Cleaning Up a Tub, ...not the CW kind of cleaning Options

[richardL]

I have been dismantling my '74 car prior to getting it painted etc.

The car sat in the high CA desert for many years and is profoundly dirty - sand and dust coating everything and everywhere.

I have done a lot of wiping and vacuuming but its still dirty - touch it anywhere and you come away with really nasty hands.

Whats the best way to clean it enough so that I actually feel I'm working on a car rather then in a farmyard? Is brake cleaner OK everywhere, is there a better way (considering its indoors on jackstands so a hosepipe might present 'issues')?

[bondo]

You could try the "Dental" approach. Use a compressed air bow gun to disturb the dirt, and a shop vac to suck it up. Gets into the corners much better than a vacuum alone.

I wouldn't use that much brake cleaner indoors. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/smile.gif)

[SirAndy]

i have the same problem ... the car is just dirty everywhere and there is no way to clean it right ...

the "compressed air" approach only works for lose dirt, but most of the stuff is sticking to the paint and won't come off with compressed air.
and of course all that in hard to get to corners ...

i can't even begin to tell you how much that bugs me ...
(IMG:style_emoticons/default/dry.gif) Andy

[So.Cal.914]

Unless it is in your livingroom put some wheels under it and role it out. A preasure

washer will do the job nicely.

[SirAndy]

Unless it is in your livingroom put some wheels under it and role it out. A preasure
washer will do the job nicely.

uhm, i'm pretty sure he's not only talking about the *outside* of the car ...

do you pressure wash your passanger cabin? trunks? under the gas tank? engine bay?
(IMG:style_emoticons/default/confused24.gif) Andy

[So.Cal.914]

When he said he dissmantled his car I assumed it was a tub. So use rubbing

alcohol it's cheap, evaporates and safe for skin. By the way how are you and your Grand

child doing OpaAndy?

[morph]

pressure washer and a mild degreaser.does wonders and makes for a clean start
james

[richardL]

uhm, i'm pretty sure he's not only talking about the *outside* of the car ...

do you pressure wash your passanger cabin? trunks? under the gas tank? engine bay?
(IMG:style_emoticons/default/confused24.gif) Andy

Exactly - the outside is not really a problem - its all the tiny nooks and crannies - I'd love to be able to get it clean everywhere - the inside is the main problem.

I've brushed and vacuumed but it is never truly clean and it bugs the hell out of me (IMG:style_emoticons/default/mad.gif)

Richard

[SirAndy]

When he said he dissmantled his car I assumed it was a tub. So use rubbing

alcohol it's cheap and safe for skin. By the way how are you and your Grand

child doing OpaAndy?

yeah, if it was completely stripped ... mine however is not ... just do me one favor, never ever sandblast your car, will 'ya?

the little one is doing great, i'm planning on going over there to visit this fall ...
(IMG:style_emoticons/default/smile.gif) Andy

[So.Cal.914]

yeah, if it was completely stripped ... mine however is not ... just do me one favor, never ever sandblast your car, will 'ya?

the little one is doing great, i'm planning on going over there to visit this fall ...
(IMG:style_emoticons/default/smile.gif) Andy

I was thinking about your delema with the sand. If you have a shop vac

fabricate a reducer for the hose down to 1/2" I.D. use clear vinyl plastic hose

and feed it in. The reduction will speed up the air traveling thru the hose

and you will be able to see when the hose hits the sand. Just a thought.

[SirAndy]

I was thinking about your delema with the sand. If you have a shop vac
fabricate a reducer for the hose down to 1/2" I.D. use clear vinyl plastic hose
and feed it in. The reduction will speed up the air traveling thru the hose
and you will be able to see when the hose hits the sand. Just a thought.

done that already ... (IMG:style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif)

the problem is the area where you can't get in, even with a smaller hose.
like the double wall portion of the lower firewall.
or the doublewall between the engine bay and rear trunk.
or the longs.
or the channels under the tank.

i ended up cutting openings in all those areas to get the sand out. i'm sure i didn't get all of it out, but hey ...
i got two pounds of sand out of the channels under the tank alone ... (IMG:style_emoticons/default/blink.gif)

and you *don't* want to add water to the sand sitting in a cavity.

but the main problem is the fine dusting that mixes with moisture and sticks to the paint. compresses air does nothing to remove it and some spots you just can't get in with a rag or anything else.

it just looks plain dirty and it bugs the shit out of me ...
(IMG:style_emoticons/default/dry.gif) Andy

[pastordavid]

OK, I am just about to the "tub" stage too (engine drop this week, suspension next). I was getting ready to look for media blasters in my area (if its good enough for Foose...) so what woould my alternatives be? Remember, I am in the glorious Ohio River valley, home of the limp noodle humidity ranges, so that dry desert air is not even close to reality. I do have some bubbling under the paint where the sail panels used to be, and I really just wanted to start with a "clean" slate of bare metal.

David

[SirAndy]

so what woould my alternatives be?

i hear some use baking soda instead of sand ... but then, how do you get that out of the cracks? (IMG:style_emoticons/default/confused24.gif)

if i ever do that again, i'll have the car acid dipped. best way to do it, hands down ...
(IMG:style_emoticons/default/smile.gif) Andy

[McMark]

Soda dissolves in water and gets washed away.

[Twystd1]

Andy said

"if i ever do that again, i'll have the car acid dipped. best way to do it, hands down ..."
Andy

Andy, I am assuming you are talking about hot tank stripping with caustic soda. Correct me if I am wrong. (Or cold tank Methlene Chloride system?)

I would agree if you had a old chevy or ford............ Or a 914 race car.
As we can access all of the chassis, body and frame parts to rinse off and neutralize the caustic soda.

Yet with so many nooks, crannies and areas that cannot be washed out and neutralized properly on a 914....

Me thinks long term we might be screwed..............

I don't like the idea of caustic soda sitting in my longs.... Slowly eating away at the chassis.

For that matter all of the other places that the C/S can hide in.... Like the foam in the rear fenders and the flexible tubes in the heater channels... And any double walled sheet metal that might have a hole in it... (Targa Bar)

As the caustic soda can get in there and never REALLY be totaly neutralized or removed.

Conversely if it was a track car and I was willing to open all that stuff up...
No PROBLEM.. I would do it in a heart beat.........

Thats just what I think... I know others that have done it and have YET to complain about the effects of the caustic soda...

Thats just the way I see it....

Twystd1

[Rusty]

When I strip my 914-6, I'm going to see if I can use this method.

Dry Ice Blasting - An Overview
Dry ice blasting is a relatively new cleaning process using solid CO2 pellets (known as dry ice). It is primarily used for industrial use in a variety of applications. The pellets sublimate (convert directly from a solid blast pellet to a vapor (CO2) leaving no residue. The process is superior to sand blasting, glass bead blasting and other types of cleaning methods for numerous reasons (see chart below).

Today, the dry ice method of cleaning is quickly becoming favored for environmental as well as production reasons. Because of tremendous environmental regulations, industry has needed to minimize wastes. Also, there is a growing consciousness that many are placing now on the global environmental impact of their production practices. However, these benefits are accentuated due to the tremendous performance gains through dry ice blasting -- little or no production downtime, quality of clean and minimized damaged to equipment.



What Is Dry Ice?
Dry ice pellets are made by taking liquid carbon dioxide (CO2) from a pressurized storage tank and expanding it at ambient pressure to produce snow. The snow is then compressed through a die to make hard pellets.


The Process
With the dry ice blasting process, dry ice (CO2) particles are propelled to supersonic speed impacting and cleaning a surface. The particles are accelerated by compressed air, just as with other blasting methods. Overall, there are three steps involved in dry ice blasting. Also, it can viewed in diagram form (see below).



Step #1 - Energy Transfer
Dry ice pellets are propelled out of the blasting gun at supersonic speed and impact the surface. The energy transfer knocks off the contaminant without abrasion. The force of this impact is the primary means of cleaning.

Step #2 - Micro-Thermal Shock
The cold temperature of the dry ice pellets hitting the contaminant creates a micro-thermal shock (caused by the dry ice temperature of -79º C) between the surface contaminant and the substrate. Cracking and delamination of the contaminant occurs furthering the elimination process.

Step #3 - Gas Pressure
The final phase has the dry ice pellet explode on impact, and as the pellet warms it converts to a harmless CO2 gas, which expands rapidly underneath the contaminant surface. This forces off the contaminant from behind. The contaminant is then relocated, typically falling to the ground. Since the dry ice evaporates, only the contaminant is left for disposal.

[mihai914]

When I strip my 914-6, I'm going to see if I can use this method.

I think this is what Michel R. used to strip the tub he bought from John Lowe...

From what I understood, it was more time consuming than expected = more $$$ and it couldn't cut through thicker stuff. Results are nice though.

Just a heads up for ya.

[PRS914-6]

Andy, I had my tub blasted and while I have to agree with you that it is a pain in the ass to get out all the sand, with a little creativity it can be "mostly" overcome. For the longs, I jacked the car up as high as I could get it in the rear and introduced compressed air at the rear end and a 6 hp vaccum on the other end (I cut a hole for my oil lines)

While they are both running, I run a needle gun back and forth down the outside of the longs moving and vibrating the sand and letting the compressed air and vacuum do their job . A venturi assited air nozzzle significantly increases the volume of air. I got a huge pile as well when I was done both in the vaccum as well as from the holes in the longs. The needle gun works great for this. I also used the same method with a small hose on the end of my vacuum and vibrated and ran the hose in the small areas. Not perfect but I'm pretty happy with the results

[bondo]

I know you said not the CW kind... but have you tried Q-tips? Maybe they're on to something. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/smile.gif)