How Metal Fabrication Companies Perform Metal Cleaning
Metal fabrication is a huge industry, with countless types of uses. Whether it’s used to burn, weld, or cut raw materials, metal manufacturing companies are in high demand. Before steel fabrication can take place, you have to perform metal cleaning. But how does a company go about preparing and cleaning metal for fabrication?
The answer is exciting, and one you should know about if you’re interested in the wide world of metal fabrication companies. So for a complete guide and how to perform metal cleaning, be sure to keep reading.
The Basics To Perform Metal Cleaning
Before metal fabrication can occur, the materials need to be thoroughly cleaned. This is a multi-step process, but a necessary one.
Wipe Away Contaminants
One of the main perpetrators of metal is contaminants. Remove them before fabricating metal or steel. One way of doing this is by using acetone to completely clean the surface of the material, ensuring you leave nothing behind.
Rust and Paint
Rust can eat away at the metal, further corroding it. As a result, it needs to be properly removed before metal fabrication can occur. One way of doing this is by sanding the metal.
It may be tempting to use the coarsest paper possible, but this will scratch the metal and should be avoided. Use fine-grit sandpaper to remove rust and paint before removing onto steel fabrication.
Perform Metal Cleaning – Sandblasting
You may have heard of sandblasting when a body shop needs to remove old paint before repainting a bumper. This is true for all metal cleaning processes.
Sandblasting allows you to strip clean metal with a thick layer of rust or a heavy coat of paint on it, leaving behind a clean product ready for fabrication.
Elbow Grease
While sandblasting may get the bulk of rust and paint off of a piece of metal, it may leave behind remnants.
Bits of paint and rust may lurk in the cracks and crevices, so a wire brush can be used on hard to reach surfaces. The result will be metal ready for fabrication and free of rust, paint, and residual dirt.
Perform Metal Cleaning – Precautions
When cleaning and preparing metal for fabrication, be careful not to strip too much off the surface. Metal that’s left stripped may be weak and thin, something that’s not ideal for welding.
Additionally, be sure to avoid metal with deep gauges as it can trap things such as rust, dirt, and debris, making it difficult to completely clean.
After the metal is cleaned, be sure to dry it thoroughly before welding. If you choose to use chemicals such as acetone when cleaning metal, be sure to follow all safety precautions, at all times.
Metal Manufacturing for All Your Needs
Now that you know the proper way to perform metal cleaning, you’re ready to get to work. Be sure to find metal that is free of deep gauges, and exercise extreme caution when working with chemicals.
Contact us today to discuss all your metal manufacturing needs. Choose from a wide selection of industrial metal fabrication for all your commercial needs. If you need metal manufacturing done in Iowa and throughout the midwest, then you’ve come to the right place.
