking into an ultra sonic cleaning methode now but those can get pricey. The simple green I referd to is basicly a degreaser you can get just about anywhere here in Michigan.

 

Sorry about the spelling & thank you all for the help

Ed

[ben10ben]

I really like Naptha as well. It's a great solvent, plus it evaporates really quickly. It's also thin enough that it tends to wick into the hard to reach places, and wil evaporate from those as well without the worry of rust.

I bought two postwar milk cars at a show last weekend. One of them, a 3462, looked to have been WD40ed at one point, and the entire mechanism was frozen solid with some sort of viscous petroleum fluid. A shot of Naptha down the solenoid allowed the plunger to be pulled right out, and the entire thing cleaned up really nicely.

The naptha I use is sold as Ronsonol lighter fluid. I first heard about it from camera repair people, who swear by it for everything.

It does have a pretty strong scent, though. I strongly suggest using it with good ventilation, and trying not to directly breath in any of the fumes.

[underworld]

Steam does work great. I have a Steam Buggy unit. I use it a lot for car parts and have also used it at my one job to clean oven parts. Dawn dish detergent does amazingly well. Dawn is the stuff that is used to clean water fowl that get caught in oil spills.

underworld

[pgtr]

Since you mentioned a parts washer I'm presuming your talking about an automotive bin that pumps through a nozzle or brush. Be sure you use the fluid specifically for bins with pumps - it's somewhat 'watered down' from the standard parts cleaner fluid - less flamable and less prone to evap. In my experience Green is much more noxious to breathb. All should be used in a well ventilated area. If you're just talking about a few small parts here and there - what about some WD40, a throaway pie plate a toothbrush and some paper towels?