Thinking About an Ultrasonic Cleaner — Any Advice?

[Sideburns]

Following on from a discussion about cleaning vintage adjustables like the Gillette Fatboy 195 Adjustable Razor, someone mentioned using ultrasonic cleaners.
I know absolutely nothing about them, but it’s got me curious.
For those of you who use one for razors, what should I be looking for? Are there any features that matter, or any pitfalls to avoid? Are the cheaper ones good enough, or is it worth spending a bit more? What else do you use them for? I guess cleaning things like small engine carbs, jewelry, and metal watch straps come to mind — anything else?
Interested to hear what you use, it’s capacity and how well they work.

 

[Zorro]

i have a small cheap Ultrasonic cleaner and it works well for jewellery and watch parts.

The basic premise is that you can't clean anything properly without some sort of agitation - cleaning solutions work ok on their own to a point, but to get something really clean you have to loosen and move the dirt with a cloth or brush to get it off the object.

Ultrasonic cleaners work by vibrating the object at very high frequencies and so essentially shake the dirt off the object and into the cleaning solution and they are remarkably good at this.

They are relatively cheap because they are essentially just an electric motor with an off-balance weight, so it vibrates the tank like mad.

Couple of things: the high frequency "shaking" can loosed damaged paint or chrome plating and make it flake off - so be mindful of that

Also you don't need to fill the Ultrasonic cleaner tank with cleaning solution - just fill it with plain water and put the object(s) to be cleaned inside a sealed glass or plastic container with the cleaning fluid of choice and put it in the tank. The ultrasonic waves pass through glass or plastic really easily and you end up with a clean tank of water and a little container full of dirty cleaning solution

It's a lot cheaper, works just as well and your ultrasonic cleaner tank stays looking like new.

PS "Elbow Grease" brand is the most fantastic de-greaser / cleaner i have ever seen and its only £1 for a spray bottle in the UK. It will loosen and remove old paint though ! Absolutely awesome cleaning performance in ultrasonic or otherwise.

Home - Elbow Grease

No.1 Power Degreaser The only cleaner you’ll ever need Elbow Grease® is the truly fantastic No.1 Degreaser for use all around the home. The ultimate power degreasing properties of this cleaner make it the only cleaner you will ever need. The uses are endless! Elbow Grease® cleans pots, pans...

elbowgreasecleans.com

 

[Sideburns]

i have a small cheap Ultrasonic cleaner and it works well for jewellery and watch parts.

The basic premise is that you can't clean anything properly without some sort of agitation - cleaning solutions work ok on their own to a point, but to get something really clean you have to loosen and move the dirt with a cloth or brush to get it off the object.

Ultrasonic cleaners work by vibrating the object at very high frequencies and so essentially shake the dirt off the object and into the cleaning solution and they are remarkably good at this.

They are relatively cheap because they are essentially just an electric motor with an off-balance weight, so it vibrates the tank like mad.

Couple of things: the high frequency "shaking" can loosed damaged paint or chrome plating and make it flake off - so be mindful of that

Also you don't need to fill the Ultrasonic cleaner tank with cleaning solution - just fill it with plain water and put the object(s) to be cleaned inside a sealed glass or plastic container with the cleaning fluid of choice and put it in the tank. The ultrasonic waves pass through glass or plastic really easily and you end up with a clean tank of water and a little container full of dirty cleaning solution

It's a lot cheaper, works just as well and your ultrasonic cleaner tank stays looking like new.

PS "Elbow Grease" brand is the most fantastic de-greaser / cleaner i have ever seen and its only £1 for a spray bottle in the UK. It will loosen and remove old paint though ! Absolutely awesome cleaning performance in ultrasonic or otherwise.

That’s a really helpful explanation, thanks for taking the time.
The bit about agitation makes perfect sense when you put it like that — I’d never really thought about how ultrasonic cleaners work.
Good tip about using a separate glass or plastic container inside the tank too. Makes sense to keep the main tank clean and use less cleaning solution.
The damaged plating point is especially relevant with vintage razors, where you don’t always know what condition the finish is in under the grime or what’s going on inside.
I’ll have a look at Elbow Grease — sounds like useful stuff. I’ve currently got a selection of these cleaners up on the Bay.
Appreciate your help.

 

[Zorro]

When I had to clean up tech stuff at work, we had access to sets of boar (?) hair precision brushes, the same sort that are now sold as detailing brushes for car cleaning.

Still got loads left over from work and they are great for gently scrubbing small objects

 

[Twelvefret]

When I had to clean up tech stuff at work, we had access to sets of boar (?) hair precision brushes, the same sort that are now sold as detailing brushes for car cleaning.

Still got loads left over from work and they are great for gently scrubbing small objects

I've got those detail brushes.

 

[bagman]

I bought a cheap one from Lidl a few years ago, works very well for razors

 

[TobyC]

Generator: The power generator converts electrical energy from the source into mechanical energy in the form of sound waves. These sound waves are comprised of millions of microscopic bubbles. Each bubble is filled with a vacuum effect called implosion. As the bubbles collapse on the item being cleaned, they implode, removing the debris from the object. This process is called cavitation.

Transducer: The transducer is perhaps the most critical component of an ultrasonic cleaning machine. Using electrical energy from the generator, it generates sounds at frequencies that the human ear cannot hear. This usually starts around 40kHz.

A transducer has two essential parts: the frequency plate and the transducer itself. For most cleaning machines, piezoelectric crystals are used as the active element. They are usually positioned at the bottom.

Other features, such as timers, temperature control switches, and baskets of racks, are available for many models. So before buying an ultrasonic cleaning machine, consider its features and specifications. Ensure you choose one with a tank large enough for your needs.

 

[TobyC]

How Ultrasonic Cleaning Works

 

[Sideburns]

How Ultrasonic Cleaning Works

Interesting - Thanks!

 

[Vacumatic]

As with so many things in life, if you need one and can afford to buy then go for it.

If you are looking to justify buying one then additional uses are cleaning reading or sun glasses, jewellery, anything delicate.

I restore old hand tools and vintage fountain pens - some are 100+ years old and have dried up ink from when the pen was put away in great grandma's bedside drawer, a USC is ideal for that. I seldom put tools in a USC because they usually have wooden handles.

Other pen repairers tell me that there is little difference between an expensive and cheap model other than water capacity.