A few days ago I visited an antique market and brought back a metal grinder to restore. The grinder was quite rusty so after searching for different solutions to remove rust from metal and considering the products I had at home, I found a pretty effective solution. I hope you find it as useful as it was for me.
There are different ways to remove rust from metal but none of the ones I found at first seemed the most suitable in my case, basically because I was looking for a quick solution since I wanted to start restoring the grinder as soon as possible.
Some formulas to remove rust require submerging the metal for several days, or the use of aggressive products with the skin and mucous membranes (such as salfuman). Since I wanted to start the restoration of the grinder as soon as possible, I discarded the cheats that contained products or tools that I did not have at home. I finally found an easy, affordable, fast and effective solution, the perfect solution for me! For remove rust from metal You will only need one product: foil.
Aluminum foil, your ally to remove rust
I had previously used the aluminum foil on some tricks to paint (you can see it in this link). However, he would never have thought that it was also very effective in removing rust. To do this, you just have to cut squares or strips of aluminum foil about 10 centimeters on a side, moisten it in water and rub it on the metal. You will immediately see that the rust is disappearing, it is as if the aluminum foil were an eraser. To finish, clean the metal piece with a cotton cloth.
Advantages of using aluminum foil to remove rust
The advantages of using this system compared to others are the following:
- It is possible to remove rust with a single product.
- Due to the malleability of aluminum foil, difficult corners and crevices can be easily accessed.
- Aluminum foil can be easily found in any supermarket. In addition, it is quite cheap.
- It does not require prior preparation of the metal, although if the piece has a lot of rust, it can be sanded beforehand and then rubbed with aluminum foil.
- Nor does it imply an attack on the metal, it does not scratch or damage it.
- It does not require a great effort, you have to rub but you do not have to use a lot of force.
On the other hand, I recommend that if you are going to use this system to remove rust from metal always use gloves. Although it is not an aggressive method for the skin, it does fade a lot and you can easily end up with black fingers and nails (as was my case).
Final score
The original piece was completely covered by rust and after removing it, the metal has reappeared. Although it can be seen that it has darkened due to wear and tear over the years, it no longer has that reddish brown color that it had before. In the following image you can see how the grinder turned out after restoring it. You will find the step by step in this link).
Other ways to remove rust from metal
- If the piece is small, you can soak it in white wine vinegar for several days. The rust will stay in the container. On the other hand, cola acts in a similar way to vinegar.
- Rub the rust with a skinless potato to which you have added a few drops of dishwashing liquid.
- Sprinkle salt on the affected area and add a few drops of lemon. Let it take effect and rub with a brush.
- Rub the affected area with baking soda paste (see recipe in this link).
- It can also be eliminated by electrolysis, which consists of connecting a power source (battery or battery) to two electrodes that are placed in water.
paint rusty metal
To paint metal that is rusty, the following steps must be taken:
- Remove rust using any of the techniques seen in this article
- Apply an anticorrosive primer
- Apply multiple coats of exterior paint
In the following video you will see how to paint rusty metal chairs step by step:
what did you think of this trick to remove rust from metal? Did you know it or had you ever used it? I have been pleasantly surprised by how effective and fast it has been.
If you liked this post, you can find more DIY tricks at Thank you very much for commenting and sharing!
