aluminum acid wash

[jim floyd]

i have an early 50's flying cloud that has alot of corrison on the outside.i heard that there is something called aluminum acid wash that will help to remove some of this.does anyone know where i can purchase some.

[Fyrzowt]

I'm sure others will chime in, but I think the general concensus here is don't use any acid on the aluminum. You don't want to get it in the joints, etc where you can't neutralize it. You should get some other opinions here shortly.
Dave

[InsideOut]

Acid Wash

Bottomline, don't do it. You'll have more leaks than you'll know what to do with.

Shari

[CanoeStream]

Shari, links seem to have gotten goofy lately. I'm finding just copying in the URL still works.

Jim, you can find links to this topic if you search on acid wash.

[Melody Ranch]

Every.....every....aluminum airplane painted is "acid washed," if its done correctly. No leaks here. A painted aluminum RV should be done with the same procedures for a long lasting coating. Look under "brightener" in paint prep. Follow the directions and then keep it clean for a new looking natural aluminum finish.

P.S. Many paint shops use a diluted muriatic acid.

[Aerowood]

Melody Ranch is absoluty correct. I acid wash every every aluminum part I make then apply alodine before priming. When ever I have to repaint any part of our aircraft, I chemicaly strip, etch, then alodine before priming. This is standard procedure. However if any of the etch or alodine seeps into an open seam it will cause corrosion. Aircraft construction is somewhat different then that of an Airstream. All mating surfaces are primed with an epoxy primer, Zinc chromate is basicly a thing of the past and I don't know of anybody that still uses it. All mating surfaces are fayed surface sealed with a two part polymer and shot together wet. These primers and sealents are inpervious to the mild acid etch when neuturalized with water. The Alumiprep will clean off mild suface corrosion or oxidation when used properly, but can cause long term issues if not throughly neuturalized. I do not know how stock Airstream sealents react with Alumiprep, so using these products on your Airstream is a "Do at your own risk" project.

[Auretrvr]

I talked to an Airstream tech when I called the company on another issue. He volunteered that under no circumstances should we allow an acid wash on our A/S. It seems to be a specialized process for aircraft. Even though we think we are flying when we glide down the road in our aluminum beauties...they are still not aircraft. Lots of great posts on successful jobs of exterior restoration without using acid. You will likely find great advice there. Best of luck!

[Blu_Hwy_Lady]

I don't know if the acid wash is the same stuff that was used to strip my Airstream, but I can tell that whatever was used did corrode the seam sealer in many places. Just a little background: My Safari was used as "set dressing" in a movie that invovled a pyro stunt. The stunt didn't go off as anticipated and my rig was heat damaged. The movie company took it to Oasis RV in Tucson to have it stripped and re-clearcoated. (And did a great job, BTW) The first rain storm, it leaked. There had been no leaks even right after the fire. Careful inspection of the seams showed that a lot of the sealer had deteriorated. Oasis FedExed some R-acytl (or however it's spelled) but thank heavens Lewster was on his migration from north to south and stopped by to save the day.

[InsideOut]

Originally Posted by Canoe stream

Shari, links seem to have gotten goofy lately. I'm finding just copying in the URL still works.

Jim, you can find links to this topic if you search on acid wash.

Actually, that was a search that pulled up 31 different threads talking about acid washing...type 'acid wash' into the search field and you can find the links.

Shari

[Aerowood]

Paint stripper and Alumiprep are to different products but will cause the same problems. Stripper will also remove fillet type seals. so reapplying the fillet seal after stripping is a must. If the fillet type seal is all that the seam originally had then stripper will most likely wick into the seam causing corrosion and leakage.