"Old Nick" wrote in message
...
On Fri, 31 Oct 2003 14:17:45 -0800, "Harold & Susan Vordos"
wrote something
......and in reply I say!:


I"m no chemistry wizard, but my years of precious metal refining taught
me a
few things about hydrochloric acid and metals. I think I'd use a
dilute
solution of hydrochloric to clean the steel parts you want to galvanize,
then neutralize the parts with sodium hydroxide (lye).

Producing a salt solution on the metal = rust????

I keep hearing that same response, but how much salt would be in question?
One would have rinsed the parts in clear water, then in a solution of sodium
hydroxide. When the items in question are introduced to the lye solution
the amount of HCL remaining on the parts should be down to next to nothing,
and would most likely already have been neutralized by the iron itself.
If you've not put any steel in HCL, perhaps you should do so to understand
the speed at which it reacts, especially if heated.

Please read the post by Koz, which is in keeping with my personal
experiences as well. I have no argument with the theory of salt being a
by-product, but one might consider the reality of the situation at hand. In
this instance, the part(s) would be protected by the residual lye. It would
be highly unlikely that any salt would have been formed.

Harold