Pupuhd
Well-known member
Not trying to re-invent the wheel, but a better mouse trap here. In my case, an electrolysis tank that suites my needs, knock downs easily, quick cleanup and either upgradable or down gradable.
I won't get into what is an electrolysis tank and how it works. Many of you know what it does and some of the science behind it. However, for those that want additional reading as to what and how, here are two sites I found interesting:
This site gives you what is an electrolysis tank and basic how it works. The author basically uses a five gallon bucket with some metal as anodes. Nothing fancy, like many here who use what ever is around.
http://www.djkwoodcrafts.com/2009/07/15/rust-electrolysis/
The second link is a bit more detailed and technical, but interesting. The author gives you step by step on how to construct one and the supplies needed for cleaning the parts afterwards.
http://www.rickswoodshopcreations.com/Miscellaneous/Rust_Removal.htm
My method is just anodes that hooks/hangs onto the side of the container. Easily pulls out for maintenance, cleaning and storage.
1- THE CONTAINER:
You will see a 5 gallon bucket on the center with markings for each gallon of water. This was my first electrolysis tank using some old 3/4" diameter steel stakes I had laying around. The stakes were twice as tall as the bucket and no means of keeping them from moving around. Well, you could use spring clamps, but I didn't. I now use this smaller bucket to measure the water going into the larger one and that way I know how much baking soda to add per gallon.
The current setup uses a 20 gallon commercial grade trash container. The one to the left is a similar larger 32 gallon one. These can be purchased at any home improvement big box store. Depending what your needs are and what size parts you are putting in, you can use what ever size container you want. The rebar anodes will be cut to match the height of the container being used. More on that later. Try not to use regular storage containers or household plastic trash cans. These have thin plastic walls and can blow out on you if you fill it to capacity. The above gray containers are heavy duty with thicker walls. Plastic 55 gallon drums work perfectly and easily available used. I have one of these and will make another setup for much larger parts, like with my 1942 Delta Unisaw cabinet saw.
2- ANODES:
I my case I purchased a 10' piece of 5/8" diameter(#5) rebar. The 20 gallon container is roughly 24" tall so I cut the rebar into five equal parts, 24" each. I had a 2' length of 3/4" steel stake around that was used as the cross piece to hang the parts from in the water. If you don't have something thick and strong for this cross piece you can purchase more rebar.
If using a large container like here, cut five rebar's. This will give more surface area for the electrolysis to work and more "line of sight" coverage for the rust to travel to. This way you won't have to rotate the part that is being clean.
The Hook was made from some 1/4 steel stock also laying around. You want the anodes to stay at least a 1/2" above the bottom of the container, this way they're hanging freely on the edge of the container. Mark the point on the rebar where it meets the top edge of the container. This is were you will weld the L shaped hook.
Weld one L shape hook on each of the anodes. Then weld a 1-1/2" long bolt to the vertical part of the L shape hook. This bolt is where the positive lead wire and positive clamp from the battery charger will go.
Next, install a nut tight up against the head of the bolt, followed by two washers, and another nut. In between the washers is were the positive lead wire will be tighten to.
3-POSITIVE LEAD WIRE:
At first, the 5 gallon and 20 gallon setup both used a 14ga copper wire. When I decided to post this build and rebuild it for the photos I decided to switch to 10ga copper wire for two reasons. First, thicker wire for more conductivity and second, it's stiffer and more manageable than the thinner 14ga. Because of this it will hold it shape around the container and keep the anodes from moving.
For this setup, I cut an 80" piece of 10ga wire. Measure the circumference/perimeter of the container and add about 20-24" to that measurement for the wire. This will give you more room for the loop bends around each anode. My suggestions is to use insulated wire, not bare. If bare, you may accidentally come in contact with it while positioning the Negative battery charger clamp.
What ever measurement you come up with divide it by the number of anodes made. In my case 5 anodes divided by 80" = 16" spacing along the wire. At each mark, remove a 2" section of insulation and also at each end. Bend the wire into a circle.
Next is making the u-shape loop at each stripped point on the wire. You can either use the bolt on the anode as a guide or a pair of needle-nose pliers. Don't crimp the wire together. You want to able, with 1-2 turns of the outside nut, just lift the wire for any maintenance, cleanup or storage.
Make sure the loops are all facing up. It should look like this when done.
4-ASSEMBLY:
Install the anodes spaced evenly around the inside of the container. Then carefully drop the positive lead wire onto the anode hooks. Then one by one install the stripped copper loop in between the washers and tighten the outside nut. The good thing about the heavier gauge wire is that it will evenly space the anodes. No need for clamps, since the hooks and wire will hold it in its place.
Finally, another rebar going across the top to hang your parts from and to clamp the Negative from the battery charger at either end. Since I used up the 10' length of rebar to make the anodes, I did have a 2' by 3/4" diameter stake at hand for this purpose.
UPDATE: Per suggestions of others with the cross member possibly coming in contact with the anodes, I installed heat shrink tube at each end. Roughly 6" of heat shrink tube and left a 1" area uninsulated on one end to attach the Negative feed clamp. I also wire wheeled the piece on the bench grinder and applied PB Blaster Penetrating Oil to keep it free from corrosion. This should help with the electrical conductivity.
Remember the Positive(red) clamp goes to the anodes and the Negative(black) goes to the parts being cleaned.
Now just fill up the container with clean water to what ever level you need depending on the length of part(s) being cleaned. I use the bucket with the gallons marked out so I know how much water I'm putting in. As far as Baking Soda, I followed the rule in the above links, one tablespoon Baking Soda per one gallon of water. This formula has worked fine for me so far. Some guys just pour the baking soda in with no set measurements.
You can use old copper bare wire or steel wire to hang the parts from the center support (Negative lead). I use copper since I have plenty of scraps around and just double or triple the wire for heavier parts.
As stated earlier, my method here is more for convenience than anything else. By hanging the anodes, instead of clamping or bolting, it makes it easier to remove the anodes for cleanup or storage. This setup took me about 2-3 hours to fabricate.
Read the two links mentioned at the beginning. They will give you more details as to what and how for an electrolysis tank. It will give you a better understanding as you build yours. By no means am I an expert on this subject. Within the last month I found out what an electrolysis set up is and how it works. I just devised a way to better suite my needs as far as the construction and use of the tank itself.
Hope this helps any one who is new to this, referencing or just wants to change or improve their setup. Any suggestions, ideas or comments, please post.
By all means, please post your own electrolysis setup.
Thanks-David
I won't get into what is an electrolysis tank and how it works. Many of you know what it does and some of the science behind it. However, for those that want additional reading as to what and how, here are two sites I found interesting:
This site gives you what is an electrolysis tank and basic how it works. The author basically uses a five gallon bucket with some metal as anodes. Nothing fancy, like many here who use what ever is around.
http://www.djkwoodcrafts.com/2009/07/15/rust-electrolysis/
The second link is a bit more detailed and technical, but interesting. The author gives you step by step on how to construct one and the supplies needed for cleaning the parts afterwards.
http://www.rickswoodshopcreations.com/Miscellaneous/Rust_Removal.htm
My method is just anodes that hooks/hangs onto the side of the container. Easily pulls out for maintenance, cleaning and storage.
1- THE CONTAINER:
You will see a 5 gallon bucket on the center with markings for each gallon of water. This was my first electrolysis tank using some old 3/4" diameter steel stakes I had laying around. The stakes were twice as tall as the bucket and no means of keeping them from moving around. Well, you could use spring clamps, but I didn't. I now use this smaller bucket to measure the water going into the larger one and that way I know how much baking soda to add per gallon.
The current setup uses a 20 gallon commercial grade trash container. The one to the left is a similar larger 32 gallon one. These can be purchased at any home improvement big box store. Depending what your needs are and what size parts you are putting in, you can use what ever size container you want. The rebar anodes will be cut to match the height of the container being used. More on that later. Try not to use regular storage containers or household plastic trash cans. These have thin plastic walls and can blow out on you if you fill it to capacity. The above gray containers are heavy duty with thicker walls. Plastic 55 gallon drums work perfectly and easily available used. I have one of these and will make another setup for much larger parts, like with my 1942 Delta Unisaw cabinet saw.
2- ANODES:
I my case I purchased a 10' piece of 5/8" diameter(#5) rebar. The 20 gallon container is roughly 24" tall so I cut the rebar into five equal parts, 24" each. I had a 2' length of 3/4" steel stake around that was used as the cross piece to hang the parts from in the water. If you don't have something thick and strong for this cross piece you can purchase more rebar.
If using a large container like here, cut five rebar's. This will give more surface area for the electrolysis to work and more "line of sight" coverage for the rust to travel to. This way you won't have to rotate the part that is being clean.
The Hook was made from some 1/4 steel stock also laying around. You want the anodes to stay at least a 1/2" above the bottom of the container, this way they're hanging freely on the edge of the container. Mark the point on the rebar where it meets the top edge of the container. This is were you will weld the L shaped hook.
Weld one L shape hook on each of the anodes. Then weld a 1-1/2" long bolt to the vertical part of the L shape hook. This bolt is where the positive lead wire and positive clamp from the battery charger will go.
Next, install a nut tight up against the head of the bolt, followed by two washers, and another nut. In between the washers is were the positive lead wire will be tighten to.
3-POSITIVE LEAD WIRE:
At first, the 5 gallon and 20 gallon setup both used a 14ga copper wire. When I decided to post this build and rebuild it for the photos I decided to switch to 10ga copper wire for two reasons. First, thicker wire for more conductivity and second, it's stiffer and more manageable than the thinner 14ga. Because of this it will hold it shape around the container and keep the anodes from moving.
For this setup, I cut an 80" piece of 10ga wire. Measure the circumference/perimeter of the container and add about 20-24" to that measurement for the wire. This will give you more room for the loop bends around each anode. My suggestions is to use insulated wire, not bare. If bare, you may accidentally come in contact with it while positioning the Negative battery charger clamp.
What ever measurement you come up with divide it by the number of anodes made. In my case 5 anodes divided by 80" = 16" spacing along the wire. At each mark, remove a 2" section of insulation and also at each end. Bend the wire into a circle.
Next is making the u-shape loop at each stripped point on the wire. You can either use the bolt on the anode as a guide or a pair of needle-nose pliers. Don't crimp the wire together. You want to able, with 1-2 turns of the outside nut, just lift the wire for any maintenance, cleanup or storage.
Make sure the loops are all facing up. It should look like this when done.
4-ASSEMBLY:
Install the anodes spaced evenly around the inside of the container. Then carefully drop the positive lead wire onto the anode hooks. Then one by one install the stripped copper loop in between the washers and tighten the outside nut. The good thing about the heavier gauge wire is that it will evenly space the anodes. No need for clamps, since the hooks and wire will hold it in its place.
Finally, another rebar going across the top to hang your parts from and to clamp the Negative from the battery charger at either end. Since I used up the 10' length of rebar to make the anodes, I did have a 2' by 3/4" diameter stake at hand for this purpose.
UPDATE: Per suggestions of others with the cross member possibly coming in contact with the anodes, I installed heat shrink tube at each end. Roughly 6" of heat shrink tube and left a 1" area uninsulated on one end to attach the Negative feed clamp. I also wire wheeled the piece on the bench grinder and applied PB Blaster Penetrating Oil to keep it free from corrosion. This should help with the electrical conductivity.
Remember the Positive(red) clamp goes to the anodes and the Negative(black) goes to the parts being cleaned.
Now just fill up the container with clean water to what ever level you need depending on the length of part(s) being cleaned. I use the bucket with the gallons marked out so I know how much water I'm putting in. As far as Baking Soda, I followed the rule in the above links, one tablespoon Baking Soda per one gallon of water. This formula has worked fine for me so far. Some guys just pour the baking soda in with no set measurements.
You can use old copper bare wire or steel wire to hang the parts from the center support (Negative lead). I use copper since I have plenty of scraps around and just double or triple the wire for heavier parts.
As stated earlier, my method here is more for convenience than anything else. By hanging the anodes, instead of clamping or bolting, it makes it easier to remove the anodes for cleanup or storage. This setup took me about 2-3 hours to fabricate.
Read the two links mentioned at the beginning. They will give you more details as to what and how for an electrolysis tank. It will give you a better understanding as you build yours. By no means am I an expert on this subject. Within the last month I found out what an electrolysis set up is and how it works. I just devised a way to better suite my needs as far as the construction and use of the tank itself.
Hope this helps any one who is new to this, referencing or just wants to change or improve their setup. Any suggestions, ideas or comments, please post.
By all means, please post your own electrolysis setup.
Thanks-David
Last edited:
electrolytic container, and thus get a really large anode area and no rebar mfr needed?
Groovy!