Where to Get Phosphoric Acid?

[Anonymous]

I would like to do the etch treatment to my fuel tank to clean out some light rust. Both the Kreem and POR kits use phosphoric acid for this and I figured I might as well, too. Where would I get a dilute solution? Is Naval Jelly the same stuff? Can I just dilute that a bit and slosh it around the inside of the tank (after pulling the petcock and float of course)? Any other choices/ideas?

Thanks,
Mark

[Anonymous]

Try a pool supply place. They have acids like that for etching the concrete before installing a pool liner. Miuratic acid should work too.

[snowbeard]

hey there,

finding may not be the hardest part, I work in a lab and so got a small bottle of concentrated Phosphoric. I cleaned my tank, and had good results without even kreeming it, but now I accidentally let the bottle spill over in a tub with random parts, old motor oil, glass, etc...

what the heck to do with this mess I have no idea, so far I'm just letting it sit there, kind of a science experiment...

just think first of how you'll dispose of it...

[earlfor]

There has to be a neutralizer for phosporic acid. Once neutralized, I imagine you could break down the oil with a common detergent such as liquid Joy. At that stage, it should be no more harmful than the water you drain out of your kitchen sink after washing some greasy pots and pans.

Earl

hey there,

finding may not be the hardest part, I work in a lab and so got a small bottle of concentrated Phosphoric. I cleaned my tank, and had good results without even kreeming it, but now I accidentally let the bottle spill over in a tub with random parts, old motor oil, glass, etc...

what the heck to do with this mess I have no idea, so far I'm just letting it sit there, kind of a science experiment...

just think first of how you'll dispose of it...

[first timer]

break down and get a por 15 kit, they are like 35 bucks, once you clean with the acit you need to treat the tank or you will get a bunch of flash rust, so just go with the kit.

-ryan

[Anonymous]

break down and get a por 15 kit, they are like 35 bucks, once you clean with the acit you need to treat the tank or you will get a bunch of flash rust, so just go with the kit.

Not necessarily true. The rusting part depends on where you live. Our climate here is very dry and we can blast steel and leave it outside for weeks without significant rust forming. In some climates that rust will form in minutes or hours. So I figure to simply clean the steel and leave it, as Suzuki did many years ago. The tank only has minor sediment in it and it lived all of its life outdoors before I got it, so rust is just not much of an issue around here. If I lived in Louisiana, it would be a much different story... Plus, I don't like the idea of a coating in there to come loose and plug things up. Clean steel seems the best to me.

Mark

[first timer]

ok i got cha just go to the por 15 website then, and order a quart of some metel prep that will get rid of your rust, then clean your tank, then swish a little baking soda and water around the tank after to nutraize the acid wash it out with some more water then use a little MEK to dry up the water (MEK is mean stuff watch the paint). You may want spray a little wd40 in the tank after it is all dry to kinda seal it up a little.

also don't forget before you use the metal prep you need to strip the varnish and oils off the metal so the acid can get the rust. You will need to use a little MEK in the tank to break up the oil.

about that por 15 once you go thru the steps (followed to the T) and then use the lining stuff there is no way that coating is coming off or break up. it is somewhere between a lite epoxy and a heavey duty enamel paint and some sort of flexable coating. basiclly i have lots of faith it will last longer then the tank.

-ryan

[jpaul]

If you need a neutralizer for the phosphoric acid, just buy the biggest box of baking soda you can find. Or just pour the leftover on the car hood of the guy down the street that you really don't like. :twisted:

[Mr. Jiggles]

Try a parts supplier that sells auto body supplies - look for metal conditioner. Rustoleum also is primarly phosphoric acid. I don't know if they sell it in the non-jellied form. Also you can buy just the rust remover from POR-15's kit without the coating.

As far as disposal goes I wouldn't worry about it. Phosphoric acid is pretty weak as acids go. I'd just dump it down' the drain followed by alot of water. The most serious adverse environmental impact will be from the phosphate (which is limiting in most ecosystems) and is independent of whether it is neutralized. Just make sure to wash the sink with water since it could remove any elctroplating that might be on your fixtures. If you ahve any hesitation about dumping it down the drain think about the lye and sulfuric acid drain cleaners we use. Hundreds of times worse than phosphoric.

[Anonymous]

I get mine at Home Depot. Just ask for Muratic Acid.
If I remember right I mixed it four parts water to one part acid.
Left it in a badly rusted tank for two days then flushed with water and coated the inside.
Dumped it in an old plastic cooler. When I need to strip parts of rust and some paints I just toss them in the cooler for a couple of days then flush and brush with water.

Allan

[earlfor]

I believe muriatic is hydrochloric.

Earl

I get mine at Home Depot. Just ask for Muratic Acid.
If I remember right I mixed it four parts water to one part acid.
Left it in a badly rusted tank for two days then flushed with water and coated the inside.
Dumped it in an old plastic cooler. When I need to strip parts of rust and some paints I just toss them in the cooler for a couple of days then flush and brush with water.

Allan

[argonsagas]

I believe muriatic is hydrochloric.

Earl

Yes, it is. It is generally sold as a dilute form of hydrochloric.




Baking soda is a pretty good neutralizer for many acids, and that includes phosphoric acid, which is usually obtained in weak form. After knowing that, the question of how to get it safely mixed with the acids is a whole other subject.

Name brand cleaners, such as CLR, depend on phosphoric acid to do their job.

When sold in this manner, it is well-diluted, and generally safe to use, although NO chemical is safe in large quantities. That said, the human body cannot take some chemicals even in tiny quantities, whether they be gas, liquid or solid.

CAUTION is absolutely essential in handling all chemicals.