What do you use in your parts cleaning bath?
Many, many years ago, in my machine shop, I subscribed to Safety Clean. They serviced the cleaner. The product was copacetic with my skin and did a great job of cleaning. All of that was in a different lifetime, 30 + years ago.
Now that I have just a small personal shop in my back yard that type of service is too expensive. I have a small Harbor Freight parts cleaner. I have tried mineral spirits. Even though I wear gloves, some gets through and it tears my skin up. It does work well, though.
I have tried Simple Green. It isn’t quite so hard on my hands, but, it doesn’t do such a great job of cleaning.
Whatever I use needs to be compatible with aluninum. Most of what I clean is Kart engine parts.
What do you use?
Not sure which simple green you are using but the simple green pro does a good job in our HF ultrasonic cleaner. We do have to run it with heat and a couple times through the long setting though.
I also have a harbor freight ultrasonic cleaner. I get the best results with Original Krud kutter degreaser. Second best is the Simple Green HD which is blue not green. In both case I am using about 4 to 1 water to degreaser. If you leave aluminum in to long the Krud Kutter will dull it a bit and can mess with anodizing appearance sometimes. For some reason the Krud Kutter at my Home Depot is in the paint area but the Simple Green is in the cleaning supply area.
Aluminum & US generally don’t go well together, though I’ve read that higher frequency industrial brands (not HF) are safe. US can etch softer metals & remove the anodizing layer on aluminum, especially when immersed in a relatively acidic cleaner medium.
Mineral spirits are pH neutral, supposedly effective, & easier on Al, so maybe give that a try.
Thanks for the info, guys. It is much appreciated!