Quote:
Originally Posted by J Franklin
Brent, I'm jealous. I have used lye also on wheels soaked for a few days. They come out clean bare metal. I think oven cleaner I use (spray foam) Is a base like sodium hydroxide. You still have to do a lot of scraping but it desolves most everything (the grime) that is left.
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Yes, sodium hydroxide is a good cleaning agent, -especially when heat is involved. It is also fairly easy to purchase since it is used in soap making by many homesteaders & minimalists.
As far as cleaning, hobbyists can build a small soaking tank (i.e.: large stock/cooking pot all the way up to a 55 gallon drum) and use the sodium hydroxide & water to degrease with. Get creative with a deep fryer burner or even a wood fire underneath to heat the solution. Anything over 130° will quickly expedite the degreasing process.
Next, the big box stores all sell inexpensive pressure washers to flush away the residuals. A large rinse tank can be used by recycling a old bathtub or livestock watering trough. The 'greasy stuff' that is floated off of the parts with the pressure washer is actually considered hazardous waste however if the water is evaporated out of the rinse tank where the grease & crud are allowed to dry, it is no longer considered hazardous waste and can be placed in a plastic bag to be disposed of with your household garbage.