Question.

[J.Cohoon04]

I have dug a couple of pretty corroded iron items, what's a good way to try and clean them up and try to get them in a more identifiable condition?

 

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[GatorBoy]

Soak them in apple cider vinegar.

 

[J.Cohoon04]

Is there a size/time ratio or anything?

 

[GatorBoy]

You can leave the item in for a day a week.. however long it takes.

 

[J.Cohoon04]

Thanks GB!

 

[GatorBoy]

Your welcome.
Post some photos if you care to.
Look at this beast I'm working on now.

 

[J.Cohoon04]

I got a nice hand sized, disc shaped lump like that lol!

 

[J.Cohoon04]

And when I get the method down, these will be my next project. The one I gonna be tough, it's in the middle of like a 2' long bar.

 

[GatorBoy]

It should work great on those.
Periodically take them out to check and use a soft brisel toothbrush to remove loose material.
The one on the left is a gas cap to a vehicle by the way.

 

[J.Cohoon04]

Yeah, I figured it was either that or a radiator cap when I dug that.

 

[GatorBoy]

I've used this method on alot of things but this is the only one I have photos of at the moment.
From the same site as the "lump" above.

 

[J.Cohoon04]

That's pretty sweet! How long did it take for some of those?

 

[GatorBoy]

...

 

[GatorBoy]

It's all one find.
It had a sandy crust the light acid in the vinegar loosened enough to remove without damaging the artifact in about 24 hrs.

 

[J.Cohoon04]

Saltwater find?

 

[GatorBoy]

Saltwater had inundated the area in the past ..probably many times.

 

[Rusted_Iron]

If you're going to soak iron in vinegar, make sure you do a final soak or three in plain water to get the acid out of the pores of the iron, or it will rust again quickly. There are better ways, but if you're not set up for it, this will work OK.

 

[GatorBoy]

Absolutely ..water ..then a trip to the oven before sealant.
There are better ways... this is just one I thought would be easy for someone who hasn't done alot of conservation.
The one I used as an example was a little complicated because I had to deal with different materials in different ways.