Best way to clean grubby gearbox (aluminium)

[arceye]

If you can find an old garage selling paraffin from a pump that is great for cleaning oily and grimy stuff!!

Inexpensive too.

Agreed

Or Kerosene (pretty much, even possibly, the same stuff as paraffin), often available from heating oil suppliers by the gallon, or even the coal man.... it is up here anyway...

I also like old stale petrol, diesel, and the stuff they drain out of car fuel tanks that have had someone put the wrong pump nozzle in, sometimes available from your friendly local garage.

Only problem though is keeping it contained and from contaminating the ground, and what to do with the leftover fluid.

[TerryG]

what to do with the leftover fluid.

I have been known to use it as a fire lighter. it gets even damp wood going. I am sure there will be some daft legislation somewhere making it illegal but it works so as long as I have about 40 gallons of diesel / oil mixed in the garage (some idiot put diesel in the wrong barrel a few years ago (not me)) i'll keep using it. Free is much better than those daft fire lighters you get in the pound shop that couldn't light a pile of dry leaves even if they were already on fire.

[arceye]

I actually wanted to make a drip feed into the stove for waste oil to drip slowly onto whatever was actually burning as the main fuel. Sort of a fuel extender, waste oil disposer along with some free heat kind of thing. It can be done relatively easily but you do need to be a little careful with it, and as Terry says, there is probably some law against this kind of thing anyway.

The better half informed me it was a stupid idea, and threatened all sorts of violence if I went near the stove with a drill to modify it..

she was probably right, but I still think it was a good idea

[Luxobarge]

I believe I'm right in saying that you can get purpose-built stoves that burn engine oil, I'm sure I read a few years ago about a few independant garages that were using old engine oil to heat the entire premises.

Or did I dream that? Seems like a good idea though, if you can get a stove designed to burn it reasonably efficiently and cleanly.

[TerryG]

You can definitely do it as my local LR man has one. He has a licence from the environment agency to operate it.
I'm not sure if he needs one because it is customers oil he is burning or if you need one in general.
Someone (probably John) will know I'm sure.

[Dobbin]

Brake cleaner. It comes in an aerosol can, can be sprayed into awkward corners and doesn't seem to affect aluminium or it shouldn't as many brake calipers are made from aluminium. It also isn't that expensive considering how effective it is. £3.50 for a large can from the local motor factors. A quick google search brought this from toolstation http://www.toolstation.com/shop/Automot ... 795/p17879

and this from Halfords http://www.halfords.com/motoring/engine ... aner-500ml

[Grumpy Northener]

I believe I'm right in saying that you can get purpose-built stoves that burn engine oil

Luxo - you certainly can - getting them going is another thing - most owners of this type of heater mix the oil with paraffin or diesel

He has a licence from the environment agency to operate it.
I'm not sure if he needs one because it is customers oil he is burning or if you need one in general.

Terry - Used oil is classified by the Environment Agency as a 'Waste Product' - if you dispose of it you must have a licence to do so, same rules apply for any commercial business burning waste of any type (although you can get away with wood / logs - which the EA still class has waste)

In the workshop we have two bits of kit for washing off / degreasing - the dirty one is a 500 litre plastic tub (big enough for gearboxes / engine blocks - a strong grid mesh supported off the bottom of the tub with a couple of bricks and a cheap 12 volt bilge pump - built from scrap bits - it cost nothing but a couple of hours to put together

The clean one - used prior to final assembly is a proper parts washer with a pump - I think it was about £150 when purchased a few years ago

We use red diesel in them both - so if you know a local farmer / marina / plant hire company - take a drum and they will sell you a few litres / gallons (going rate is circa £1.10 litre)

A cheap and simple way for washing off is go and purchase a cement / mortar spot board from Wickes - this is a plastic tray about 1500mm x 1500mm (last time I purchased one it was about £15) - they have a upstand edge to them - easily large enough for gearboxes / engine blocks etc - once washed down remove the part and tip the dirty fluid back into a can - you can then leave for a few months for the solids to settle out to the bottom and decant the reusable fluid off the top - alternatively just take it to the council tip with your waste oil (the tray then comes in handy has a drip tray for oil changes or just to stick under a motor that has a few oil leaks - we use them at work for drip trays for refuelling plant & machinery)

I employ the same recycling procedure with my used paint thinners for spray gun washing / cleaning down etc

Lastly you could always use spirit wipe - its cheap enough at about £10 - £15 for 5 litres - is very handy stuff to have about in the garage - cleans no end of things without damaging paintwork - available from motor factors / automotive paint suppliers or even E Bay - No waste either as the spirit evaporates

[3xpendable]

wow guys, a lot to read up on, thanks.

I have used oven cleaner before but it is corrosive so I wanted to ry something else. Thinners or Paraffin might be the way I go, cheers.

[mach1rob]

I believe I'm right in saying that you can get purpose-built stoves that burn engine oil

Luxo - you certainly can - getting them going is another thing - most owners of this type of heater mix the oil with paraffin or diesel

And cleaning them is not a pleasant task either, usually being covered in a sooty oily mess, much as you are after you've finished cleaning it, ready to fire it back up again.

Garage I worked at in the late 80s had one, which had to be cleaned out each morning, you'd be filthy in seconds, yet they then expected you to climb over brand new cars...