Dry Ice Blasting

[Possmguts]

I have a guy coming over tomorrow to give me a quote on Dry Ice Blasting the under side of my cab and maybe doing the entire bed as well... Anyone ever have anything blasted with dry ice?

[swamp rat]

Post some before and after pic's.

[Advanced Design]

Interesting and first I've heard of it.
Here is some info http://www.coldjet.com/en/informatio...es-it-work.php

Hopefully someone can share their experience.

[Fatherflash]

I have done dry ice blasting in the past however, just on composites. Mostly to remove paint, filler to surface and expose the composite structure underneath. Nice thing about this there is no left over waste as with sand or media blasting and is typically gentle to surface which you are wanting to keep.

The principle is pretty simple: the energy/weight of the dry ice contact the surface to be blasted and its energy removes the coatings, contaminants. Working with dry ice is very similar to other methods with greatest difference being containing the ice in its natural frozen state until it leaves the gun. Other nice thing about dry ice is it cannot get stuck in cracks or crevasses like media or sand which can cause water entrapment resulting in future corrosion problems. Problem with dry ice is it is sensitive to displaced velocity from the gun....too fast and it will loose pattern and take more work to remove a surface. Too slow and it will start melting prior to exiting the gun which greatly reduces its abilities to do the job. I would ask for a demo if you have doubts or ask for contact info from other customers if you need more info.

[NC_John]

Originally Posted by Fatherflash

I have done dry ice blasting in the past however, just on composites. Mostly to remove paint, filler to surface and expose the composite structure underneath. Nice thing about this there is no left over waste as with sand or media blasting and is typically gentle to surface which you are wanting to keep.

The principle is pretty simple: the energy/weight of the dry ice contact the surface to be blasted and its energy removes the coatings, contaminants. Working with dry ice is very similar to other methods with greatest difference being containing the ice in its natural frozen state until it leaves the gun. Other nice thing about dry ice is it cannot get stuck in cracks or crevasses like media or sand which can cause water entrapment resulting in future corrosion problems. Problem with dry ice is it is sensitive to displaced velocity from the gun....too fast and it will loose pattern and take more work to remove a surface. Too slow and it will start melting prior to exiting the gun which greatly reduces its abilities to do the job. I would ask for a demo if you have doubts or ask for contact info from other customers if you need more info.

The principle of dry ice blasting is the thermal shock of the extremely low temp ice contacting the much warmer surface fractures loose material so it falls off. It is very low force/impact and therefore only removes already loose/soft material without damaging the substrate.

I have an entire division at work that does cryogenic, farrow and sponge blasting.

[Advanced Design]

Will it remove rust from a panel? Or is it limited to loose material?

[NC_John]

Originally Posted by Advanced Design

Will it remove rust from a panel? Or is it limited to loose material?

I've not tried it on any truck parts. It's a hassle to set up with the equipment, air compressor, hoses, getting the dry ice, etc...

It might work ok on light rust but I'm sure there are better options. Soda blasting for example. Walnut shells.... They'd be more efficient and probably less expensive. The biggest benefit to dry ice blasting is it produces no extra waste because the dry ice flashes back into CO2 (which isn't an issue with rust cleanup) and its a safe option around live electrical equipment (again, not an issue).

[Possmguts]

He came by to look at the truck today and informed me that the dry ice wont work on this application and would have to do a water/glass blast on it... the water keeps it from building heat and warping anything... he then sprays something on it that keeps it from flash rust.... 900 bucks for the cab and bed. Thoughts?

[franken]

I've read that warping is more from the pounding effect of the harder than steel media than heat. In theory the inner bracing of a part means it will get peined unevenly and warp low crown parts.

[Possmguts]

Originally Posted by franken

I've read that warping is more from the pounding effect of the harder than steel media than heat. In theory the inner bracing of a part means it will get peined unevenly and warp low crown parts.

Pretty sure heat is what causes warping and what media is used.... but Im not a blast expert

[Advanced Design]

I learned from my metal shaping buddies it is the media striking the panel that causes the warping. The media acts as millions of tiny hammers stretching the metal.

Here is a really good review of the subject.
http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...d.php?t=647269

I asked a buddy that does blasting and metal shaping for his price. Truck cab and doors at his shop near St. Louis is $250 for blasting.

[Possmguts]

Originally Posted by Advanced Design

I learned from my metal shaping buddies it is the media striking the panel that causes the warping. The media acts as millions of tiny hammers stretching the metal.

Here is a really good review of the subject.
http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...d.php?t=647269

I asked a buddy that does blasting and metal shaping for his price. Truck cab and doors at his shop near St. Louis is $250 for blasting.

I kind of thought 900 was high... I dont have a way to haul everything anywhere though without renting a truck.... unless i sneak a truck and trailer out of the yard at work lol

[feller]

I tried to ice blast some Nerf bars a few years back, didn't touch the rust, of course I'm not a pro and there weren't any pros using the equipment. A printing company I was working for rented the whole setup to clean the dried ink off of a press,( image spilled paint running down the side of a work bench every day for several years and pooling on the floor) worked great for that, but not rust.

[swamp rat]

There is Youtube video's on it.

[Fitz]

Originally Posted by franken

I've read that warping is more from the pounding effect of the harder than steel media than heat. In theory the inner bracing of a part means it will get peined unevenly and warp low crown parts.

The distortion is due to heating then shrinking of the panels as they cool down. Bracing will not work.

[72Chebby]

Hi guys, Terry from Calgary Alberta. Just had my 72 wet blasted with crushed Glass, water and a flash rust preservative. Picking up today. $950.00 Canadian. For that price, he removed box, stripped it inside, outside and from underneath up on a forklift. Then coated entire underside and inside box with POR 15, plus rock guarded entire underside. Also did some welding for a few extra sheckles. Bringing her home this aft. For a wipe down and 2 coats of Eastwood epoxy primer. Has to be primed ASAP, preferably within 72 hours. I hooked up with another fellow about the dry ice blasting. He reccomended against it for vehicle restoration. Better for graffiti removal on brick and such he said. Told me to go the route I finally settled on.

[Possmguts]

Originally Posted by 72Chebby

Hi guys, Terry from Calgary Alberta. Just had my 72 wet blasted with crushed Glass, water and a flash rust preservative. Picking up today. $950.00 Canadian. For that price, he removed box, stripped it inside, outside and from underneath up on a forklift. Then coated entire underside and inside box with POR 15, plus rock guarded entire underside. Also did some welding for a few extra sheckles. Bringing her home this aft. For a wipe down and 2 coats of Eastwood epoxy primer. Has to be primed ASAP, preferably within 72 hours. I hooked up with another fellow about the dry ice blasting. He reccomended against it for vehicle restoration. Better for graffiti removal on brick and such he said. Told me to go the route I finally settled on.

wow, then that settles it... Im not paying 900 bucks for just the blasting and anti flash spray.... You got WAY more for that money....

[69l46vert]

A buddy just had his 54 Chevy truck done here in Maine. Sandblasted, not dry ice. It was already disassembled. The entire body, cab, bed, everything inside and out except the frame was $1,100 and it included being primed with etching primer. Did a nice job. It's a lot of work so it seemed to me to be well worth it.