Rust preventing systems?? Do they work? The PROOF!!

[off road heaven]

Well, maybe I can shed a little bit of light on this subject. As a boiler operator, rust is a major concern. During a training session with our chemical supplier the question was raised about electronic rust prevention systems and if they worked. His answer was as complex as the thread frosty put up, but simply he explained that they change the chemical reaction by making the little pluses you see in the equations to a negative.

But the simplest way to prevent rust, is to cover up any exposed bare metal with paint. As stated, rust is a chemical reaction between moisture(does not have to be salt water) and oxygen.

 

[oldrtack123]

We do a fair bit of work on underground oil and gas pipelines and they all use it. Although its called cathodic protection, im pretty sure its the same idea.

Hi Scotty
Cathodic protection works because the pipelines are surrounded by a conductive material, SOIL
Current flows from anodes thru soil to bare areas of pipes & does prevent corrossion.
Put your car ina water bath or bury it & use one of these & yes i it will work .unfotunately you cannot use the car.
The capacitive effect type work on a diffferant basis & NEEDS AN INSULATING LAYER [paint] between devise & body to formthe capacitor.
The area under the devise & avery SMALL area around the pad form the capacitor& thats as far as the protection covers
Now if your paint workremains in good condition & YOU COVER ALL THE VECHICLE with the devisesit probably will work but car will not look very attractive
Any one who has experience with Cathodic protection , Anodic protection will be aware of this.
Simply summed up:
The applied voltage type [ cathodic protection] protects bare metal from rusting , but the current MUST flow from the anode /devise thru a conductive medium[soil or water] into the base metal via that patch of bare metal
Voltage applied in a number of areas of the car by electrical wires does not achieve this effect,
The resultant current only flows along the metal Not thru the surface

The capacitor type requires sound paint under the pads to form a capacitor only the area under & surrounding the pad will form a capacitor. see above comments

 

[Yarrum]

Hi Scotty
Cathodic protection works because the pipelines are surrounded by a conductive material, SOIL
Current flows from anodes thru soil to bare areas of pipes & does prevent corrossion.
Put your car ina water bath or bury it & use one of these & yes i it will work .unfotunately you cannot use the car.
The capacitive effect type work on a diffferant basis & NEEDS AN INSULATING LAYER [paint] between devise & body to formthe capacitor.
The area under the devise & avery SMALL area around the pad form the capacitor& thats as far as the protection covers
Now if your paint workremains in good condition & YOU COVER ALL THE VECHICLE with the devisesit probably will work but car will not look very attractive
Any one who has experience with Cathodic protection , Anodic protection will be aware of this.
Simply summed up:
The applied voltage type [ cathodic protection] protects bare metal from rusting , but the current MUST flow from the anode /devise thru a conductive medium[soil or water] into the base metal via that patch of bare metal
Voltage applied in a number of areas of the car by electrical wires does not achieve this effect,
The resultant current only flows along the metal Not thru the surface

The capacitor type requires sound paint under the pads to form a capacitor only the area under & surrounding the pad will form a capacitor. see above comments

Hi Oldtrack,
You seem to have a bit of knowledge in this area and I respect that. My response here is to draw some more info from you to address common responses. Like others, I did a lot of reading and spoke to a two companies before I bought. As I said in an earlier response and what the original experiment of this thread tends to support is that these devices will not stop rust but slow it down. I spray the underneath with Lanotec (as I have with other cars) but the rust appeared in the turret, so when I updated the car I bought one. I know you are saying that these devices don't work, but there "seems" to be "some" truth to the claims and therefore a grey area for the advertisers to exploit.

I have a small amount of paint missing where the front bumper hit the guard. I have not touched it up because I wanted to see if rust would form. Almost no oxidization has occurred over 8 months. This matches with the original entry of this thread and what I was told by the company I bought from. Also I was told that the device could only cope with small amount of bare metal. I know it sounds like the toothpaste advertising: brush your teeth with Brand X and you will remove plaque, when the act of brushing is what gives the result - not the paste. Therefore if I keep covering the paint I won't get rust.

From your knowledge, is there any truth in the claims of slowing oxidization?
Do you have any expertise with equipment in corrosive environments that these companies claim they sell devices to? I would like to hear from someone in mining who actually evaluates the effectiveness of these devices and give a definitive answer on the claims. In truth, I have no idea if mining companies do buy these devices.

Thanks
Yarrum.

 

[oldrtack123]

Hi Yarrum
I have do not have any advise re mining industries
My experience was in the industial fields.
Underground pipe lines , inside protection of tanks, submerged structures etc

Methods used included sacrificial anodes & applied current [cathodic protection ]
Anodic protection for highly corrosive material containing tanks[applied current]

Since you are concerned in keeping your car in good condition , i would think you wash & polish it regularly ,does that include the bare paint area & is it down to bare metal[it may only be down to the primer. .
The polish is a protective coating
Most vehicles have the the panels dipped in a phosphoric acid solution before assembly This forms @ phosphate protective coating which will last for for some time even when exposed.

 

[Yarrum]

Thanks Oldtrack,
after posting my last reply I was thinking that additives in the carwash could seal the metal. I do keep it in good condition and I am happy that I have most bases covered, but still bought an electronic rust stopper believing that if it did half of what was claimed I wouldn't have rust issues. I may have wasted my money, but I have a little green blinking light to smile at when I check under the bonnet.

Cheers
Yarrum