Removing rust from pit

Custom manufactured BBQ Pits, Do-it-Yourself projects, parts and ideas.

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reddragon72
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Re: Removing rust from pit

Postby reddragon72 » Tue Oct 20, 2009 4:07 pm

JamesB wrote:Our Lowe's carries the Rustoleum in Quart cans... for some reason they stock it over by the spray paint cans.



thanks for the heads up, it'll save me some running around.
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Re: Removing rust from pit

Postby Cowboylikeme » Tue Oct 20, 2009 6:27 pm

Almost any fireplace dealer in your area will have a good high temp paint. They usually carry a wide selection of colors also... When I worked for The Ember Shop here in Wichita Falls, They carried "Stove Bright High Temp Paint" and it was really good stuff, we would use it on fireplaces and grills both. If its good enough for a wood burning stove, then its good enough for a pit.... lol

Also any sherwin williams will have that 1500 degree paint.

Most hardware stores carry Naval Jelly...... I know Ace and lowes does. Wouldnt suprise me if Home Depot had it also.
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Re: Removing rust from pit

Postby reddragon72 » Wed Oct 21, 2009 9:04 am

after lots of hard, and I mean hard, labor last night I have the outside of the firebox done and painted. The wire wheel that I bought is gone, it has lost all it's bristles. There was still rust on it so I hit it with some naval jelly and it helped, but didn't rid all the rust. So I pretty much gave up after 5 hours of trying to remove the rust and layed down a thick, and I mean thick, coat of paint. She looks good, but I don't know for how long. Now I need to do the doors and the inside. For the inside I am just going to lather it up with naval jelly and rince it out and hope for the best. It seems that after 9 years the rust hasn't killed it yet, so if I can get another 5-6 years out of it that'll work great. maybe by then I'll have a welder and can patch her when she needs it.

But for now it is just massive in the labor department and I want some steaks. So I'm taken the chemical route to do the inside. Also what about those grates? what can I do to clean them up. One place said something about vinegar? They are'nt in bad shape they just need to be cleaned and cleared of the surface rust.
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Re: Removing rust from pit

Postby Toontroller » Wed Oct 21, 2009 10:11 am

A hot fire is going to help a bunch on that rust.
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Re: Removing rust from pit

Postby Kenny 13 » Wed Oct 21, 2009 10:50 am

Toontroller wrote:A hot fire is going to help a bunch on that rust.


Good point. It may have been a good idea to build a good fire in there before doing any painting.
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reddragon72
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Re: Removing rust from pit

Postby reddragon72 » Wed Oct 21, 2009 11:06 am

well considering I BBQ at least 2 times a week, it should be no problem if the rust starts coming back out, I'll tackle it as it shows and put it down for good. Also the weather is really bad today and tomorrow is supposed to be the same. So in the mean time what can I do about those grates? I have pics of all three of them, I want to be ready for a cookout this weekend :-) smoking ribs low and slow all day!!!
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Re: Removing rust from pit

Postby Toontroller » Wed Oct 21, 2009 1:08 pm

reddragon72 wrote: So in the mean time what can I do about those grates?


Build a fire and get them HOT....Really HOT and keep them HOT for a while. A whole lot of that stuff is going to burn & flake off. Even if you build a fire on the ground and and suspend them over the coals. The hotter the better. After they have baked use a wire brush to take off the loose material then put a good coat of oil on them get them hot again to season. Do it a couple times and any rust left under there will be of no matter.
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Re: Removing rust from pit

Postby reddragon72 » Wed Oct 21, 2009 2:08 pm

Toontroller wrote:
reddragon72 wrote: So in the mean time what can I do about those grates?


Build a fire and get them HOT....Really HOT and keep them HOT for a while. A whole lot of that stuff is going to burn & flake off. Even if you build a fire on the ground and and suspend them over the coals. The hotter the better. After they have baked use a wire brush to take off the loose material then put a good coat of oil on them get them hot again to season. Do it a couple times and any rust left under there will be of no matter.


any reason to create a big fire is good enough for me :-)
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Re: Removing rust from pit

Postby reddragon72 » Sat Oct 24, 2009 9:24 pm

ImageImageImageImageImageImageImage

here is the pit done with a fire and ribs on it! it cooked everything great except for the baby backs, but I posted in another thread about that issue. But the sausage and spare ribs came out great!! thanks for all the help on this guys and of course here are some pics. The foil is cause the grates still have some rust and I'm still trying to get rid of it. I burned them in a couple times, but there is still some rust. I also oiled them down really good, but they are still a bit rusty and that worries me a bit...
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Re: Removing rust from pit

Postby JamesB » Sat Oct 24, 2009 9:54 pm

Looks like a success!
Image
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Re: Removing rust from pit

Postby reddragon72 » Sun Oct 25, 2009 12:37 am

JamesB wrote:Looks like a success!


yea but the grates are still not clean, that is why I used foil. Either I will need to replace them or figure out a better what to clean them. Maybe get a huge fire going in the firebox.
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Re: Removing rust from pit

Postby JamesB » Sun Oct 25, 2009 7:37 am

reddragon72 wrote:
JamesB wrote:Looks like a success!


yea but the grates are still not clean, that is why I used foil. Either I will need to replace them or figure out a better what to clean them. Maybe get a huge fire going in the firebox.


If the grates will fit in the firebox, build you a fire and and set the grates in there for a bit... If you have a kettle grill, you could do it there too. Get 'em good and hot, hit 'em with a stiff steel brush and knock the bad stuff off... Then you'll be ready to re-season.
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Re: Removing rust from pit

Postby reddragon72 » Mon Oct 26, 2009 11:16 am

JamesB wrote:
reddragon72 wrote:
JamesB wrote:Looks like a success!


yea but the grates are still not clean, that is why I used foil. Either I will need to replace them or figure out a better what to clean them. Maybe get a huge fire going in the firebox.


If the grates will fit in the firebox, build you a fire and and set the grates in there for a bit... If you have a kettle grill, you could do it there too. Get 'em good and hot, hit 'em with a stiff steel brush and knock the bad stuff off... Then you'll be ready to re-season.


yea that i exactly what I did. I put them in the firebox and got a really good fire going. I have gotten all the big rust off of them , but when I coat them again with veg oil the oil turns rusty. I can't afford new ones and these don't seem bad they just have some surface rust that wont go away and I'm about to coat them with naval jelly, but I'm sure that will have some adverse effect on them...

Update: I now have the thermos calibrated so I'll now my real temps now. One was almost spot on and the other was about 75 higher. I'm still having issues with the grates, but they are looking better then before...
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Re: Removing rust from pit

Postby Michael0506 » Fri Oct 12, 2018 6:58 pm

here is the pit done with a fire and ribs on it! it cooked everything great except for the baby backs, but I posted in another thread about that issue. But the sausage and spare ribs came out great!! thanks for all the help on this guys and of course here are some pics. The foil is cause the grates still have some rust and I'm still trying to get rid of it. I burned them in a couple times, but there is still some rust. I also oiled them down really good, but they are still a bit rusty and that worries me a bit...[/quote]


How come I cant see the pictures?

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