What am I doing wrong? (ADDED PICS OF PROGRESS!!!!)

[Kiros32]

So I tried electrolysis last night using a setup I found here on TNet. I used a battery charger, large stainless steel bolt as the anode, and water with baking soda. After 12 full hours of cooking, the axe head looks the same...rusty.

So what's the deal? Shouldn't I see some result after 12 hours? Do I have to change the water during the process?

Any help would be greatly appreciated. The first pic is my setup, then before and after pics.

UPDATE: The pics at the bottom are after two 12-hour periods of cooking. It is progressing well, but it seems that it's going to take quite some time to remove all of the rust.

 

Amazon Forum Fav 👍

How to Research for Treasure Hunting and Metal Detecting From Lead Generation to Vetting - Grab it through Amazon!

[Don in SJ]

Re: What am I doing wrong? (with PICS)

The axehead has a lot of mass, but I think your bolt is big enough, not sure, I used that big used circular saw blade on my iron trivets and irons.

Was there bubbling coming off anything while "cooking"? Maybe more Baking Soda and add some salt. Make sure the bolt was close to but not touching the axe head.

Hopefully others will reply to your post. I assume you have the wires hooked up correctly.

Another helpful thing is to wire brush off the loose stuff if you had not done so, and MOST IMPORTANT, attach the Alligator clip on the axehead to BARE METAl, I had to file thru the rust on the irons to get a good connection!
Pick an inconspicous spot to do that filing, if you had not done so, that may be the reason, not a good connection on the axehead itself.

Don

 

[Kiros32]

Re: What am I doing wrong? (with PICS)

The axehead has a lot of mass, but I think your bolt is big enough, not sure, I used that big used circular saw blade on my iron trivets and irons.

Was there bubbling coming off anything while "cooking"? Maybe more Baking Soda and add some salt. Make sure the bolt was close to but not touching the axe head.

Hopefully others will reply to your post. I assume you have the wires hooked up correctly.

Another helpful thing is to wire brush off the loose stuff if you had not done so, and MOST IMPORTANT, attach the Alligator clip on the axehead to BARE METAl, I had to file thru the rust on the irons to get a good connection!
Pick an inconspicous spot to do that filing, if you had not done so, that may be the reason, not a good connection on the axehead itself.

Don

I don't think the clip was attached to bare metal, that was probably the problem. Thanks for the help. Oh and one more question, will the rust dissolve/disappear on its own, or do I need to periodically remove the relic and scrape the loose rust?

Thanks Don

 

[Don in SJ]

Re: What am I doing wrong? (with PICS)

I hope the bad connection to the axe was the problem, I believe with all the rust on that the answer to the question on periodically scraping off is YES.

Don

 

[rwsnc]

Re: What am I doing wrong? (with PICS)

Did you plug the battery charger in (just kidding)

 

[Admiral Jack]

Re: What am I doing wrong? (with PICS)

Hi Kiros32. . .

It's nice to see someone else trying out my method of cleaning artifacts. The right ingredients are "key" to your success.

Instead of "baking soda" be sure you are using "soda ash" found at a pool supply store. Also try adding some lemon juice to boost your electrolyte. Baking soda is used to clean it off after you run it.

Do this is a WELL VENTILATED area. The fumes can be toxic.

Make sure your voltage is around 6 volts and your amperage is around a 1/2 an amp to 1 amp. You should see bubbles coming from the artifact.

Good luck! Let me know how it turns out.

 

[Kiros32]

Re: What am I doing wrong? (with PICS)

Hi Kiros32. . .

It's nice to see someone else trying out my method of cleaning artifacts. The right ingredients are "key" to your success.

Instead of "baking soda" be sure you are using "soda ash" found at a pool supply store. Also try adding some lemon juice to boost your electrolyte. Baking soda is used to clean it off after you run it.

Do this is a WELL VENTILATED area. The fumes can be toxic.

Make sure your voltage is around 6 volts and your amperage is around a 1/2 an amp to 1 amp. You should see bubbles coming from the artifact.

Good luck! Let me know how it turns out.

Thanks for the advice Jack. I have the battery charger set on 10 amps, guess that's too high, although there are bubbles coming off of the artifact. I will adjust down to 2 amps and see what happens. I used a wire brush to get a better connection to bare metal and it seems to be working much better. I will try the lemon juice tonight. It has been cooking on and off for about 24 hours and I am starting to see results. I will post some pics of the progress tonight.