Ultrasonic Cleaner use for parts

[Gunn]

Ultra sonics work great after you knock off all the big goobs of grease oil and saw dust. They're a good last step to getting parts super clean.

As I found out when I first got mine they don't work stellar when you just toss in dirty parts off a 20 year old saw without any pre-cleaning. It'll get it clean, but it takes long cycles and eventually all that crap settles in the tank and eventually mucks up the cleaner and drain.

 

[VinceGU05]

like others have said they are only for light cleaning duties. like jim i cover up head to toe and blast them with a pressure cleaner. i usually try to do a couple of saws at a time for the hassle of setting up. i use the USC only for the small parts like screws, clutches and rubbers etc. cylinder gets bead blasted at work. i had a 6l USC which died recently and replaced it with a 3l unit as i dont put cases or jugs in it. its just a waste of time.
scrap the heavy crap off.. degrease and pressure wash. or a mechanics parts washer are the best way IMHO. its the crap side of working on old saws.

 

[Brewz]

Yeah true.

I will be investing in a full plastic rain coat

 

[jacob j.]

Setting up a hot tank with an industrial de-greaser like Purple Power or Super Clean is the way to go on cylinders and mufflers (It'll even remove a lot of baked-on carbon). Don't put case halves in it as the detergents will peel or turn the power coating odd colors. The USCs are good for certain case halves and other smaller parts as Vince mentions. I still wash a lot of parts in straight gas because it's very effective and rinses the cleanest. I do so outside in the open air. If the plastics aren't too bad then I wash them in citrus-based solvent and rinse with WD-40.

 

[mdavlee]

I use a bucket and laundry detergent with hot water. It will get 90% of the stuff off besides corners and crannies. Takes maybe 10 minutes to wash a set of cases with a brush after about a 15 minute soak. Wish I had an old dishwasher to try for cleaning some.

 

[Brewz]

I have a stash of 50 liter Stainless kegs from my home brewing days, and am thinking one of them with the top cut out would make a great hot tub that I could put a burner under to heat up a heap of water to soak it all in?

Does it lift all the oil greasy muck?

 

[CR888]

I use a pressure washer (Stihl 128se?) or air compressor with air gun then clean with soapy water. I always get stuff on my face/eyes using pressure washer.....you thing you can be carefull and dodge the dirt but it gets you every time. If I did heaps of saws a proper parts washer would be the way to go. I don't build many saws. Some old saws like my contra lost a good few pounds after all the crud was removed.

 

[panteliss]

I really want to know how much time a ultrasonic need for making a heavy dirty saw crystal clear , maybe two days non stop working ??

 

[PA Dan]

I try to get rid of the heavy stuff that's easy to knock off first. If it's really bad I'll spray it with some degreaser and let it sit a while then hit it with hot water. Then it goes in the ultrasonic for 20-30 minutes. Take it out blast it with hot water and check the holes and crevices for build up. Pick it out and back in for a little while. Repeat that process until acceptable. If you had a large enough tank that the solution wouldn't become dirty and the elements become covered in sludge you could throw the whole dirty saw in. I wouldn't want to see the price of that unit!

 

[Genius]

I primarily use a parts washer with mineral spirits for cleaning most of my parts.

I have a small USC that I use for carbs and that is filled with straight WD-40

Some day I'd like to get a 10l USC like Randy has.

 

[Gunn]

I have a 1oL, and I wish I would have gone larger so I could clean tanks.

 

[PA Dan]

Ya I hate to have to keep flipping the tanks over!

 

[jake wells]

i got a wood stove in the garage with a metal pot mixed 50/50 with power clean i boil nasty metal parts suspended from the top of the pot with some fencing wire.
i have only used a USC for carburetors and cylinders they work good for that.

 

[Four Paws]

A solvent tank works great...mineral spirits clean the best but are expensive. Gas works good, too, if you can stand the smell. Steam cleaning works great, but the investment cost puts it out of range for most.

Honestly, your idea of boiling a big kettle of water would work excellent! Add some Dawn dish soap to cut the grease, and use a stiff bristle brush to get the hard-to-reach stuff. This will be the most effective and least expensive method.