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Author Topic: I Need alittle help  (Read 5142 times)

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crazyjays

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I Need alittle help
« on: May 02, 2016, 04:43:09 PM »

Some of the rocks i got this weekend has a white build up on them.
Whats the best thing to use to clean. I can scrape some of it off with my
thumbnail. Is there anything i can do this with faster? I will be posting last weekends
find here in a couple days.

Thanks,
   Jay
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Kaljaia

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Re: I Need alittle help
« Reply #1 on: May 02, 2016, 04:55:16 PM »

Is it a calcium or water scale buildup? maybe white vinegar and an old tooth brush?
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- Erika

I rock hunt in the Antelope/Ashwood area of the John Day river basin in Oregon.

lithicbeads

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Re: I Need alittle help
« Reply #2 on: May 02, 2016, 06:44:44 PM »

Muriatic acid which mason's use is often used. No skin contact and no breathing of the fumes and radical rinsing afterwards. I always add some limestone to neutralize the partially used acid and keep it away from the plumbing. Caution  is paramount.
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jakesrocks

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Re: I Need alittle help
« Reply #3 on: May 02, 2016, 06:58:45 PM »

The safest way if you're not familiar with acids is as Erica said. Plain old white vinegar. Put your rocks in a plastic or ceramic container, cover them with vinegar & let them soak over night. Most if not all of the white coating will be gone in the morning. Take your rocks out of the vinegar & let them soak in clean, cold water for an hour or so. The beauty part of using vinegar as an acid is you can safely put your hands in it. To dispose of it, if you have weeds in your driveway that you want to get rid of, just pour the used vinegar over them.
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crazyjays

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Re: I Need alittle help
« Reply #4 on: May 02, 2016, 08:28:11 PM »

Thanks everybody i will stay with the vinegar.
How many times can i use the same tube of vinegar?

Jay
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jakesrocks

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Re: I Need alittle help
« Reply #5 on: May 03, 2016, 09:50:24 AM »

When you pour vinegar over that white deposit, it will start to bubble. When the bubbling stops, the acid in the vinegar is depleted. Time to throw it away. But plain old white vinegar in gallon jugs is cheap compared to the more common acids used for cleaning rocks.
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crazyjays

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Re: I Need alittle help
« Reply #6 on: May 03, 2016, 09:55:44 AM »

When you pour vinegar over that white deposit, it will start to bubble. When the bubbling stops, the acid in the vinegar is depleted. Time to throw it away. But plain old white vinegar in gallon jugs is cheap compared to the more common acids used for cleaning rocks.

Ok Thanks Jake

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rocks2dust

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Re: I Need alittle help
« Reply #7 on: May 03, 2016, 10:17:06 AM »

Just a caveat, since you didn't say what sort of rock you are trying to clean: Vinegar or muriatic acid works great on things like agate and quartz - however - don't use it on calcite, limestone, marble, metallic or other stones that acid will etch, dissolve or otherwise harm. Same for some rocks and petrified materials that may consist of mixed mineralization, or you could damage/lose some interesting formations like pyrite inclusions or calcite pockets.
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jakesrocks

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Re: I Need alittle help
« Reply #8 on: May 03, 2016, 10:29:09 AM »

When you pour vinegar over that white deposit, it will start to bubble. When the bubbling stops, the acid in the vinegar is depleted. Time to throw it away. But plain old white vinegar in gallon jugs is cheap compared to the more common acids used for cleaning rocks.

Ok Thanks Jake

Actually it's Don. Jake is my dog & protector of the rock pile.  :LOLOL:
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crazyjays

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Re: I Need alittle help
« Reply #9 on: May 03, 2016, 10:32:42 AM »

Good point there

Jasper and some with jasper with quartz in it.

Should i not use it on the jasper with quartz vain in it.
The rest is just jasper rocks.
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crazyjays

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Re: I Need alittle help
« Reply #10 on: May 03, 2016, 10:34:07 AM »

 :LOLOL:  ok thanks Don.

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crazyjays

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Re: I Need alittle help
« Reply #11 on: May 03, 2016, 10:36:07 AM »

Because its my first time doing this i will post photos of the rocks before i give them a bath.

Well off to by the UV light and vinegar.
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rocks2dust

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Re: I Need alittle help
« Reply #12 on: May 03, 2016, 11:35:58 AM »

Should i not use it on the jasper with quartz vain in it.
Jasper and jasp+quartz should be fine. The exceptions would be if a piece contains things like pyrite or marcasite, for which acid can trigger an irreversible deterioration reaction that will eventually eat it up over a period of months, even if you quickly neutralize the acid on the exterior. Though some jaspers can contain calcite, fossil material, metals, limestone, etc. inclusions that are vulnerable to acid, those don't sound like your material. If in doubt, try on a small piece. You might want to consider giving your soaked pieces a final rinse in water containing baking soda to neutralize any remaining acid prior to storing or cutting. I gotta try out jakesrocks's suggestion for weed-killing!

Around here, our caliche is hardly affected by vinegar or muriatic acid. I'm not sure what it is, probably silica-heavy something, but my windows and toilet bowls sure could use an easy way to remove those deposits.
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Gergis

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Re: I Need alittle help
« Reply #13 on: May 04, 2016, 06:51:41 PM »

A product I've used to clean up iron stained quartz crystals was to soak it in this stuff called "iron out" that I got at home depot. I've heard of people using it on rocks also to clean the rinds up but I haven't done that myself at all. Like rocks2dust said test with a small pebble or break a small chunk off and try that first to make sure your not damaging the stone with the acid.

Sent from my LGLS990 using Tapatalk

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jakesrocks

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Re: I Need alittle help
« Reply #14 on: May 04, 2016, 07:25:08 PM »

Gergis, I've used Super Iron Out to clean Fairburn agates for my collection. I use a small ceramic lined crock pot and let them cook over night. Best done outdoors because of the fumes. The next day I rinse them real good, then let them soak in fresh cold water for the day, changing the water every hour or so. Then they go in another crock pot filled with cheap baby oil to cook for a couple hours. After coming out of the baby oil they sit on a plastic screen over the crock pot to drain for an hour. They are then dried with a soft cloth. The cleaning & oiling really makes the colors pop out.
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