How to strip chrome?

No offense intended.

I think Badawg has it reversed, acid into water. Trust me, I have a degree in chemistry. You want the acid to cool, and it will, when added to water. If you add water to acid it can get very hot and spatter, especially if its really concentrated like 6 molar Hydrochloric acid - HCL - (muriatic is HCL btw). This is due to the heat of solution. Usually this concentration isn't what you can get at a hardware or pool supply anyway so the point is kind of mute. Do make sure to do this in a well ventilated area, the fumes are nasty. Keep in mind HCL will eat anything you drop it on except grease. clothes, shoes, concrete, plants etc. I'd use it in an area that you dont care what happens like over gravel. Use rubber gloves. Once you are happy with the removal, wash the part with strong detergent and dry it to prevent further rusting. Chemistry class is dismissed !

I use HCL regularly to clean rusted parts where there are no critical tolerances to be worried about. Works great.