clothes dryer as a parts cleaner?

[geepincj7]

OK so it may be the dumbest idea ever but I thought I would throw it out there. I have an old gas drier that stopped getting hot so it was replaced. Now this old dryer is sitting here and I started thinking about throwing a bunch of sand and some rusty parts into it to see what happens. Sure I may have to do some tweeking to get it to work right but I was curious if anyone else has tried something like this. The gas would not be hooked up so it is basically just a tumbler. Anyone have any tips you want to share before I become just another jackass with a dryer full of sand? :D

[Wicked_S10]

Its a novel idea, but I think you are going to have to totaly seal the tub up, or it wont turn for long. Also, sand is freaking heavy. I am not sure the stock motor would be up to the task. Do it and report back to us!

Later,
Jason

[N_Rod]

Try walnut hulls, not as course but still may work.

[mondtster]

Get a dishwasher for your garage instead and wash the parts...

My initial thoughts would be that the dryer wouldn't work well unless the parts were fairly small and/or light. You could try a brass tumbler for reloading ammunition for the small parts with some walnut hulls as media.

Try the dryer idea and see if it works?

[ironpig70]

dishwashers plastics don't like chemicals. guy who did my tranny used an home heating oil container and cut a hole in it and put on a door on it. then built a large turntable under it and hooked it to a motor so it would turn anything you could get in it(we are talking whole motors). then he hooked up a water heating unit off a spa and a pressure washer type pump to it. inside he has jets in all the corners on top and the bottom. so when its on water goes every which way and at 2000 psi and hot all the while the part spins around:D

[PTSchram]

Get a dishwasher for your garage instead and wash the parts...


Years ago, I did this and it worked pretty well. I now have a fairly new dishwasher and have plans to use real parts washer soap, etc. I expect it to work well.

PT

[DSW]

I tend to agree with Wicked_S10. I think that you may need to seal it better or you won't be able to get enough sand in it to make it work. Weight will also be a problem. We used to use an old rotary concrete mixer at the fab shop my buddy owns. I've also built small rotary tumblers from 30 gal drums with removable lids. I don't have one of those I can get picts of but I'll try and post some of my tank tumbler.

[Urban Wheeler]

The first thing I thought of is noise.

[Wicked_S10]

dishwashers plastics don't like chemicals.

I have a Bosh dishwasher the inlaws gave me when the heater quit. All stainless basket and insides... Solvents aren't going to hurt it, but when I get around to using it, I am going to try just ordinary dishwasher soap first. I have heard lots of good reports of people simply using dishwashing detergent for parts cleaning. It is some pretty potent stuff... If that doesn't work, I will put that purple power crap in it and try that, it is not solvent based either. Solvent would be my last resort, just because if the heater ever decided to work again, it could be bloody...

Later,
Jason

[DUG]

I have a Bosh dishwasher the inlaws gave me when the heater quit. All stainless basket and insides... Solvents aren't going to hurt it, but when I get around to using it, I am going to try just ordinary dishwasher soap first. I have heard lots of good reports of people simply using dishwashing detergent for parts cleaning. It is some pretty potent stuff... If that doesn't work, I will put that purple power crap in it and try that, it is not solvent based either. Solvent would be my last resort, just because if the heater ever decided to work again, it could be bloody...

Later,
Jason

I think it would work pretty good with just the detergent anyway, the stuff is made to cut grease after all.

I have thought about this before myself but always planned to use hot water for it, a little bit of heat makes a HUGE difference when it comes to getting stuff clean.

[PTSchram]

A side benefit to heated water in the dishwasher is that bearings slip right into transmission and transfer case housings.

The industrial aqueous parts washers tend to be made of mild steel and every one of them I've seen seems to have a nasty coating of rust on it. I'd think that a food grade home dishwasher might be more robust. The soaps used in the industrial washers aren't that aggressive and if one gets the soap used with non-ferrous metals, it is downright gentle.

I intend to use a 55-gallon drum with a water heating element and a Harbor Freight sump pump for a closed loop system. Hopefully, the dirty soapy water won't need to be dumped very often.

[DSW]

I clean tanks and regs for oxygen service. oil / grease would self ingnite at the pressures we work with. Short of working with some very nasty chemical cleaners used in dry cleaning, we do most of the cleaning with dawn dish soap and simple green. Both of these with a little agitation does wonders for removing oils. For hard to clean parts we boil them in a solution of simple green and water. Larger parts are agitated in a tumbler with ceramic chips and hot water/ dawn solution for precleaning.

BTW both of these are recomended by the US Navy for oil removal / oxygen cleaning on dive equipment.