Full Version: Removing Silicone Ash

From: Ace (RACE701) [#1]
 8 Mar 2006
To: ALL

I apologize if this subject has been addressed before. I am a newby here so please be gentle.

Any suggestions on how to remove ash from silicone spirit bands?

We have tried rinsing under high pressure water, high pressure air, scrubing with soap and water and a stiff scrub brush....and we still get the white ash left behind in the letters.

Thanks for your time!

EDITED: 8 Mar 2006 by DGL

From: Rodney Gold (RODNEY_GOLD) [#2]
 8 Mar 2006
To: Ace (RACE701) [#1] 9 Mar 2006

Try a citrus oil based cleaner.

From: Cody (BOBTNAILER) [#3]
 9 Mar 2006
To: Ace (RACE701) [#1] 9 Mar 2006

Ace,

We use a wallpaper brush to get all the loose ash off, then we wipe off with a damp rag.

This still leaves a little bit of white residue on the inside of the engraving, but we've found that our customers actually like the contrast that it gives.

The residue will wear off in a couple of days, especially with sweat and showers.


HTH,

Cody

From: rekey [#4]
 11 Mar 2006
To: Ace (RACE701) [#1] 11 Mar 2006

I've tried numerous cleaning solutions and methods, the only thing we found to work is a pressure washer, then a scrub with a stiff brush. We use a pine oil as the cleaning solution, but don't think it matters much what is used, it just acts as a bit of a lubricant for the silicone dust. Hot water in the scrubbing bucket helps quite a bit, as it softens the bands a little. Be sure to run the laser out of focus, we go at least 1/8" or so. Also, be sure to throughly clean them BEFORE they dry, as once the dust gets wet it dries like concrete and is nearly impossible to remove later. We've thrown whole jobs away because of it. Bolder lines and fonts are easier to clean than fine ones.

From: Ace (RACE701) [#5]
 11 Mar 2006
To: ALL

Thanks for the help.
We shipped our silicone band job a couple days ago. We cleaned with soap water and a stiff brush then blew the water off with high pressure air. This worked ok....Some bands were completely clean and others had a minor bit of ash leftover. Our customer was very happy with our work so I will not worry about small amounts of ash anymore.
Thanks again.

From: basehorawards [#6]
 13 Mar 2006
To: rekey [#4] 13 Mar 2006

Which way out of focus? Moving the product up 1/8" or down 1/8"?

From: rekey [#7]
 13 Mar 2006
To: ALL

Move the lens away from the work(above).

From: Rodney Gold (RODNEY_GOLD) [#8]
 16 Mar 2006
To: basehorawards [#6] 16 Mar 2006

Either way makes no difference , the beam is shaped like an hourglass , above or below the "waist" is OOF (out of focus), the downside of moving the material nearer the lens is that you have the optic closer to the smoke and debris that can result and thus can contaminate it.

EDITED: 16 Mar 2006 by RODNEY_GOLD

Back to thread list | Login

© 2026 Project Beehive Forum