[Dennis H.]

Thinking of finally getting an ultrasonic parts cleaner and wondered if anyone has any tips or recommendations before I buy one. Do they work very well and what do I need to look for as far as specs on the unit. Also, what is the best solutions to use for carbs or general parts cleaning. Thanks for any input.

[Cammer-6]

If you can afford one made in USA would be the first step,even good used is fine.
A heater is good but not the worlds end if it doesnt.
You can boil distilled water on the stove.
Pinesol works for detergent,so does a little simple green,
but test to make sure it wont remove plating or discolor metal.
A good test of power is to cut strips of aluminum foil and hang in solution.
It should punch holes in the foil in a matter of seconds for a real good one,
longer for one not as powerful. If it doesnt do this in a few minutes,move on,
as the parts do wear out and that may be why its for sale.

[KS circutguy]

https://www.harborfreight.com/6-lite...ner-59430.html

https://www.harborfreight.com/25-lit...ner-63256.html

They work great.

[mgarblik]

We have 2 of them in use. Did not do a ton of research on them. The little one is a Vevor brand bought on Amazon. It was a couple hundred dollars. Holds 3-4 gallons of solution. It will clean 8 pistons at once or a large carburetor like a dominator. It takes 3+ hours to get up to temperature and 2 hours or more to really clean a carburetor. Does not do well removing carbon. It will soften it but not remove it. We now pre-clean the carbon with spray carb cleaner and a brush then ultrasonic clean. Does remove paint given enough time. Does not remove rust. Will etch and discolor aluminum if you leave it in there too long. I would check it every 1/2 hour. Turns zinc castings somewhat dark like a Q-get. Overall, does a nice job.
Our second one is a giant. It holds 110 gallons of solution and was nearly 30K. We use it to clean large aluminum castings like the Cadillac CTSV engine we did last year. The block and both heads fit in there in one batch. They claim 15 minute clean time, that's a bunch of bull. It takes the same 2 hours to really clean a block or heads. Takes 5 hours to get solution from room temp to 140 degrees F. It will also discolor aluminum to a burnished light brown color if left in too long. It's the best thing we have for aluminum.

For solution, we have had best luck with Dawn detergent in the small one. Simple green and Pinesol did not work as well for us although smells nice. The big one uses the equipment's own brand of fluid. Ultrasonics LLC. Made in USA

In summary, they are not the perfect cleaning solution, but easy on the environment and do a good job.

[Dennis H.]

I stopped and looked at the Harbor Freight ones today, of course they are made in China. Will be checking on Amazon and see what I can find for comparison. What determines a good one? The wattage, solution?

[KS circutguy]

Read some of the reviews on harbor freight for more info.

[hurryinhoosier62]

Originally Posted by Dennis H.

I stopped and looked at the Harbor Freight ones today, of course they are made in China. Will be checking on Amazon and see what I can find for comparison. What determines a good one? The wattage, solution?

I have the Harbor Freight one. It works very well cleaning airless spray guns and shell casings. but haven’t tried it on anything else.

[Nobuddy]

I have used Simple Green - Extreme Aircraft and Precision Cleaner diluted with water per the instructions to ultrasonic clean a couple carburetors. Never seen it locally but Amazon has it. Worked well and but I have not tried other solutions. Don't know of any ultrasonics made in USA but there may be some. Mine is a Vevor 15 liter which I bought direct.

[Cammer-6]

Sonicor,L&R,Branson,Sharpertek,are just a few made in USA.

[KS circutguy]

Probly 'assembled' in USA.
Like our vehicles.

[carbking]

In a different lifetime, I read a rave by Cliff R. about using one.

I then purchased one from an ebay vendor for about $600 (probably 20-25 years ago). It did a marvelous job of cleaning for about an hour and a half, and died.

From China, no warranty.

So I started researching USA brands, and bought one that, with the bells and whistles was closer to $6000. Best tool investment for the shop, other than a lathe, and milling machine, that I have ever made. The one I bought is still working well. 30 minutes will get the heat to 185 degrees F. It is large enough to hold any production carburetor I have ever seen before disassembly. It doesn't get as much use today, but 20 years ago 14 hour days, 6 days a week were common.

I didn't remember the name, so just checked; then checked the internet, and they are still in business.

https://www.upcorp.com/

Would guess in the last 25 years, prices have dropped.

Can highly recommend this manufacturer; and yes, they advertise made in the USA.

Jon

[Dennis H.]

I went ahead and bought one off of Amazon, a Vevor 10Litre. Will get it in the next couple of days. Has to be better than manually cleaning carbs and parts!

[propuckstopper]

I have a Crest Ultrasonics 7 gallon model. It has been flawless for several years now.

https://store.crest-ultrasonics.com/...Qp7JwJglIdY0B8