Pressure wash light surface rust off steel?

[ELL]

Is this a good idea? If it is what strength of pressure washer would I need? Thanks.

 

[mart]

When you have used your washer, won't a thin film of rust remain.l as it dries?

I usually use a wire cup brush. Then I paint an undercoat on it. Or if you are not using the steel for a while put some lube on it to prevent the issue.

 

[addjunkie]

Ive seen wet UHP blasting work really well removing paint and rust. But it blooms almost instantly, so needs coating very very quickly

 

[Erie Fred]

Do you have a PW now ?
I would suggest a rotating nozzle.

Is this flakey type rust ?
What surface do you want when done ? No rust, or just the loose rust removed ?

 

[MattF]

What type of object(s) to clean?

 

[ELL]

What type of object(s) to clean?

Railway track.

 

[dieselsamurai]

You can get an attachment that adds sand to the the water and works really well i had one years ago , ok if you dont have neighbour's close

Pardon our interruption...

Karcher version

Pardon our interruption...

 

[Dcal]

Even a ultra high pressure washer won't remove rust, it will remove paint and maybe heavy scale but wonr etch the surface.

What length of rail do you want to desust?
Could you set up a tank or pipe for citric acid dipping?

 

[Wallace]

The sand blasting attachments are really effective but messy and flash rusting is a problem, I have had good results on alloy castings.
I did an MGB block in citric acid a while back and the last wash off was done in a bath of old antifreeze. That stopped the flash rusting nicely and made cleaning and prep for painting easier.

 

[Mark 2]

Railway track.

Doesn't the train do the job?

 

[chrismac]

Is this a good idea? If it is what strength of pressure washer would I need? Thanks.

how much track you looking at cleaning, for the costs involved with the high pressure washer I think we are talking about here, not your standard industrial/diy or car washing type, there will be probably better suited methods out there,

As an example there is a shot blaster for H Beams the shed guys use to blast and paint, if you need to do lots of long lengths, but I am thinking your on anvil sized bits, I would just be tempted to either get them blasted or spend some time on a wire wheel, or 3m strip and clean wheel in a grinder.

 

[smashweld]

I would suggest a rotating nozzle.

why?
like this 'Turbo' nozzle? https://www.amazon.co.uk/Antilog-Co...pcontext&ref_=fplfs&psc=1&smid=A3OAV29C2GAEAC

a mate swears by these, thinks they're far more effective than a single point? nozzle

I can't say for sure but I thought the point of these was to not leave streak lines on concrete etc....a normal concentrated (less fan) nozzle should have more power?

 

[bricol]

Removing rust with water just seems wrong to me . . . you will need to make sure it's dry quickly or add something to the water to prevent it.

In a previous life, I designed industrial wash plant - I've seen non-rusty steel covered in oil/grease etc, or protective wax, be hot washed and when lifted out, it turns orange as soon as it leaves the water. Stop the lift out mid-way, and the steel above water is turning orange, the steel still in the water at that time still clean.