So i started doing my own anodizing 🤔

[DougStar]

I have a very bad habit of being super critical of the things I do. I have an expectation and if it doesn't meet it ill keep hunting till I get it right

Thats the right approach don't stop

 

[Bizzer]

No reason to hide anything with this as I wanted this thread to be educational and open to critique... this time I tried type 3 anodizing which is a hard coating. Granted I don't have nor feel safe to ramp it up to the required voltage I tried with what I have and the process focuses more on voltage rather than amperage with type 2. You can see the color difference between the parts. The darker parts is my limitation for type 3 and the bath was kept at 50 degrees Fahrenheit. The lighter purple by the coil is type 2 also with the wrong way to dye the parts. I had stumbled upon the right way I believe to dye and its not heated to 120 degrees Fahrenheit but yet its left at room temperature and the dying process takes about a minute ..

Anodizing this in the fridge Rep?

 

[Rep732]

Gunna have to @Bizzer its not easy cooling and I need to look into a chiller and need an external heat transfer as I can't chill and circulate the acid bath

 

[Bizzer]

Yeah, was thinking that when I saw those temps!

 

[Rep732]

I had peaked at 102 degrees in about 30 minutes at 3 amps @ 15v so you can imagine what 6 amps and higher will do

 

[Bizzer]

Definitely a chiller is in order! What about a cooler full of ice and water to circulate? You’d have to monitor it and manage it the whole time but a whole lot cheaper. Just an idea I was toying with if I needed to chill.

 

[Rep732]

Thats a excellent idea bizzer. And I cant see any negative effects keeping the temp low. Im curious tho if the current needs to be adjusted due to the colder bath with the reason electricity moves slower or faster in various Temps through various solutions

 

[Bizzer]

That one is over my head, but I understand what your saying!

 

[Rep732]

Me too man meeee too... thought this stuff would be a tad bit easier

 

[spents]

this threads seriously brilliant ryan ,
keep it up

 

[Rep732]

Thank you Paul I want it to be a source of good information for anyone here that wants to give it a go

 

[spents]

Thank you Paul I want it to be a source of good information for anyone here that wants to give it a go

can doug make this thread a sticky though,
so it don't get lost down the list of threads i mean

 

[Rep732]

Agreed. It would be nice to keep it up top with the other tutorials

 

[John Parks]

Definitely some nice progress. But, hard coat will always be a different shade from standard anodizing.

 

[Seandonato73]

So I can roughly answer your temp vs conductivity question. The hotter it gets the more conductive it gets. This doesn't factor salinity, or any other conductive particles/concentrations in the bath. Pure water doesn't actually conduct electricity. It's the "stuff" devolved in it that conducts. The heat is partially from the resistance of the solution And work piece. You can measure its resistance value with a multi meter across your cathode and anode. I would assume there should be some sort of chart or something to go off of for optimal bath temp. I do like the ice bath chiller, but would be looking at a way to just use a calling loop, and pump your "coolant" through the system as needed to maintain temp, instead of the direct method of a chilled ice bath. With a thermostat and a small pump, I would be willing to bet you could maintain temp within a few degrees.

 

[Rep732]

Thanks for the info Sean and thats a great idea to have the cooling system kick on and off to maintain the temperature i need. Honestly I would have thought the colder the bath the better the conductivity since the molecules are closer together rather than its more conductive when its hotter

 

[Bizzer]

@Seandonato73 thats exactly my thinking. I’m planning on running an aquarium pump in my cooler thermostatically controlled off an Inkbird controller. I’ll tee the line off the pump to run a recycle loop back to the cooler. On the recycle line I’ll install a needle valve to control flow. This way the pump is never “dead ended”. Forward flow will be inversely proportional to how much I throttle on the recycle loop.

 

[Rep732]

If you have a website like Craigslist near you try to find a used aquarium chiller. Thats what im looking for now

 

[misterleon]

https://newyork.craigslist.org/brk/for/d/brooklyn-arctica-aquarium-chiller-5-hp/7337571335.html

 

[Seandonato73]

I would have used one of those mini fridges. Normally people give them away. Would get plenty cold even for moderate use I think. I'd turn it into near freezing temps myself thermo controlled like buzzer said.