Recycling Rusty Fasteners
Evaporust supplies here in Mexico (Autozone) are now mostly available only in quart size whereas before I found it in gallons. This makes it super expensive, over and above what it already was, so I save it for important projects.
For my jar of rusty nuts, bolts, and washers, I gave 'em a bath in white vinegar. As a final step, a second bath in Ospho, which turned most of 'em black (the chrome screws only receive the first bath). Don't know what I can expect in longevity, but at least for now they have the appearance of being free from rust (photo#1). Sometimes (if the fasteners are prominent in showing) I actually punch the bolts and screws up in a sheet of cardboard and paint the heads with a couple of coats of RustOleum enamel and/or rust convertor/reformer (photo #2).
Evaporust supplies here in Mexico (Autozone) are now mostly available only in quart size whereas before I found it in gallons. This makes it super expensive, over and above what it already was, so I save it for important projects.
For my jar of rusty nuts, bolts, and washers, I gave 'em a bath in white vinegar. As a final step, a second bath in Ospho, which turned most of 'em black (the chrome screws only receive the first bath). Don't know what I can expect in longevity, but at least for now they have the appearance of being free from rust (photo#1). Sometimes (if the fasteners are prominent in showing) I actually punch the bolts and screws up in a sheet of cardboard and paint the heads with a couple of coats of RustOleum enamel and/or rust convertor/reformer (photo #2).