baking soda water after cleaning?

[MetalDetectorMan]

I'm a newbie cleaner trying citric, and I thought I'd read on here someplace to dunk the cans in something like backing soda & water to stop the action of the acid? Does everyone do this? I did this & my cans seemed to have like a white haze after they dried. Not sure if that's from the baking soda or just that the labels look better when wet?.....
Did I also read WD-40 can bring back out a hazy label? Thanks in advance for any suggestions.....
Bill

[beercanman]

Hey Bill,

I'm thinking you put too much baking soda in the water. I put just a little bit in there to stop the action of the acid. And I do agree that WD40 should take care of the white haze. So would another quick dip on some acid. The underlying question is (to me) whether or not there's any need to neutralize the acid. Once the can has been rinsed in water and is dry, would the acid have any future effect on the can? I'm not convinced it would.

[Rustmonger]

I have a few cans from my first dump that I don't think I rinsed well enough. They have a chalky yellow dust on them in places, especially on the spouts and seams (any bare metal I guess). Since then I give all my cans a real good rinse under cold water inside and out. Never had a problem since. I don't think you really need baking soda.

[Mike S]

Im with dave, i dont use baking soda either. When i take them out i rinse them in hot water while scrubbing them with a tooth brush and let them air dry.

mike

[Rustmonger]

Kinda' sorta' what Mike said. I when they're done soaking I run the cans under hot water to scrub any remaining rust off with a tooth brush (I also hold the top and bottom tight and twist the cans in my hands to polish up the rims a little. You'd be surprised how much better they look from just twisting them against your rubber gloves). Once I'm satisfied they're as clean as they're going to get I give them a good long rinse in cold water and then let them air dry for a little bit, opener hole down, then I dry them with a soft towel. The towel drying really seems to shine the paint up, I just started doing this a couple of years ago but it makes a big difference.

[Scott Rollert]

I too used baking soda for awhile. Now after rinsing with water I dip the toothbrush in Simple Green & lightly scrub the label, seam & rims, then a final rinse. The Simple Green really brings out the color, especially the metallics.

[Rustmonger]

Scott, what's "simple green"? That's just a household cleaner right? Just want to make sure I don't use the wrong stuff.

[Scott Rollert]

It's a general all purpose cleaner. I buy it by the gallon at Ace Hardware in a concentrate. I've also seen it at the local grocery stores.

[cansnatcher]

The WD-40 seems to be safe for cans, and will bring the color right back thru the white haze. I've heard the acid will continue eating and might leave a white residue if you don't offset its action. A dunk in baking soda and water does that quickly.

[Bryan2]

A word about Simple Green or other cleaning concentrates. It will peel paint if you don't dilute it. It is an amazing de-greaser for engines, but I have first hand experience that it will peel paint.