"Jake in Escondido" wrote in message
news
bwie.41595$gc6.26103@okepread04...
Thanks All,
I guess that I will have to step back and punt. The tiles are on a spa
that allows the water to cascade down into a pool. (Horrible idea) Every
year I have to remove the residue. I have tried acids, paint scrapers and
last year I broke out the big grinder with a heavy duty Scotch-Bright pad
on it. It worked pretty well. This year the pool has water in it, so I
don't want to use that electric grinder. A local pool guy told me that he
blasts the tile. I was kind of concerned about removing the glazing, so
that is why I asked.
I guess the next step is finding some sort of phosphoric acid gel like
Naval Jelly. Damn, grit blasting sure sounded good. 8^(
Thanks again
Jake
You could blast it with baking soda, the soda getting into the water may not
be a problem, it will just increase the pH. It does a number on grass,
bushes, etc., so any aquatic vegetation may die. Is it outside or inside?
Inside blasting with baking soda creates a major white **** storm. Outside
with a dust suppression mist ring it's more tolerable. It will come clean
fairly quickly. Wear a tyvek suit and use a decent mask.
ATP* wrote:
"Jake in Escondido" wrote in message
news:a_5ie.9$%y4.0@fed1read04...
I have some nice ceramic tiles that are heavily incrusted with water
deposits (Metal content- calcium). They are vertical and quite a few
square feet and acid washing is not practical. It was recommended that I
sandblast the deposits. I don't want to damage the tile, so I was
wondering what might be the best medium to blast them with. Any ideas or
cautions?
TIA
Jake in Escondido
I've used baking soda on a few bathrooms, with no visible damage to the
tile glaze, but it makes a friggin mess, will peel latex paint off, takes
a lot of baking soda and you need a very precise media valve on your
blaster. I'm not sure why you say an acid wash is impractical. If at all
possible, I would try a phosphoric acid based cleaner. This product has
worked well on some nasty deposits:
http://www.spartanchemical.com/web/P...C?OpenDocument
It can be applied with a garden sprayer but protect yourself from the
fumes