Black iron pipe is typically used for natural gas lines to furnaces, water heaters, and other larger appliances. It comes in black color that sometimes makes us confused with galvanized iron pipes used for other purposes in household supply lines.
When it comes to cleaning the black iron pipe, it is not entirely different from other pipes cleaning but needs more care while cleaning. Never try to use flammable cleaners because these pipes are used for gas, and they can cause a fire.
Steps to clean black iron pipe
When cleaning the black iron pipe, follow the below simple step-by-step instructions and safely clean your black iron pipe.
Step one
Take warm water but avoid too hot and pour it over the black iron pipe. Now take the plastic scrub brush to scrub the black iron pipe’s surface. Scrub it properly and remove all of the built-up dirt from the pipe. After removing the dust, take a dry paper towel and dry the pipe.
Step two
If your simple scrubbing with warm water does not work, it is better to use sandpaper to clean the black iron pipe surface.
Wet the pipe’s surface with warm or freshwater; after that, scrub the surface with sandpaper or steel wool until you see all dirt or stains remove correctly from the surface.
But avoid using the steel wool for your black pipe’s cleaning that pipe’s used for gas line. When you scrub the metal against metal, it can cause a spark, and it may cause a fire if there is any leakage on the pipe surface.
It is better to use sandpaper, but if your pipe is okay and you ensure there is no leakage issue, you can also use steel wool. After that, dry the pipe’s surface with the dry paper towel; your scrubbing task has been completed.
Step three
Now you need to remove the rust from the surface; for that purpose, follow the further steps. In the third step, you will need to do deep cleaning.
For that purpose, unscrew all the black pipes from one another through the use of a wrench. But make sure the gas supply is appropriately off before unscrewing the pipes.
Step four
Fill the gallon bucket with water but leave the water 5 to 6 inches below the top of the bucket to avoid water overflow when you put the pipes in the bucket.
After filling the water in the bucket, take the washing soda and add one tablespoon of washing soda per gallon of water to the bucker. You can also use lye, but if you use lye, take proper safety of your hands and wear gloves and goggles because lye can burn your hands due to its acidic nature.
Step five
To use as an anode, place an old piece of metal in the solution; it works as a terminal that power or electricity flows into from an outside source. Keep the end of the metal out of the water over the edge of the water bucker. You can use the squeeze clam to keep the anode standing up straight and in the correct position.
After that, through the use of electrical squeeze clamps, connect the metal piece with 10 or 14gauge wire but make sure you are using the copper wire with each piece of the black iron piper.
Step six
Now connect the wires with battery charge but make sure the charger is not plugged in. Next, connect the black wire of the battery charger with the copper wires that are running from your black iron pipes. Then connect the red wire of the battery charger with the anode in your bucket.
Then place the iron pipes in the solution but make sure these pipes do not touch the anode; after that, check the wires that black and red cables are correctly connected. The wrong connection can corrode your pipes.
Step Seven
Now plug the battery charge, and after a couple of minutes, you will see Oxygen bubbles rise from the pipe surface, which means the process is working correctly. Leave these pipes in the solution for three to four hours.
But it depends on the amount of rust on your pipes; if there is more rest, you can increase the hours. When leaving pipes, ensure that no kids or pets come close to the bucket or charger.
After three to four hours, unplug the charger to break the current supply, then remove the pipes from the solution.
Rinse the pipes under warm water and then scrub the pipes with a plastic scrubber; you will see rust easily remove from the pipe’s surface. Reassemble the pipes correctly.
Final Thoughts
Black iron pipes are standard in use with gas supply lines; like other pipes, they also need cleaning after some time. But you need careful cleaning due to the gas supply. Therefore, we have also guided you with simple instructions in the above content to clean the black iron pipe.