Oxiclean white residue on aluminum kettle

[butterblum]

I was recirculating hot oxiclean and water through my CFC and pump today - now I have a white buildup on the inside of my aluminum kettle.
How do I get this off?
I just rinsed out the system with clean water, and am boiling water in the kettle to try and see what will happen.
Definitely not something that will be easy to scrub off......

 

[day_trippr]

Acid will do it. White vinegar, standard Star San/water mix, etc.
I believe the white haze is due to minerals in the water - my water is pretty darned hard @300tds and if I let Oxyfree sit in a carboy for long it'll leave that haze behind.
But Star San will wipe it right off...

Cheers!

 

[butterblum]

I currently have water boiling - can I add anything right now? Phosphoric acid?
I am assuming I want to boil inside of the pot after this stuff is cleaned off so that I can build up that oxide layer again.

 

[day_trippr]

I would not as you'd need a lot of acid to bring the ph of your water down low enough to do the job.
And then you'd need to dump all that acid/water mix and boil fresh water to restore the oxide layer.

You just need enough acid mix to swish around to remove the deposits, then rinse clean...

Cheers!

 

[butterblum]

Believe it or not, the Star San may be doing the same thing.
Here is a picture.
The top is normal aluminum.
The darker layer below it is what it looks like oxidized.
The layer below that is what I am talking about.
That is 2oz of StarSan mixed with water in the kettle.

 

[jcav]

You might not have it at home, but powdered citric acid would also take it off. Mix it in the water and get it around 170 degrees and it should eat through it and take it off. It will wipe clean then.

John

 

[butterblum]

You might not have it at home, but powdered citric acid would also take it off. Mix it in the water and get it around 170 degrees and it should eat through it and take it off. It will wipe clean then.

John

Thanks, John. Any idea on how much to add? I think I need about 4 gallons of water in my kettle to get at all of it.

 

[jcav]

I would use one tablespoon per gallon of water to get rid of anything stubborn.

John

 

[butterblum]

Interestingly, while I was waiting for the citric acid to ship, certain parts of the kettle actually started to rust - obviously that shouldn't happen...
The citric acid seems to have done a decent job - but I really had to scrub with a scouring pad to remove a lot of it. The citric acid even removed the black layer that has been there for years.

 

[universalfrost]

i used TSP to clean the white stuff on my aluminum kettle when i had the same problem in the past after using oxiclean... a soak with hot water and the TSP and it rinses right off... ( i don't use aluminum kettles anymore and just switched back to pbw to not have to deal with the white residue from oxiclean on kettles and bottles...

https://www.lowes.com/pd/TSP-PF-16-oz-All-Purpose-Cleaner/3033736

 

[jcav]

Interestingly, while I was waiting for the citric acid to ship, certain parts of the kettle actually started to rust - obviously that shouldn't happen...
The citric acid seems to have done a decent job - but I really had to scrub with a scouring pad to remove a lot of it. The citric acid even removed the black layer that has been there for years.

I am glad it worked and you were able to get it all off!

John

 

[lump42]

Believe it or not, the Star San may be doing the same thing.
Here is a picture.
The top is normal aluminum.
The darker layer below it is what it looks like oxidized.
The layer below that is what I am talking about.
That is 2oz of StarSan mixed with water in the kettle.

The residue from star san is the surfactants reacting with minerals in the water. The acids can remove heavy oxide layers as well. Bar Keepers Friend works wonders for aluminum as well as stainless, brass, and glass. The oxide layer will build up when you boil water in it.