05-02-2015, 03:13 PM
(04-30-2015, 06:56 PM)Hopefuldave Wrote: Hi aRM, I'll give some details of my electrolysis setup in case you're interested?
Approx 18x24x12" heavy-duty watertight plastic crate ("stack and store" bins here in the UK), 30A start-and-charge battery charger (old style "dumb" transformer type, the "smart" chargers shut down if they don't see an attached battery), washing soda crystals (Proper Hardware Store) 1 or 2 cups / Imperial Gallon, arc gouging rods (most of the copper stripped off with ferric chloride, enough left to solder the +ve leads onto) as electrodes.
For separation / insulation the plastic grids you sit on sink drainers, thrown-away plastic vegetable crates (around the back of kitchens and supermarkets), spiral cable wrap for threading the electrodes inside e.g. motorbike petrol tanks.
I started out with sheet steel for the sacrificial electrodes, found it produces a really murky solution, lots of muck and "barnacles" on the steel that have to be scraped off to keep the process going, the carbon rods seem to be much cleaner (the solution stays pretty clear, no scraping the barnacles off them), work well in an anodising tank too :)
I attach the workpiece with the charger's -ve lead (and extra pieces with some improvised jumpers, big crocodile clip each end), the +ve goes to a piece of stranded/insulated copper wire soldered to each of the gouging rods in turn (these are held against the inside of the crate by the insulating material, connections above the waterline). mix and pour in the electrolyte (or vice versa), switch on battery charger (current's dependant on the surface area of work and electrode, I've seen 15-20A on many occasions) and go away for a day or three doing something else...
On returning, check all's nice and clean, quick scrub with a scotchbriite pad or similar to loosen any black oxide particles, dry and oil swiftly before it rusts up again :)
One warning - NEVER use stainless steel as the sacrificial anode, it makes SERIOUSLY unpleasand hexavalent chromium in the bath (proper toxic waste, regulated, Official Channels for disposal and all that)
Another warning - Iron/steel only, the bath can have bad effects on aluminium/brass/bronze etc., so stick to ferrous metals
DAVE and MAYHEM
Regret we have to pick You Guys brains on this seemingly simple to do project.
Went out today to get the plastic container and the 12V Battery Charger and they have a simple unit for abouts four hundred Rand, Your +- $30-$35, which goes up to 12Volts max - no more. Then there was one at twice the Price to cope with huge Truck Batteries. At an Autozone we were offered a "professional" one which goes from 6 to 36 Volts for nearly THREE GRANDS !!!
Researching professor Google, we read a recommendation for one to get a 6-24 Volt supply Charger preferably with an Ammeter. We assume this Ammeter to be the thing-ma-a-jig with the Dial and readings on the face, which co-incidentally, the small 12V Charger had anyway ??
Now we did buy a 55 Litre ( about Your 12 Gallons ) heavy duty plastic Container and are worried that the small 12V max Battery Charger will be inadequate for this large-a-size Container !!! Are we reasoning correctly ???
What would U Guys recommend for the Charger ???
Do we get the Truck Battery Charger or the speciality item or do we purchase the small 12V Charger, which will suffice ??? Guess U Guys will appreciate that one would need de-Rust some parts once-off and not need repeat the process every day. So usage will be on occasional times.
Thanks in advance for Your kind inputs.
Warm regards
aRM