So what standard household cleaners contain enough oxalic acid

Modulation

Modulation

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.................to get rid of brown stains and rust from the topsides? My boat is in an area with (occasionally) high levels of pollution. as a result I need to clean her up pretty frequently so it's expensive to use Y10 - which IS a good product.
The answer is to use a cheap household cleaner but the labels on the few I looked at were silent on oxalic acid content.
Ideally I want to buy enough to put me in a frame of mind to clean her regularly.
Can you help? (Not with the cleaning .................unless you really want to!!)
 
Some people mix up their own version of Y10 using oxalic acid and wallpaper paste. I considered doing so but then I decided it wasn't worth the trouble because a pot of Y10 lasts me two years so that's only about £6/year.

Tip: choose a warm day to apply it (yes I know!).
 
If you want to remove brown stains=rust, you can also use citric acid froma chemist or wine making shop. Its cheap, not poisonous like oxalic acid, and you can in emergency put it in your G&T in place of lemon !
 
buying the oxalic in bulk and mixing your own is far cheaper than trying to find a cheap alternative in the supermarket. Its not anywhere near as hazardous as is often implied on here, as long as basic precautions are taken. I got an eyefull over the winter that did smart a bit, so I've taken to wearing glasses when I use it now.
 
brendanbergin said:
.................to get rid of brown stains and rust from the topsides? My boat is in an area with (occasionally) high levels of pollution. as a result I need to clean her up pretty frequently so it's expensive to use Y10 - which IS a good product.
The answer is to use a cheap household cleaner but the labels on the few I looked at were silent on oxalic acid content.
Ideally I want to buy enough to put me in a frame of mind to clean her regularly.
Can you help? (Not with the cleaning .................unless you really want to!!)
Click to expand...

I am not aware of any household cleaners that contain oxalic acid. It doesn't mean there aren't any but if there are I have not come across them.

As suggested buy some oxalic acid and use it as a near saturated solution, thickened with wallpaper paste for vertical surfaces.
Take the usual precautions you would with any other corrosive and mildly toxic substance. Goggles or safety specs and impervious gloves. Wash any splashes off the skin promptly.

For many uses Cillit Bang Grime and Lime may be effective but according to another forum thread its formulation has been changed and it is no longer effective on rust stains.
 
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BKF (AKA Bar Keepers Friend) is readily available in most supermarkets-certainly in Waitrose, and ironmongers and other DIY type places. £3 a container, is dry powder, goes a very long way. Oxalic acid is the third ingrediant listed, but no %age given. I've been using it for years on the hull-works a treat.

HTH
 
between 5 and 10%.

There are a number of BKF products in the range, so the % may vary.
 
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brendanbergin said:
.................to get rid of brown stains and rust from the topsides? My boat is in an area with (occasionally) high levels of pollution. as a result I need to clean her up pretty frequently so it's expensive to use Y10 - which IS a good product.
The answer is to use a cheap household cleaner but the labels on the few I looked at were silent on oxalic acid content.
Ideally I want to buy enough to put me in a frame of mind to clean her regularly.
Can you help? (Not with the cleaning .................unless you really want to!!)
Click to expand...

A few years ago, while in Australia, I bought some GRP Gel-coat Cleaner in gel form - it had KH on the label - and it consisted of 10% hydrochloric acid.

Having run out, I found that B&Q Patio Cleaner was 8% hydrochloric acid in water.

I fill a spray can with the Patio Cleaner and about 5% citrus type cleaner and spray it on the brown and rust stains. The stains come off easily with just a wipe. I then wash down with fresh water.

My boat polish comes from the same source - B&Q!
 
Modulation said:
.................to get rid of brown stains and rust from the topsides? My boat is in an area with (occasionally) high levels of pollution. as a result I need to clean her up pretty frequently so it's expensive to use Y10 - which IS a good product.
The answer is to use a cheap household cleaner but the labels on the few I looked at were silent on oxalic acid content.
Ideally I want to buy enough to put me in a frame of mind to clean her regularly.
Can you help? (Not with the cleaning .................unless you really want to!!)
Click to expand...

Oxalic acid's main applications include cleaning or bleaching, especially for the removal of rust (iron complexing agent),

Bar Keepers Friend is an example of a household cleaner containing oxalic acid. Its utility in rust removal agents is due to its forming a stable, water soluble salt with ferric iron, ferrioxalate ion.

from WIKI
 
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