Electrolysis Single Item

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Mike Kuran

Member
I read the section on Electrolysis and I don't remember it saying whether it was better to do 2amps or 10amps? For those of you that use this method how do you determine whether to use 2 or 10? Thanks

Mike
 
Use the highest amperage your charger is capable of. Over 20 amps is overkill, though.
 
Copy that, If I don't have time to season the pan tonight would it be ok to turn off and leave in the E Bath till tomorrow after I get home? I was thinking no air it shouldn't be able to corrode. Then get home and scrub it and dry it in the oven before seasoning....
 
Doug D. said:
If the pH is above 8.2, which it should be, rust formation will be inhibited.
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I followed the instructions and bought what they said in the article and its the first pan I put in since I put it together tonight. I put 2tbl spoons per gal of water. The tank has 15 gallons in it. I have no way to test the ph level not sure how to do that. But I guess I could run it for an hour when I get home tomorrow and if it did have any rust build up it should get rid of it....

Mike
 
Testing for/setting a pH level is not required for the electrolytic process. Your question was regarding the leaving of the pan temporarily in the electro tank, which should not be of concern because its pH should already be well above the threshold below that which is conducive to rust formation.
 
Ok have a #6 Griswold skillet that's been soaking for about 3 days in lye. Most of the old seasoning has come off but inside the pan on the bottom maybe about 40% has come off. Would I be better to let the Electrolysis take it off or just stick it back into the lye tub? Thanks for any opinions :)

Mike
 
I would scrape what you can while wearing gloves and safety glass's
Then put it back in the Lye.

I try to get as much off with the Lye so when I go to the Electrolysis it keeps the solution cleaner and you can use it for more pieces before you have to replace it.
 
sometimes the bottom layers of 'seasoning' / gunk... are mostly carbonized... and don't really react with the lye... if they stick up above the surface they will often come off with 'pressure'... not necessarily scraping... just poking it with something will cause it to either crumble or pop off... if it doesn't stick up above the surface and looks more like a stain in the iron... I've had some success with just spraying those spots with easy off and letting it sit a while... possibly scrubbing with a small wire brush to make sure the lye gets in those spots really well... eventually it seems to go away.
 
Thanks! I have a question about the Electrolysis process. I have a pan in there now and the gauge on the charger that goes from 0 to 12 and was at about 6 when I first started and is now down to 1. Is that a sign that its about as clean as it will get?

Mike
 
Hrodebert S said:
It's a sign that the connection is degraded.
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It's still has lots and lots of bubbles coming off of it?

---------- Post added at 08:29 PM ---------- Previous post was at 08:04 PM ----------
Hrodebert S said:
It's a sign that the connection is degraded.
Click to expand...

Well I was just reading the Electrolysis article and it said this

"You'll know you have good current flowing when you see a mist of fine bubbles forming around the piece and your charger's amp meter reads towards the upper end of its scale"

If the connection is degraded what part is degraded? Could it be the green stuff thats building up on the anode?
 
yes... as the crud builds up on the sacrificial anode, the performance will decrease... using graphite helps with this.. .as nothing builds up on the graphite. Also watch for heat on you cables and connections... heat can be a sign of a poor connection... which can also degrade the performance.
 
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