What Happened When I Put These Parts In An Ultrasonic Cleaner - Bike Maintenance

*FOLLOW-UP VIDEO*:

Even wondered what would happen if you put alloy and plastic parts in an ultrasonic cleaner?

In this video, I take a selection of bike parts and put them through an ultrasonic cleaner, just to see if they get damaged.

Ultrasonic Cleaner:

Cleaning Solution:
Viro-sol Citrus Based Cleaner - £14 for 5 litres

About Ribble Valley Cyclist:
I am a regular road cyclist based in the Ribble Valley, in the North West of England. I have been a cyclist my whole life, and try to get out every day. The purpose of my YouTube channel is to share the knowledge I’ve built up in my 40 years as a cyclist.

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#ultrasonic #chain #bikerepair #bikemaintenance #roadbike #workshop #shimano105 #shimanoUltegra #Ultegra #shimanoroad #bikecare #wintercycling #review #cycling #cyclinglife #shimano #ribblevalleycyclist #roadcycling #bikeclean

[wibblywobblyidiotvision]

The reason you're losing anodising (and getting furring on the alloy parts you dunked) is 100% down to the cleaner. If you check the MSDS for viro-sol, it's got small amounts (< 1%) of sodium hydroxide (caustic soda) in it, which turns fats and grease into soap, but also eats aluminium. A different degreaser without sodium hydroxide will be fine with it, long and short of it is to read the MSDS

You're not supposed to run bearings through the ultrasonic, if you believe everything you read online. I've never had any problems with doing so, but I'm not gonna risk my lathe's headstock bearings just in case. The ultrasonic won't bring back chipped or worn bearings from the dead, but it will clear out any grime and crap very effectively.

And FWIW, you *can* regrease "sealed" bearings, although if you want to clean them first you're gonna have to trash the seals, so...

[chrl]

When I was a bicycle messenger and did about 1000 to 1500km a month, I put my drivetrain through an ultrasonic bath with chain cleaner fluid every single weekend.
One of the parts was also a 105 cassette. I didn’t have the results you got. None of my parts had the anodizing stripped. As others have mentioned, it’s most likely down to the cleaning fluid you used.
The only problem I had was when I put too much grease on parts after cleaning.

Cleaning the drivetrain in a weekly ultrasonic bath was worth it. I saved so much time and money by not having my chain, and in extension my drivetrain, wear down prematurely and having to spend money replacing it. 
Also got to learn that quicklinks are reusable almost indefinitely (replace it with your chain though). Had a chain rip once, but it wasn’t the chainlink.
The only thing ripping regularly was shifting cables, but you can buy those in bulk for very cheap.

[TheDaern]

Thanks for the video. A few of my own experiences, owning a very similar machine:

20 minutes seems pretty overkill. I get excellent results on filthy, waxed chains and cassettes with No Nonsense degreaser in 5 minutes (with a half-time agitate). I do tend to run it warmer (60C), preferring less time in the bath to an extended "buzz".

Others have mentioned, but 100% look into ziplock bags. I chuck a chain in one with a relatively small amount of degreaser (enough to immerse it in the bag) and then stick the bag in the cleaner, which only contains warm water, making sure to keep the opening above the surface. Cleaning is just as good, you use a fraction of the cleaning solution and, best of all, you never have to clean the machine! Just chuck the bag away when it goes manky. I use bacofoil ones from Ocado - Ive tried cheap Aldi ones, but they fail prematurely. The slightly posher ones have yet to leak even with neat degreaser.

A really important part of the process is the rinse stage. Everything needs to be properly rinsed of any cleaning products and then dried thoroughly (an air line is ideal here) to avoid corrosion or early life failures.

Personally, I chuck anything in mine, but adjust the cleaning solution to suit - degreaser for chains, down to soapy water for more delicate stuff. Basically, whatever I'd nornally use in the sink, but in a fraction of the time. Ive not noticed significant change in anodised parts, but this might be down to the shorter cycle times perhaps.


Mostly, to be fair, its chains and cassettes that get cleaned for me and I wouldnt be without the cleaner now.

[ClassicCyclingCC]

I have used an ultrasonic parts cleaner for 10 years now and I never had any such issue. I use a little bit of mild detergent with hot water and it has been trouble free for me. The problem is not the part cleaner but the chemicals you use.

[FrodeOrvedalKiil]

I have used ultrasonic cleaners both professionally and private for over a decade. You can use any non-flameable solutions in an ultrasonic cleaner. Everything from dish soap to heavy duty degreasers. I even use diluted acid to remove rust and scale from 316 stainless steel. I’ve also used an oxide remover solution from a brand called Branson to remove corrosion from pcb.

Most solutions will have to be diluted, so please follow the instructions. Make sure to use proper protection when handling solutions like undiluted heavy degreaser and acid.

Some of the solutions will affect metals in different ways. There are solutions that will start to stain metals like Brass, while other solutions will start to etch Aluminum. The acid solutions I use will attack active metals like Aluminum and Magnesium.

[Stefan_Van_pellicom]

I’ve been using one of these for some 10 years now for maintenance of my diving gear. On top of degreasing, our kit has to be cleared of hardened lime deposits. Things I have learned the hard way :
- leaving plastic parts in 50+ degrees liquid for extended periods of time (heater doesn’t stop when cleaning cycle is finished) is a surefire way to significant warping of some parts
- warm vinegar in an ultrasonic cleaner is great for disolving limestone AND chrome plating almost equally fast

[harryballz]

I have this tank in a 15L.
I fill it with simple Green (Green) + 3/4 cup of acetone.
It does wonders on old tractor carbs & small engine parts.
I saw this same recipe used on brass clockworks here on Youtube also, made the brass really clean!
Dont run this beast on an ext cord, these big units heaters/burners use a lot of power & if its current gets restricted the plugs melt and/or the burner or pc board will burn/fail. Keep an eye on it's power cord near the switch/fuse area. Seen several pics of tanks plugs melting there bad on Amazon, mainly big 30L digital I think??
I wonder if any ran it full blast on long ext cord??
Ever run a big 110 elect burner on a gas generator, sure pulls one down.
I read purple SG is good stuff too but more costly. Citric acid cleans pretty good, Amazing job on brown stains & calcium in our coffee pots/maker. Much better than vinigar.
Probably try it in my tank because red TSP (phosphates) is goin bye bye damnit. Grr!
Thats great stuff but price really jumped cause users stocking up. When cheap gets the job done just as well & without damage I stick with it.
Nice cleaner! You got the right one, sure a big'n

[roykeyes]

I simply put my chain in a clip lock bag (an Ikea one with two clips ) spray a bit of the muc off drivetrain degreaser in the bag - seal it and run it through a cycle or two with just water in the ultrasonic cleaner. pull the chain out of the bag and drop it into a jar with some dishwashing detergent and water and give it a good shake then rinse it off 
- chain cleans up quite good and very little mess to clean up

[bluescreenmod]

I think the basket helped to prevent the damage on anodized components. I use a similar sized machine for chains, chain rings and casettes. And at first i used some fancy cleaner solution and the paint got damaged because it scrubed on the floor of the machine. Now i use it with the heater and soapy water. Except for the noise it is a great tool.

[petersmith]

I know this is a year old but I have only done 2 chains in my US cleaner. As and Armourer I have a Lyman Turbo Sonic 2500 and use the Lyman Turbo Sonic steel solution and IIRC a 20:1 water to solution. The chains came out spotless with no sign of oil or grease. I will continue to do this once a year on my Wifes bike and maybe twice on mine. Very happy with the results. Thanks for doing this.

[remcov]

Thank you for the well brought video. I have one at home, and I use it for the chains at 60 Celsius for 30 min in 75p water on 25p muck-off degrease. After cleaning, I wipe it off with a paper towel and put it in a plastic zip-lock bag. Put some chain-lube on it and put it in the machine again for 30 min at 40 degrees. (Still want to try waxing a chain, but the weather and roads are horrendous here in Netherlands in autumn, winter and spring and never trusted waxing a chain). On my daily commute I happily have a Rohloff and gates belt for the last 10 years (and 55K km).

[clownsareevil]

I have been using my ultrasonic cleaner for over 7 years with all of my cycling parts from vintage Campagnolo Super Record parts to modern Dura Ace 9100 series and everything in between without any issues. I tend to do 3 cycles of 5 minutes (I have a small 2L tank and the manufacturer recommends short cycles).
- I use Simple Green Extreme Aircraft and Precision Cleaner (it's safe for aluminum, plastic, paint, carbon fibre, etc)
- follow the appropriate dilution recommended by Simple Green
- it is very important to make sure your degreaser is safe for aluminum and other material
- heated up to 50C - 60C
As I said, I have never had a single issue with the use of any material I have used in my ultrasonic cleaner.

[miguelangelsimonfernandez]

What is commonly called anodizing nowadays is just making the aluminium porous and cooking in some commercial dye. If you use a high energy process and a strong degreaser with temperature it will cook off the dye. Cavitation produced by the ultrasound is a very powerful process. As long as the liquid you use does not promote a galvanic reaction the structural integrity should not be compromised. It's only cometics.

[ivanjednobiegowiec]

US Cleaner user here.
I'm yet to start using dedicated cleaning solutions. My weapon of choice is cheap, BIO washing powder, washing up liquid and kitchen degreaser (currently fluoro-yellow Elbow Grease) plus boiling water.
Chains, perhaps cassettes, but noting else came to my mind to put into the cleaner.

My experience with chains and my cleaning concoctions gives super clean state after 2 solution baths, one clean water bath and series of jar of IPA vigorous shaking.
Waxed chain like that and managed to squeeze 743km without re-waxing or re-cold-dripping.

My US Cleaner is only 40W of cleaning power. Might need to invest in bigger one to reduce number of baths and finally being able to fit cassette into cleaning basket.

All in all, I love my US cleaner :)
Cheers!
I.

[captainchaos]

If the adodising came off its because it's fake. Anodising is a platted coating like chrome. It's actually in the metal.

[ThisRandomGuyYouDidntNotice]

Not a road cyclist here, so I usually don't clean bearings/bushings/chains, just cassettes, stripped down flat pedals etc...
using a little 4L Emag at 60C usually just with (quality) dish soap for about 15min. other than some dulling and discolouration no issues so far! everything still working fine and saved so much elbow grease :D

[boseybear]

I have a smaller ultrasonic cleaner all worked perfectly but I only run for 5 to 10 minutes but definitely with the heater on first to increase temp then switch off. The only issue I had was rear mech, I had it siezed on the bike as it took all the grease out the top part. So in future I will remove spring tensioner and clean together loose then assemble with grease. My ultrasonic cleaner has multiple frequencies for use with jewellery, I used this so it wasn't so harsh. I had no issues with plaiting or paint, very happy but remember to re lubricate everything.

[Damo]

I've just completed cleaning 3 carburetors off my outboard engine, they stopped working properly due to stale fuel. The needle and jets were blocked. I stripped them down and placed them one at a time in a 2L Vevor Ultrasonic cleaner. I used tap water and approximately two tablespoons of dishwashing detergent. Set the temp to 60 Deg and the timer to 20mins. All of them came out squeaky clean and unscathed. I used an air hose to blow out the water. The motor running like new again

[producer_ben]

I've been using ultrasonic cleaners for some time and it's a learning curve.
Depending on what you're cleaning, you'll need to make adjustments.
You can't just throw in everything for a longbtime and expect it all to be "like new".
20 to 30 minutes is a long time and if you're using chemical cleaners AND running it at around 40kHz, as you've seen you're going to damage some finishes..
Using "risers" to protect parts of what you're cleaning is a good move.
If your cleaning metal objects, chemicals are advantageous, however, using dish soap is also a good choice for coated finishes too.
As I and others have said, you shouldn't just throw everything fir 20 or 30 minutes. You should do it in shorter stages, regularly checking the progress.
You may find this information on frequencies useful:
26kHz: The lowest frequency, is ideal for cleaning heavy contamination on robust parts such as engine valves or steel components covered in grease or carbon.

38kHz: This frequency provides gentler cleaning action and is suitable for many common tasks such as glass and machined part cleaning.

78kHz: This is the go-to frequency to use to clean delicate parts that require a lighter touch. Hard disk drives, LCDs, and aluminum parts with fragile surface finishes can all benefit from using this frequency for effective cleansing.

130-200kHz: These are higher frequencies used to clean the most delicate components with soft surfaces. This frequency range ensures efficient yet gentle cleaning for components like soft metals, coated lenses.

430kHz-2.0MHz: These are the highest frequencies used to clean the most delicate components. This frequency range ensures complete yet gentle cleaning for semiconductors, flat panel glass, electronic parts or delicate medical instruments.

[chriswilson]

We use these in work all the time with a solvent called citrasol. We use it to clean bitumen from sample gear so it will pretty much clean anything.
You don’t need to heat anything as just by using the bath the solvent will heat up.
I’ve cleaned all sorts of parts and never had any issues with anodising being removed.
The only down side with cleaning something like a chain is that the process removes all the lube from inside the chain as well as cleaning the outside, and unless you wax dip your chains it’s difficult to get that line back in.