Ultrasonic cleaning

[ctr62k]

Has anybody had an parts cleaned in an ultrasonic bath?
I'm thinking of getting one (they are reasonably expensive) and wondered if anybody has any experience with using them to let me know the pros/cons.
I'd appreciate the advice or any feedback.

Justin

[elangtv2000]

Ultrasonic cleaners work very well for some applications. I use them for cleaning carburetor parts and other delicate, mostly aluminum items. It isn't really safe to use them with flammable liquids or highly caustic cleaners, so use caution there. Degrease all parts first in your cleaning tank. Don't expect parts to come out shiny unless you use mixtures that include anti-tarnish chemicals, which is very common when cleaning old mechanical clock mechanisms (I restore cuckoo clocks as a hobby).
Good luck,
Greg Tatarian
1971 Elan S4
1974 TR6
1974 GTV 2000

[Frank Howard]

Justin,

Our club had a Jensen Healey equiped with Del'Ortos that would just dump fuel into the manifold. Needless to say, besides the fuel economy being awful, it wasn't exactly what you would call a "green" car either. This car was leaving carbon footprints the size of a house.

We tried everything to get it to behave. As a last resort, we took the carbs to a carburetor shop and they gave them an ultrasonic cleaning. Problem solved.

[Galwaylotus]

Were the carbs cleaned assembled or taken apart first?

[andyelan]

Hi Justin

Although ultra sonic cleaners are good, they do have their limitations. At the end of the day all they really do is agitate components and hence loosen and shake off any caked on dirt. They obviously don't make the dirt disappear so it's important to keep turning components and to ensure there are plenty holes and openings for loose dirt to escape from. Problems often arise if you try and clean items like carbs without dismantling them as any dirt disloged inside cannot always escape and then you finish up with a carb full of loose dirt which can be worse than before.

Within these limitations however, ultra sonic cleaners are very good and I uses the one we have at work quite alot. I don't think I would buy one though, I feel they're a bit of luxury item and usually a wash tank and brush is just as good, just a bit more time consuming.

Regards
Andy

[Frank Howard]

Were the carbs cleaned assembled or taken apart first?

We handed the carbs over assembled. Not sure what the shop did after that. They were returned assembled however the shop could have taken anything off for cleaning and reinstalled.