Simple Green for Cleaning Blades?

[Cliff Rohrabacher]

around the web there are claims that the Military has found simple green to be destructive.
They show up on auto and bicycle and air craft forums.

The Military page they link to does not exist.
Whether it's because it's just old or never existed is anyone's guess

The claims insist that it's destructive to metal, and more specifically others say it's hard on aluminum.

Simple Green is a Sodium Metasilicate. water, and Limonene compound. Sodium metasilicate is a very harsh base. The company lists the ingredients as trade secrets on their MSDS sheet.

I got some powder sodium metasilicate that I got in a little 1 ounce bag from Ace Hardware sold as a paint brush cleaner. I used it as instructed on some natural bristle brushes that were well clogged with old paint.
It cleaned 'em up, got the pain out, and destroyed the brushes.

The bristles were partially dis-corporated by the harsh base. they went limp and never regained any of their original stiffness making the brushes useless. They were expensive brushes when new.

[Jim Summers]

I have used SG for years with no issues. I, like others, have never seen Xtreme SG.

HTH

[Curt Harms]

There have been corrosion issues attributed to the use of harsh cleaners. I suspect the problem comes from not removing the chemical from cracks, nooks and crannies. The point being that commercial cleaners ARE corrosive to metal, especially if not removed promptly and completely.

[Joe Spear]

I have used simple green before and it does a pretty sub par job at cleaning a saw blade.

As I wrote above, Simple Green does a quick and thorough job of cleaning blades, not sub par at all. Other things also work, although some manufacturers recommend against sodium hydroxide (lye) or other oven cleaners. That said, many people use those things with no apparent harm.

[Larry Frank]

Not too long ago there was a similar thread discussing cleaning of saw blades. I had used oven cleaner before but had stopped using it because I heard that it might attack the carbide. However, someone on the forum who was involved with cabide materials let me know that this is not true and there is not evidence for such a corrosive attack. I am back using oven cleaner. The only downside is that one has to be careful as it can burn your skin or eyes.

[John Thompson]

Simple green for around 8 years with no problems.. get it on.. brush with a semi-stiff bristle brush and get it off with paper towels. I won't use oven cleaner as I am in the shop 5 days a week and constantly have nicks and cuts on my hands. I apply SG without gloves and it has no effect on the open nicks and cuts. The oven cleaner is nasty stuff and would require rubber gloves. I don't particularly care to breathe the fumes either.

[JohnT Fitzgerald]

Tip - I used a frisbee to soak them. It fits about perfect.

Brilliant! we have frisbees all over the place (we're on an Ultimate team), and that never once dawned on me...

[Bill Arnold]

I've used SG for years to clean saw blades and all kinds of other stuff. I use about a 1/1 mix with water for blades. I place a blade in an old pizza pan with a small lip around it, pour on the SG mix, let it soak a while then brush with a brass or nylon bristle brush.

[Byron Trantham]

I've been using Simple Green for years - no problems. I use 50/50 from a spray bottle. I spay the teeth on one side flip it over and spray the other side. Then go back the first side and begin scrubbing with a brass bristle brush. The time it takes to spray both side is usually that is need to get the crud off. I rinse them very well and then dry them with a towel. It still amazes me how much sharper the teeth feel after a good cleaning. BTW, I clean mine at the start of every job.

[Kev Godwin]

Based on the responses to my original post, I just finished cleaning one TS blade and one BS blade. This SG worked absolutely wonderful.

I didn't leave it on the blade very long and the build-up came off very easily with a small nylon bristle brush. No fumes like oven cleaner either. Thanks for the comments!!!!
Kev

[Joe Spear]

Cut away! Cleanly.

[Kev Godwin]

I went to do some more blade cleaning - this time on my jointer and on the benchtop planer. I wish I would have asked this question years ago....

This SG works better than more expensive stuff I used for years. Bonus - it doesn't hurt my hands or fingers.

One problem - the LOML told me to return the bottle to the upstairs domestic station. Tomorrow I'm going to pick up one of those gallon re-fill jugs. This works really good!

I'm not going to be paranoid by the "leeching of the carbide....". I couldn't find any viable sources for such claims. If there is such documented concern, please post for the benefit of all Creekers. Thx.
Kev

[Charles McCracken]

Kev and all,

Kerosene is the recommended solvent to clean Freud carbide tips. Soak overnight in a sealed container and brush clean with a stiff nylon bristle brush. Some time ago I posted images taken with a SEM of damage done to carbide by a commercially available bit and blade cleaner. It is not myth or legend that strong caustics and strong acids will deteriorate carbide. This link should take you to the information that Simple Green has published on the matter:
http://www.simplegreen.com/solutions...20Saw%20Blades

[Maurice Ungaro]

Charles,
Thank you for providing the link to that page. It seems that most of us, myself included, tend to think that what may have worked for us in the short term, works for all.

[Kyle Iwamoto]

I'm not going to be paranoid by the "leeching of the carbide....". I couldn't find any viable sources for such claims. If there is such documented concern, please post for the benefit of all Creekers. Thx.
Kev

Check THIER website. They caution you to not soak the blades.