Parts Washer

[Spencer]

I want to get a parts washer to make it easier when I do the tune-ups on the yard equipment and the dirt bike. I would just like a bench top unit. It's not that I don't want to spend a lot of money on it I just don't think I need one that holds 20 gallons of solvent. I've seen smaller ones in various catalogs over the years that seem to hold 3 to 5 gallons and that would seem appropriate for the infrequent uses that I would have for it. I would however like to find one that has a screen of some sort to set the parts on and let the solvent run through. It looks as though these smaller units may not have any type of place to put the parts. I don't want to get one of these if I have to dig down to the bottom of the unit to find all the small parts that I am trying to clean.

So anybody have any experience with smaller parts washers? I don't mind buying one online if anyone has a link to share. What type of solvent do people use these days?

 

[bgott]

I bought a small washer off of a shop I used to work for. It was in the back corner of the store room gathering dust and I gave them for $10 so I can't help you on where to get one. I use mineral spirits in it. The last time I bought any I think it was $15 for 5 gallons. It comes in a can labeled " Paint Thinner". It evaporates fairly quickly so I don't fill it all the way up, I just add what I need to do the job at hand. Varisol might not evaporate as quick, you might try it and see. When it's time to clean the tank I just dump the old stuff in with my used motor oil and take it to a shop I used to work for and dump it in their tank, the disposal company has no problem with it.

 

[Richard]

We had a birthday party catered here at the house one year..the caterer's left behind 3 approximately 24 x 18 x 6 inch stainless steel food "holders".

In my teens, I worked for a resturaunt that replaced their "spud" warmer. It had slightly larger, but similarly sized stainless drawers... got them for free...as i did these. When I acquired and rebuilt my '83 Maico 490 the pan came in very handy for parts holding, cleaning, auto oil changes...cleans up right nicely too...just toss it into the dish washer when wifey isn't looking /w3tcompact/icons/laugh.gif /w3tcompact/icons/laugh.gif

Probably not the first pick on what your looking for, but being a cheapskate at times, I found this to fill my needs.

Richard

 

[njrqs]

Spencer

I know the attached site sell them (Cool name for a shop hey??)but not sure what info you can get from the site.

Remember we are on the other side of the pond so this is just for info only.

The parts washers look pretty handy !!

http://www.manstoyshop.com.au/index.htm

Cheers

 

[hwp]

I bought a 5 gallon bench top parts washer from Pep Boys several years ago. I think it cost about $100. It has a tray to keep the parts above the solvent. I have used it extensively and it is still going strong.

 

[cj7]

I have a 20 gal unit in my garage. I found it on sale for 120.00 + solvent. I use regular parts cleaning solvent which has been in it for almost 2 yrs. Still going strong. I am happy with this unit. It is large enough to get larger parts into it. I think you might want to consider the dimensions of the different units and the size of parts you may clean in the future. I like you at first thought about the smaller bench units but I am glade I bought a larger one. Good luck with your hunting. BTW I just saw a 20 gal unit at an Advance Auto for $99.
Somethings I have used to soak parts in the washer are : coffe cans, old cookoing pots, bootom cut from antifreeze jug, etc.. The unit I have came with a small parts holder with a drain in the bottom of the pan.

 

[Bird]

I have a 20 gallon parts washer that I bought from Northern Tool about 4 years ago (that's the total capacity, I guess because I only put 10 gallons in at a time) that came with a rectangular metal box with holes in it that I've never used. I have some baskets that were given to me that work pretty well, but what I've used the most for small parts is metal sieves that I bought in the kitchenwares department at K-Mart./w3tcompact/icons/laugh.gif And I use Varsol in my parts washer; local fuel distributor has it in 5 gallons buckets (I bought 5 initially) and then has it in about a 10,000 gallon tank with a fuel pump, so I just refill those buckets. When I change the Varsol in the parts washer, I just use the old stuff to burn brush and things like that. Varsol IS flammable, but doesn't seem as volatile as diesel. One thing about the Varsol though is that if you let it dry on your hands, it'll burn them. I can work indefinitely in it with no problem at all as long as I keep my hands wet with it, but when I finish, I dry off my hands with a rag and immediately wash them with Fast Orange and water. And once I splashed some right on my belly and went on with what I was doing (it evaporated and clothes dried pretty quickly), but that evening when I got in the shower, I had about a 3" red circle on my belly that looked like a burn and sure enough it eventually peeled off just like I had been burned.

And while I was typing this, my wife brought the mail in with a new Northern Tool catalog and they have my parts washer (item #159464-C169) for $129.99, but they also have a 3.5 gallon one, bench top, with apparently the same pump, (item #15996-C169) for $39.99.