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Muriatic acid

Started by bandmiller2, December 20, 2008, 04:28:56 PM

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bandmiller2

Dave Shepard,you mentioned using muriatic acid to clean files,is that what they call chemical sharpening??I use alot of muriatic acid to remove rust from old cast iron carberators [not aluminum]removes the rust and wont hurt the solid iron/steel.I'll have to try it on some files.Frank C.
A man armed with common sense is packing a big piece

timber tramp

 Frank- What happens if you use it on aluminum? Where do you get it?
Cause every good story needs a villan!

Dave Shepard

I don't know if it is called chemical sharpening or not. It does seem to really clean the crud out of the files. I haven't experimented with it too much. It seemed to take everything off but the heavy rust. A rusty file is probably junk anyway. I may play around with it more next summer, it's too cold to mess with now, and I'm not doing it in my kitchen. :D
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Dave Shepard

muriatic acid is available at most hardware stores. It is a diluted form of HCl, or hydrochloric acid. I believe it is used for removing concrete and cleaning out boilers. Probably will remove a lot more than that, if your not careful. :o It fumes like crazy, so keep it sealed tight. The fumes will rust most anything in the shop, so I mess with it outside.
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Ironwood

Try pool supplies stores as they have it as well. Blacksmiths use it to etch wrought iron.

       IRONwood
There is no scarcity of opportunity to make a living at what you love to do, there is only scarcity of resolve to make it happen.- Wayne Dyer

Left Coast Chris

I saw some at Kragen (auto parts store) also.
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Cliniford

We use muriatic acid on a regular basis to clean our concrete tools. Whatever you do, do not breath the fumes and do not get it on any skin it will burn you bad...
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Captain

I get it at the local masonry supply

Captain

Raider Bill

I use it to clean hard water deposits from toliets in my rentals. Makes them brand new.
The First 70 years of childhood is always the hardest.

olyman

muratic acid eats aluminum!!!!! when a piston leaves its aluminum on the walls in a chainsaw--take muratic to it to eat the aluminum off!! aint fast, but works, and it bubbles when it comes off!!!---serious--doesnt touch the chrome or that other coating they use---also---if brass is tarnished--will brighten it right up--the is esp useful on tarnished elec connectors--where you dont have good connectivity---

Dave Shepard

A friend of mine was working on his IHC 20HP engine, and needed some slotted 1/4" screws, they were only available in a "bright" finish. A quick dip in muriatic acid stripped them to bare metal.
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nmurph

i bought a 1 gal jug at Lowe Down's yesterday. i paid $7. it is way more than i need, probably a lifetime supply.

Ironwood

That stuff will "evaporate off" if you let it sit. I had a 5 gallon bucket full for some smithing projects and after sitting outside w/ the lid on for several months  :o it was gone. ???

        Ironwood
There is no scarcity of opportunity to make a living at what you love to do, there is only scarcity of resolve to make it happen.- Wayne Dyer

John Mc

Quote from: Ironwood on December 23, 2008, 08:48:18 AM
That stuff will "evaporate off" if you let it sit.

And if I remember correctly, the concentration gets stronger as it evaporates (the water evaporates first). So be careful if you are storing it in an open container... what's left might have a bit more "bite" than what you originally bought,

John Mc
If the only tool you have is a hammer, you tend to see every problem as a nail.   - Abraham Maslow

Dodgy Loner

No, the solution gets weaker if you leave the container open.  Muriatic acid is a gas (HCl) dissolved in a liquid (H20).  It's the same principle as Coke, which is carbon dioxide dissolved in water.  You let the coke sit long enough, it loses its fizz, because gases by nature evaporate more quickly than liquids.  By the same token, if you let muriatic acid sit long enough, the HCl will evaporate and it will slowly lose it acidity.
"There is hardly anything in the world that some man cannot make a little worse and sell a little cheaper, and the people who consider price only are this man's lawful prey." -John Ruskin

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Al_Smith

Generally speaking muratic acid may etch concrete but not really disolve it .On morter however which contains hydrated lime ,the acid attacks the lime thus disovling it over time .Likewise so in the mineral deposits in hard water which contain large amounts of lime .

Regarding files ,I have heard but have never done so that soaking them in apple cider will disolve the chips .

logwalker

Just be real careful when using the stuff. It is battery acid and will burn skin and blind you if not careful. Joe
Let's all be careful out there tomorrow. Lt40hd, 22' Kenworth Flatbed rollback dump, MM45B Mitsubishi trackhoe, Clark5000lb Forklift, Kubota L2850 tractor

Dave Shepard

I think it is worse than battery acid, HCl vs H2SO4. Either way, nasty stuff. It eats aluminum, and muriatic is only a diluted solution of HCl.
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woodmills1

Both are very reactive with metals and will be harmful to skin and dangerous to breathe.  Battery acid is typically 33% H2SO4 in water and muriatic can be 20 to 40% HCl in water.

While teaching I had acess to various concentrations of acids as well as many metals

In a medium strong acid solution, iron will slowlly bubble off hydrogen gas, zinc will rapidly produce gas, and magnesium produces gas so fast the solution foams out of the container.  I used to collect the hydrogen using zinc and then burn(blow up) the hydrogen :P.........that demo was always a big hit.

BTW  we used small pieces of magnesium ribbon to show how fast it would react with acid and the ribbon could be lit with a match.........it burns with and incredible flame that should not be looked at directly

When I was a kid my grandfather used to get me into the engine compartment of a car or truck to do things like scrape off gaskets or chase headbolt threads.  I would invariably brush up against the corrosion on the battery, with out consequence untill mom wased my clothes, which would then show small holes from the salts being turned back into acid in the wash.  That explained to me why the uniforms of the workers at the family garage had little sewn spots on places that would contact the battery.

Another cool thing I used at school was like a magicians trick.  Make an acid solution and add an indicator that would make the liquid red, then a little base to make it clear  then a little more acid to turn it red again
James Mills,Lovely wife,collect old tools,vacuuming fool,36 bdft/hr,oak paper cutter,ebonic yooper rapper nauga seller, Blue Ox? its not fast, 2 cat family, LT70,edger, 375 bd ft/hr, we like Bob,free heat,no oil 12 years,big splitter, baked stuffed lobster, still cuttin the logs dere IAM

stonebroke

That is why the battery deliveryman used to wear polyester double knits, Supposedly they were acid proof.

Stonebroke


olyman

woodmills--yup--magnesium--and if a lawnboy deck ever lights off--youll never stop it---even if you submerse it in water----

Eccentric

Quote from: olyman on December 26, 2008, 11:13:50 AM
woodmills--yup--magnesium--and if a lawnboy deck ever lights off--youll never stop it---even if you submerse it in water----

Same with a VW Bug engine block (and most modern motorcycles).  Seen more than a few "Bug-B-Q's" on the side of the road...
-Eccentric.

Don't tune old saws with a tach!
Tune the H side so that it '4-strokes' (burbles) at WOT unloaded.  It should just 'clean up' when under load........and revert to '4-stroking' when you lift cutting pressure.

rickk

Bandmiller, if all you want to do is remove rust from steel, here is a trick that works really well.

get a plastic bucket. I use 5 gallon plastic pails for this. Fill is about half way with water. Add 1/2 cup of "washing soda". You can find it at the supermarket, right next to the baking soda. The two are not the same, so make sure you get "washing soda".

Take a battery charger. Connect the negative lead to the file and drop it into the bucket. Connect the positive lead to a piece of srap steel (rebar works good), and put it in the bucket as well. Don't let them touch, and don't let the positive connection be in the water... make sure the connection is above the waterline. It doesn't matter for the negative connection.

Turn on the charger, and let it sit a couple hours. Check it after a couple hours to see if the file is clean yet. If not, put it back in and wait a bit longer.

What you are doing is basically electroplating the rust off the file and onto the piece of scrap steel. It won't remove the good steel, only the rust.

I restore antique railroad lanterns this way. They are tin plated when made, so if you use any abrasive method you will remove any remaining tin plate or good steel. It removes the rust without touching the tin or good steel.

Rick

stonebroke


Polly

  if you dilute it you can wash truck bodies with it just make sure you get it rinced off  in fact some truck wash commercial people use it ;) 8)

mr_ed

Go to the hardware store and get a "file card". It is a special file cleaning tool made just for cleaning files.

If you can't find it at the hardware you will have to go to a machine tool distributor supply.

This is what they look like.

http://snowboards-for-sale.com/snowboard_brushes/file_card_standard/

Mr Ed.

fishpharmer

Muriatic acid works great to clean out fiberglass and poly fish tanks.  ;D

Rough on concrete tanks.
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logger444


Polly

my grandson has got a tacoma what are they doing diluting it and using for car wash  ::)

Rockfarmer

Also make sure you store the muratic acid outside. As the chlorine gas evaporates through the plastic container it will eat at any metals nearby.   :o

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