"RustStop" ?

[Ooooner]

I received a flyer in the mail the other day that was advertising a gadget called "RustStop". It is a "Rust Magnet" according to the flyer. This is what the flyer states:

"Rust is an electrochemical process. RustStop works like a "rust magnet" attracting electrons that would otherwise be rusting your vehicle. The RustStop Rust Magnets then corrode, instead of your vehicle, giving visual proof that the system is preventing rust!"

This sounds like a bunch of crap to me. For $187.00, it sounds like a rip off to me....

[neuropel]

Great...a "sacrificial anode" for your car.

Piece of crap indeed...

[West Coast GT]

Rust is not an electromagnetic process, but rather oxidation, a chemical reaction.

In order for such a "Rust Magnet" to work, a closed environment is necessary in which the amount of oxygen is limited to a small amount, and the "Rust Magnet" has a higher affinity for oxygen than the metal parts of an automobile.

That flyer is pure bull****. But if any of you feel the need to blow some cash, send $84.50 my way. You'll be saving 50%. Where else are you going to find a deal that sweet?

[opelnut10]

Originally Posted by West Coast GT Rust is not an electromagnetic process, but rather oxidation, a chemical reaction. In order for such a "Rust Magnet" to work, a closed environment is necessary in which the amount of oxygen is limited to a small amount, and the "Rust Magnet" has a higher affinity for oxygen than the metal parts of an automobile. That flyer is pure bull****. But if any of you feel the need to blow some cash, send $84.50 my way. You'll be saving 50%. Where else are you going to find a deal that sweet?

Only one sure cure for rust, cut it back to good metal and replace the panel. Then when you get the new panel in place treat it to, prevent rust from exposure to moisture and air which is required in order for metal to rust.

[jordan]

I think that rust magnet thing is the $400 dealer option that the PO of my saab had installed, I cant say it does much but it does have some little led's that blink under the hood and that may make it look cool...if that is at all advantageous.

[Ooooner]

The flyer says that the "technology is used by the US Military". It also says it is a "environmentally friendly system, no mess, chemicals, or odors. Safe electronic device".
This no doubt a piece of crap that suckers buy everyday. It even has a picture of it with a couple of wires hanging from it....
Of course, it has the "As Seen On TV" logo on the flyer, too. That right there should say something about it being crazy...

[opelspyder]

In ways I do agree with it, but I think properly cleaning and using chemicals with waxes to seal scratches prevent rust too. many boat props have aluminum metal that is bare that attracts corrosion so other parts do not corrode, such as a sacrificial metal. I still like a full painted look though
Keith

[West Coast GT]

Originally Posted by opelspyder "... many boat props have aluminum metal that is bare that attracts corrosion so other parts do not corrode, such as a sacrificial metal. I still ..."

That's electrolysis, and the "rust magnet" remains a pile of horse crap.

[matl59]

http://www.ruststoponline.com/

Anyone actually check out the site?

Products such as these have been proven to work. I don't recall if it was this particular one but Dennis Gage was advertising one of these on his show My Classic Car not too long ago. It wont stop it but it will slow the process.

Everyones Science lesson for the day,

http://hyperphysics.phy-astr.gsu.edu...corrosion.html


I've read that positive ground cars will rust out faster then negative ground cars...Maybe thats a myth...I don't know for sure. AND if electricity has nothing to do with rust then how does electrolytic rust removal work???

Don't knock what you haven't tried...

I'm still not running out to spend $200 on one.

[baz]

buy a strip of pure zinc and fix it in 6" lengths around the underside of the floor near the jack points and rockers and onthe inside of the fenders in the wheel arches
work it as a true sacrificial strip (no paint on it ) and sit back knowing its done right for a lot less than $200
this has been done on iron hulled ships from the time of HMS Warrior in 1860

[kwilford]

I'll "wade" in here (Pardon the water pun ) with a bit of mind-bending chemistry.

matl59 supplied most of the answer. The rest is in the link at the bottom of the page called "cathodic protection", and the link to the Rust Stop site is also pretty good. The concept is this. Water provides an "electrolyte" (a liquid transfer medium for ions) that allows, through an electrolytic process involving electrons being removed from the iron, oxygen to removed from the air. The resultant "hydroxide" (OH, as in Oxygen and Hydrogen) combines with the iron immersed in water to form "rust" (or oxidation, whatever). This is an "electrochemical reaction". Simply put, iron and oxygen, when connected by an conducting fluid (water, and salt water is especially effective), get together to form Iron Oxide. Ferrous Oxide. Rust. This reaction requires the transfer of electrons AWAY from the iron (hence the term "electrochemical"). No electron transfer, no rust. Paint (and other protective films, such as grease, wax, or whatever) act as an insulator, preventing electron transfer, and hence preventing rust. And if they act as a barrier between the iron and oxygen, so much the better.

"Cathodic Protection" (known in the pipeline business as "CP"), FORCES electrons onto the iron surface, rather than letting them escape to allow the formation of an hydroxide. This can be achieved by using a "sacrificial anode" of a material with a higher Spontaneous Potential (SP) than the iron such as magnesium.
Or you can "impress" a current onto the iron. Rather than relying on a chunk of magnesium to supply the differential voltage (and hence current), it is more common to use a rectifier (a form of electrical transformer) and an anode bed (typically a block of iron) in the dirt, connected together to form a closed circuit. The transformer pushes electrons out of the anode bed, through the ground (which is naturally conductive, if only slightly), and onto the iron pipe. Voilà, the pipe won't corrode, at least from the outside..

The problem I see with the aforementioned rust-busting gizmo is the inability to ensure that the impressed CP circuit stays "closed". It even says so right in the web site:
"These two methods in their classical form rely on water or the water contained in moist earth as an electrolyte (current path) to complete the electrical process.
Obviously, vehicles are not covered with water or any other electrolyte 100% of the time, so neither of these technologies in their classical form are suited for vehicle rust protection
They claim that by combining "Impressed Current" and "Sacrificial Anode" CP, that"...RustStop® (RS-4) prevents approximately 76% of rust and is very effective in controlling formed rust."

Is it true? Possibly. Is it obviously a hoax. I would say not. Will it work to prevent 100% of rust from forming? Nope, and even they say that, if you read the whole story.

JM2CW

[hrcollinsjr]

Originally Posted by Ooooner a piece of crap that suckers buy everyday. It even has a picture of it with a couple of wires hanging from it....

Didn't work for you either, huh?

Harold

[Ooooner]

Nope... Never bought it... I thought it sounded too good to be true.