Caustic soda

[BarryH]

Caustic soda does a wonderful job of decoking and generally cleaning manifolds etc. It has worked wonders on the vilevo one, looks all new and spangly.
But does it harm the enamel on a bath?

 

[nedmin]

no as long as its enamel.When I was an apprentice used to wash our enamel tea cans out with it.dont leave it in for a week but a few hours should be ok. dilute it down about a dessert spoon to a pint. WATCH YOUR EYES!!

 

[Anonymous]

It is a little-known fact that enamel is actually porous. Years ago, when I was studying for O level chemistry, I tried to clean the bath with HCl. I left it overnight and in the morning all the gloss had come off, leaving me with a sandpaper-like surface (which we lived with for ages /forums/images/graemlins/shocked.gif). Don't know how it is with NaOH, but beware with enamel!!

 

[VicS]

It's acids that harm enamel baths so I think strong alkalis like castic soda should be OK. It will certainly harm you though if it gets on your skin or especially your eyes. Don't take even the slightest risk of splashing your eyes as the pain will be intollerable and without assistance you will not be able to open them to wash it out. Permanent damage is almost inevitable.

If SWMBO finds you soaking bits of engine in cautic soda in the bath she will harm you just as severely!

Don't soak aluminium, or aluminium alloy, bits as caustic will dissolve that.

Why not find a large plastic container that can be cut down to use instaed of the bath?

Or is this a trick question? Have you already messed up the bath and SWMBO is now intent on messing you up?

 

[BarryH]

[ QUOTE ]
Or is this a trick question? Have you already messed up the bath and SWMBO is now intent on messing you up?

[/ QUOTE ]

..........no comment on the grounds that I might incriminate my self........The manifold sparkles tho!

 

[VicS]

[ QUOTE ]
no comment on the grounds that I might incriminate my self

[/ QUOTE ] I thought so. Has it in fact damaged the bath?

There are specialists in restoring enamel baths.

 

[BarryH]

Im in the middle of polishing with Farecla. Seems to be doing the job. The bath is very very VERY white. Doesn't look bad for a 80 y/o bath

 

[BrendanS]

I've been having a look around the web. Some sites indicate that it will attack enamel over a period, and that taking surface gloss off is quite likely

 

[Bodach na mara]

I recall from school chemistry that Caustic Soda attacks glass. In fact the stopper of a bottle containing diluted caustic would get stuck if it were glass, so rubber (or later plastic) stoppers were used. These got stuck as well but could be released without damaging the bottle.

As enamel is a sort of glass fused on to the surface of the metal bath, I would not use caustic on it if I thought of it in time.

 

[VicS]

I dont know what bath enamel is. Glass is not normally attacked by acids (The glass stoppers in the acid botlles were OK weren't they) but bath enamel, as already pointed out, is.

I suppose one of us resident Chemists is going to have to find out.

Almost all bottle stoppers now are plastic except for things that attack the plastic.

I've now seen Barry's post in the lounge.

Some people always have to learn the hard way!

 

[Birdseye]

[ QUOTE ]
Im in the middle of polishing with Farecla. Seems to be doing the job. The bath is very very VERY white. Doesn't look bad for a 80 y/o bath

[/ QUOTE ]

So you were descaling your engine in the bath and SWMBO isnt very happy with the new grippy finish. Never mind - you wont notice the difference when you put the coal back. /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

 

[tugboat]

Flippin' 'eck - first you try to electrocute 'er, now you want to dissolve 'er in caustic! Wonder what you do to peeps you <u>don't</u> like! I'm not coming round to find out! /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

 

[BrendanS]

you ought to have a look at his profile! /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif