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Post by miket on Aug 31, 2018 14:22:53 GMT -5
One of my sons does construction, he picked up this sink from a remodel... He wants to put it in my garage, plumb it to the outside of the house and use it for a rock washing station. Wish me luck
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Aug 31, 2018 14:51:26 GMT -5
Hey, and it's got some storage, too! Might ask him to set aside any working freebie dishwashers he comes across, as they can be adapted to dump the water outside for washing off finer deposits (like polishing compound that's gotten into a narrow crack). Remodel folks often just toss them into the dumpster, working or not.
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Post by miket on Aug 31, 2018 15:19:23 GMT -5
Hey, and it's got some storage, too! Might ask him to set aside any working freebie dishwashers he comes across, as they can be adapted to dump the water outside for washing off finer deposits (like polishing compound that's gotten into a narrow crack). Remodel folks often just toss them into the dumpster, working or not. Wait a minute...you're serious?
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Post by Deleted on Aug 31, 2018 18:13:47 GMT -5
Yup, 15 minutes of very warm, soapy water under high pressure does a great job on stubborn, oily grime left in cracks from either/both the saw or polishing. You might even use it for grittier stuff, though eventually any larger bits of grit will clog the spray holes.
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Post by miket on Aug 31, 2018 18:16:45 GMT -5
Wow. I never would have thought of that!
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Post by Deleted on Sept 1, 2018 2:28:11 GMT -5
Might not be worth it for you, especially if you are short on space, but thot I'd mention since you're going to do some simple plumbing. Haven't priced them at the Habitat for Humanity building supply store, but remodelers are usually happy to give them away just to save the dumpster space.
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Post by greig on Sept 1, 2018 10:30:20 GMT -5
Wow. What a great idea! I am about to replace a working dishwasher with a higher end model (not my idea. LOL). I also recall a friend, whom by accident, discovered you can clean silver ore nicely by leaving the nuggets in your pockets in the washing machine. His lady was not impressed but he liked the results.
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Post by Deleted on Sept 1, 2018 12:20:50 GMT -5
I also recall a friend, whom by accident, discovered you can clean silver ore nicely by leaving the nuggets in your pockets in the washing machine. His lady was not impressed but he liked the results. I bet I can guess how he discovered that I do think that rock and polishing grit would reduce the life of either dish or clothes washing machines, but with freebie used machines, who'd care? Just pay attention to the filters. I've successfully cleaned geodes with oily rock dust residues in the crevices using the dishwasher method. It did a better job than I could manage when using stiff brushes + Dawn dish soap + mild scouring powder + scraping picks + time. Would be a big time saver for batches. Don't see them that often, but Water Pik type tooth cleaners are another thrift store find that can come in handy for blasting out narrow/deep fissures. Of course, there are industrial gizmos that might work even better, but I'm not so quick to plunk down cash for my hobby as I was when younger.
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surreality
starting to spend too much on rocks
is picking up too many rocks at the beach again
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Post by surreality on Sept 1, 2018 14:54:55 GMT -5
Don't see them that often, but Water Pik type tooth cleaners are another thrift store find that can come in handy for blasting out narrow/deep fissures. Of course, there are industrial gizmos that might work even better, but I'm not so quick to plunk down cash for my hobby as I was when younger. I grabbed one of the water flossers from amazon for this. As for the more industrial types, they may actually be too harsh, depending on which ones you mean. I know I've looked at this for cleaning shells (way far down the priority list on the budget) but I would have to wonder if it wouldn't be too rough on more delicate stones especially. It could potentially be really handy for removing matrix material or outer calcification, though. I keep getting tempted by ultrasonic cleaners, but heard they can shatter stones, and I don't want to risk that. :/
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Post by Deleted on Sept 1, 2018 16:37:44 GMT -5
As for the more industrial types, they may actually be too harsh, depending on which ones you mean. I know I've looked at this for cleaning shells (way far down the priority list on the budget) but I would have to wonder if it wouldn't be too rough on more delicate stones especially. It could potentially be really handy for removing matrix material or outer calcification, though. That looks like a nice unit. Would probably pay for itself if one had a rock shop or did a lot of mining. Probably not for delicate specimens, but I wouldn't hesitate to use on agate/jasper/petrified wood. I keep getting tempted by ultrasonic cleaners, but heard they can shatter stones, and I don't want to risk that. :/ There are a few gem materials that I'd be wary of (opal, feldspars, and others with easy cleavage, etc.), but I think the big danger would be to cut and polished gems of the less tough variety. I figure a little rough handling isn't too bad on rough pieces and slabs - if it's gonna break, I'd rather it happen before spending time producing a finished gem.
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