How to Deal With Unreachable Rust?

[upsidedownone]

Hi all,

Picked up a cabinet this weekend (full explanation thread coming later), however, it was left outside and some water got to it, ever so slightly. In many of the cracks and crevices, it has developed a very bright orange rust powder. The problem is, I can’t really reach much of it. I’ve wiped as much of it as I can with WD-40. Is that an ok thing to do? What should I do to try and stop it from growing? I can’t really even take it down to bare metal without sand blasting, and there’s no way I’ll be able to do that. Do I need to worry about this? A lot of it gets taken off with the Wd-40, but I’m not really sure what needs to be done to really take care of this. I’ve uploaded a picture that shows the largest visible section of rust that I have seen. The picture is rotated for some reason, the rust in the picture is on the inside of the cabinet on the bottom surface in the back corner.

 

[zendriver]

Can you hit it with a can of spray paint?

That really not much rust, IMO and unless it in a wet environment, it will likely outlast you.

Personally I'd not set up night worrying about it, but I'm in the minority one that.

 

[upsidedownone]

Can you hit it with a can of spray paint?

That really not much rust, IMO and unless it in a wet environment, it will likely outlast you.

Personally I'd not set up night worrying about it, but I'm in the minority one that.

Would spraying on top of it do anything?

That’s really what I was thinking, just wanted to make sure there wasn’t an obvious solution. It’s also pretty solid to begin with (it’s a Lista), and I’ll have it in my apartment or garage for the rest of its life.

 

[upsidedownone]

WD-40 won’t ruin paint or speed up rust right?

 

[kctyphoon]

Just get a can of rust reformer. It'll convert the rust to a paintable surface. The rust needs to be treated before you spray anything on top of it. Spray it with brake cleaner to remove the oil you sprayed on it first. Wire brush anything loose off, clean with brake cleaner again, then spray with rust reformer/converter. It's like a primer. Then just top coat it with whatever color you want.

Honestly it doesn't look like much of an issue that needs attention, but if you wanna address it, it's simple.

 

[vtcat]

Fluid Film,spray grease or chain lube

 

[upsidedownone]

I really don’t think that I can get any sort of spray/paint back into these cracks, it’s way back there. It would probably be all over the place if I tried? It’s mostly in places where two metal sheets meet, probably paper thin gaps.

 

[unslow1]

Fluid Film,spray grease or chain lube

Fluid Film was my first thought. I was happy to see Advance Auto stocks it now.

 

[dngrmse]

Unless you live in a really humid climate, I wouldn't worry about it. But as mentioned above, rust reformer will convert the rust. Only downside is that it will turn black, and you will have to spray over it if that bothers you.

 

[upsidedownone]

I’m down in Austin, so... moderately humid? Is it worth the effort of messing with it? I’m leaning towards leaving it, it would be really difficult to hit all the spots without turning the cabinet into a mess, but if it’s going to cause the death of the cabinet than I can try.

 

[ambenz]

Spray Rust Reformer is what I used in the pinch welds of my door panels on my Ford Ranger.

Notorious for rusting at the pinch welds, after almost 10 years, I figured it would be a good idea. Been doing corrosion prevention on the truck after every winter.

 

[marinusdees]

Go to the auto body shop supply and buy a bottle of Rustmort. It'l run anywhere that water will and reform the rust. End of story.

 

[yhprum]

LPS 3, Boeshield or a local equivalent will stop it in its tracks.

http://www.lpslabs.com/product-details/612
https://boeshield.com/

 

[upsidedownone]

Is this something I need to treat now, or can I keep an eye on it and see where it’s at periodically? Then if it does look like it’s spreading, hit it with a rust solution?

 

[racer-john]

Treat it now and be done with it.

 

[Slednut]

This works.

https://shop.advanceautoparts.com/p/loctite-extend-rust-treatment-1381192/10189462-P

 

[6PTsocket]

Fluid Film was my first thought. I was happy to see Advance Auto stocks it now.

I just got delivery on a Fluid Film extension nozzle. The 2 ft tube plugs into the can and the tip puts out a fan pattern. It it really for inside frames that are not very accessable. But it might get you closer than just the can. Eastwood has a conversion coating that is for inside frames, that comes with the long tube and takes 24 hrs to dry. You would have to degrease before using that. WD 40 has little long term protection. It is a solvent that quickly evaporates and a light oil that remains. An alternative to Fluid Film is Boeshield, that goes on wet and leave a waxy protective coating behind. I use it in my shop for cast iron tables on my band saw, drill press, jointer, etc. Fluid Film stays greasy. They say it is Lanolin but if you pull up the SDS it has a lot of petroleum products in there, too.

Sent from my SM-G900V using Tapatalk

 

[upsidedownone]

Would I still need to sand first or could I just hit it and then paint? I’m still not sure if I’m going to do it or not, it’s in a lot of very tiny cracks and not really noticeable unless you are looking for it.

 

[dogdog]

I think Eastwood have some sort rust reformer/encapslators with a long reachable hose.

http://www.eastwood.com/eastwood-internal-frame-coating-14oz-aerosol.html

 

[theoldwizard1]

Fluid Film was my first thought. I was happy to see Advance Auto stocks it now.

Another Fluid Film. The stuff has kind of an odd, funky smell and it does attract dust and dirt (like any oil or grease).

 

[GTO]

Fluid Film,I sprayed every exposed brake line in my wifes Jeep GC,the **** they put down on the roads here is super corrosive.

 

[zendriver]

Would spraying on top of it do anything?



That’s really what I was thinking, just wanted to make sure there wasn’t an obvious solution. It’s also pretty solid to begin with (it’s a Lista), and I’ll have it in my apartment or garage for the rest of its life.

Rust stops when it no longer has contact with moisture.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[upsidedownone]

Ok, thanks for all the help everyone. Any thoughts on my earlier question about whether sanding is still necessary? I’d also need to tape everything up, these removers will also ruin the paint right?

I’m thinking I’ll wait until I have a bit better of a space for painting it, I have it sitting in a room at the moment. Probably be about a year and a half, should be able to survive that long?

 

[astroracer]

What you are seeing is the bare metal "edges" of the sheet metal rusting. It will hurt nothing if you just leave it alone.
No sanding is necessary. You couldn't sand the edges of the metal anyway as you can't get sandpaper in between the pieces.
If you can't leave it alone do as mentioned and get a can of rust converter. It will spray in there like water and will turn any of that yucky orange stuff black.
Let it work for a couple of days and spray some grey primer on it to cover the black. Done.
Or, just put stuff in the cabinet so you can't see back into the corners and call it good...
Mark