In a message dated 97-05-12, John Cowan wrote:
> Most intrigueing recommendation (from a book) was to soak old license
> plates in Drano for a few minutes to remove the paint. I was thinking of
> trying this; I'm assuming it only attacks the paint and not the metal,
and
> is thereby ok for the air cleaners, especially the filter metal. Drano is
> highly toxic, but easily disposable.
John:
Drano consists of lye and tiny particles of aluminum (pour a little in a bowl
and examine it closely). Lye eats aluminum, giving of heat and Hydrogen. It
is the combination of heat and the bubbling action of the hydrogen that
produces the cleaning action in the kitchen drain. DO NOT, repeat, DO NOT,
use drano, nor any lye compound, on aluminum. It will not harm steel. I have
no idea what it will do to paint.
I had a set of aluminized headers that I had to do some modifications to. I
placed them in a lye solution for a few hours. When I came back, all the
aluminum had been removed, leaving bare steel.
As an experiment, place a small amount of drano in a small necked bottle and
add a little water. Place ballons over the neck, and you have party balloons.
Pretzels get their hard, shiny, crust by being dipped in a mild water/lye
solution before going into the oven. I have known of women failing to follow
the directions, and ruining their good aluminum pots! My wife makes some of
the biggest, fattest, goodest pretzels I've ever eaten. We slice them open,
fill them with meat and cheese, and ummmm!
Dan Masters,
Alcoa, TN
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