Ultrasonic Cleaning

[Torculus Resupinus]

I have access to an ultrasonic cleaner (small household type) and several very dirty vintage pens acquired from eBay. I've encountered various mentions of ultrasonic cleaning here and there, so I'm confident the method is suitable for fountain pens, but I'm not sure where the limits are.

 

What parts of what kind of pens should NOT be put in an ultrasonic cleaner? What parts of what pens can be ultrasonically cleaned only in a certain position? (For instance, only letting such-and-such a portion of it get wet. The machine comes with a gizmo for cleaning watch bands while keeping the watch dry, which gave me this notion.)

 

While I'm at it, what parts of what kind of pens should not be exposed to a dilute ammonia-and-water solution? To dilute washing-up liquid (hand-washing detergent)? To water? I might as well throw this wide open, in the hope of the thread's being useful to other users.

[The Good Captain]

A good post and one which should bring forth a plethora of information - especially for those of us here in the UK that aren't as familiar with some of the FP techniques as those in the US and elsewhere.

[fjf]

Modern pens have no problems with ultrasonic cleaners. Old materials that cannot be soaked (such as casein) should not be put in there. It would be good to make a list of materials that can be problematic. I'll start:

 

-Casein

[Fabienne]

Another question: should there be a lot of bubbling when you ultrasonic your pen? Or should it just sit there while the machine buzzes? I was expecting something looking like the attack of the piranha hoard but got virtually nothing.

 

I also have what looks like stones inbetween the baffles of my filler. Can these be gotten out with an ultrasonic cleaning? I hope so.

[Lloyd]

The water should just look like it's jiggling. However, try this:

1. Fill you Ultrasonic Cleaner with water.
2. Turn it on.
3. Hold a piece of standard aluminum foil vertically in the tank for 30 seconds.
4. Remove the foil.

The foil should be at least dimpled but quite possibly perforated. This will demonstrate to you the power this cleaner has.

[FLZapped]

As far as I know, it is not a good idea to put a Parker 61 in one. The arrow could pop out of the hood.

 

-Bruce

[fiberdrunk]

Another question: should there be a lot of bubbling when you ultrasonic your pen? Or should it just sit there while the machine buzzes? I was expecting something looking like the attack of the piranha hoard but got virtually nothing.

 

I also have what looks like stones inbetween the baffles of my filler. Can these be gotten out with an ultrasonic cleaning? I hope so.

 

No, you really won't be seeing bubbles, but you can see some vibration of the water. If you put your finger in, you'll definitely be able to feel it working.

 

I generally put my pens in for about 10 minutes of cleaning, or even as long as 20 minutes if it's a stubborn job. Then I rinse my nibs well in clean water, under the faucet.

 

I use the detergent that came with the cleaner. I'm not sure what the detergent is, though it looks similar to powdered dishwashing detergent. I'm getting low on it and am wondering what to use when it's gone. I've had mine since '93 or so and it has served me well (and the bottle of detergent it came with really has lasted me that long!) I bought mine from John Neal Bookseller, a calligraphy mail order supplier, though I doubt mine is the same model he sells now. Mine is called the Ultra-Kleen Ultrasonic Jewelry Cleaner, made by Dual Sales Inc. of Missouri. I like to use acrylic inks with my Rotring ArtPens and this cleans them up wonderfully.

Edited September 27, 2011 by fiberdrunk

[spiv]

If you put your finger in, you'll definitely be able to feel it working.

 

DO NOT put your finger in an ultrasonic cleaning device

 

Exposure to ultrasonic energy through contact can result in damage to joint tissue, skin irritation and discomfort. Even to the extent of creating long-term arthritic conditions

 

Likely won't do much damage, but then you CAN look directly into the sun as well... but I wouldn't, regarless of what Manfred Mann says.

[flighter51]

I don't do nibs in the ultrasonic. ever. You can pop that iridium right off, for whatever reason it is usually only one tine making it more difficult to detect. I have an industrial jewelers ultrasonic so it could be that I am using a machine that is not suited to this.

 

Feeds are best soaked in soapy water in my experience. The only time I use it on a feed is when I have rapidograph ink or lettering ink that has dried in the feed. When I ultrasonic a feed and section I remove the nib.

 

 

Hope this helps.

 

fern

Edited September 27, 2011 by flighter51

[phlosar]

Interesting point on the nibs. :hmm1: I have never had iridium pop off that way, but I could see how it could happen. I have had iridium pop off from accidentally jarring the iridium whilst adjusting a tine with my nail positioned below the iriudm on the tine (and nail moved). I think it would be more of an issue for the real pieces of iridium on pens from the 20s and earlier. Some of those don't look to be firmly affixed to the nib in the first place.

 

I would avoid any pen with shells -- old Sheaffer with embedded abalone pieces, old eyedroppers with shell slabs on the barrel. Avoid Casein (lots of old Conway Stewarts). Be careful with white pens which could stain. In general don't leave pens soaking in a solution (water or whatever) that is very darkened by ink -- this may stain your pens, even the nonwhite ones.

 

I doubt that a home cleaner will dislodge the things of which OP speaks. Try a soak, a wooden pick, needle, etc.

[SamCapote]

Cole Palmer has some FAQ's, with these two tests interesting:

 

How do I perform the "glass slide" test?

 

Wet the frosted portion of a glass slide with tap water and draw an "X" with a No. 2 pencil from corner to corner of the frosted area. Making sure that the tank is filled to the fill line, immerse the frosted end of the slide into fresh cleaning solution. Turn on the ultrasonics. The lead "X" will begin to be removed almost immediately, and all lead should be removed within ten seconds.

How do I perform the "foil" test?

 

Cut three small pieces of aluminum foil about 4" x 8" each. Fold each piece over a rod that you will use to suspend the foil in the tank. A clothes hanger works well. Your cleaner should be filled with an ultrasonic cleaning solution, degassed, and brought up to normal operating temperature. Suspend the first "square" in the center of the tank and the other two a couple of inches from each end of the tank. Make sure that the tank is filled to the fill line, and turn on the ultrasonics for about ten minutes. Remove the foil and inspect: All three pieces of aluminum foil should be perforated and wrinkled to about the same degree.

 

 

The health hazards from dipping your fingers/hand into the cleaner (mentioned earlier) are discussed in this link, and which seem to make sense from what I know.

[psfred]

I have never had a bit of tipping pop off in an ultruasonic cleaner, I'd think it would be already broken if one did.

 

Ammoniated water works well.

 

If the pen is full of old, crusty ink, a trip to the bath followed by an overnight soak and another trip will work better than multiple rounds without soaking, it takes a while for all that old ink to dissolve.

 

Do not sonicate hard rubber pens or casin pens, either will be damaged by the water. A single three minute round will be OK for hard rubber, but not more, it will absorb water and turn green and foggy looking.

 

You can scratch pen bodies if they are in contact with hard, sharp stuff in the bath, might be a good idea to pull the section and just sonicate that.

 

Vastly better than taking a nib and feed apart and scraping all that smudge off, although in a few cases there was stuff that would NOT come off no matter what. Likely dead iron-gall ink.

 

Peter

[JefferyS]

Anything that can be loosened could be loosened. My lab partner in grad school cleaned his pens incessantly with an ultrasonic cleaner (the surface of the water should look "rippled"), but I found that soaking in water worked fine for me. His Rapidographs didn't fall apart. Like anything, don't overdo it.

[fiberdrunk]

 

The health hazards from dipping your fingers/hand into the cleaner (mentioned earlier) are discussed in this link, and which seem to make sense from what I know.

 

 

Oh, so that's why my finger fell off! (Just kidding, of course!)

 

I wasn't aware, though, that it could cause damage. I just felt a tingling sensation, is all. That's good to know.

[Fabienne]

My tin foil beanie started to vibrate! Just joking. I don't think I would mess with it...at least not with as little as I know about it.

[Belles-lettres]

I'm gettin' those good vibrations..

[Torculus Resupinus]

Thanks for all the pertinent remarks -- very helpful indeed. I think I'm getting the measure of the situation. A more specific questions, now:

 

Is it OK to sonicate a barrel with a sac in it, either button-fill, lever-fill, or aerometric? (I'm not proposing to disassemble any of my pens, just to take them apart to the normal user extent: take cap off, unscrew section or blind cap if appropriate.)

 

How do I recognize whether a pen body is casein? (One of the vintage pens I want to clean is an old Conway Stewart -- were they all casein? From when to when?)

 

I know how to recognize hard rubber. None of my pens have hard-rubber bodies, but the older ones have hard-rubber feeds. Am I OK giving them 3 minutes of ultrasound and a rinse? Is it a bad idea to soak them passively overnight?

 

Am I right in understanding that water is contraindicated for some materials, but dilute ammonia and detergent are OK for anything that can stand water?

 

Any other materials that are best avoided?

 

Finally, the sketchy brochure that came with the ultrasonic cleaner recommends plain tap water (warm) for most jobs, a cleaning solution for tough ones. Sam's Cole Parmer link strongly recommends a cleaning solution for all cleaning. Peter's post suggests I should be OK using a spoonful of ammonia and a drop of washing-up liquid (in the whole bath) in place of a specialized cleaning solution. Have I got that right? And how important is degassing (Cole Parmer again)? Boil some water and let it cool to desired temperature?

[Yoda4561]

Degassing is only something that the cleaner itself does naturally via its ultrasonic action. When you first fill the ultrasonic cleaner and turn it on, you might see some airbubbles form inside the water and stay there until it's turned off, do it a few times and they stop appearing, your solution is now degassed and at maximum cleaning efficiency. Top of the line cleaners have an automatic function that does the same thing. It's not a really big deal for our uses, I just fill with cleaning solution and use it.

 

For pen cleaning I like to fill the section with a 5:1 ammonia and water mix, and then just dip the whole thing into the cleaner, usually filled with fresh tapwater. I only leave it there for about 10 or 15 seconds as my pens are cleaned on a regular basis. I usually only do this when switching to a lighter colored ink, or if I've left the cap off a pen and forgotten about it for a week. Old crusted used pens might need a couple minutes or an overnight pre-soak to loosen up years of buildup.

 

The hard rubber in a feed is unaffected by ultrasonic cleaning, as are sacs and other rubber and 99% of plastics in good condition. What it can do is change the color of some vintage hard rubber bodies that have formed an oxidized patina, some people find this important depending on the pen. If you have a pen with a body that's starting to craze or crumble and you want to preserve what's left of it, keep it away from an ultrasonic cleaner.

Edited September 28, 2011 by Yoda4561

[Ted Andkilde]

Thanks for all the pertinent remarks -- very helpful indeed. I think I'm getting the measure of the situation. A more specific questions, now:

 

Is it OK to sonicate a barrel with a sac in it, either button-fill, lever-fill, or aerometric? (I'm not proposing to disassemble any of my pens, just to take them apart to the normal user extent: take cap off, unscrew section or blind cap if appropriate.)

 

 

As a rule, j-bars, levers and other filling mechanism mechanical components are not necessarily corrosion resistant, so soaking or sonicating a barrel with sac would be risky depending on the pen.

 

Cheers, Ted

[texascharlie]

After reading all of the remarks I feel somewhat intimidated by an ultrasonic unit. Would I be remiss if I chose not to use one and use the old trusted cleaning methods? Do they do a better job or are they just faster? I have a unit so I would really like to know.