Ultrasonic cleaner?

Just wondering if these things are worth the money. HF has a 2.5 liter one for about $79. I have to admit that I'm curious. Nothing to clean right now, but I'm sure I could find something if I looked around. I've seen some homemade ones on YouTube that look interesting using an orbital sander and a bucket. Don't know if those actually work the same way. Comments?
D

 

i have one of those HF ones. the only way to describe it is the consistency of the dirt. oil, like wd40, atf, 20w50, no problem. in clean solution you see a cloud rise up off the part and it's clean. thicker oil like 90w gear lube or bearing grease, maybe after 2 or 3 passes of 180 seconds. now the old gas in a carb bowl or passages in the body, it's going to strip any thinner oil away but the green/tan goo, no. you're going to use some kind of thinner to manually scrub it then use the machine to clean the loosened solution off. it will strip all the oil from the pores of the AL and then it gets the white corrosion quickly.
i used it on a bunch of various bolts and just kept turning it on when i walked past, after 15 or 20 cycles they looked pretty good but not like new, it won't take corrosion off. the solution is probably the key. i use 1/2 cup simple green or fabuloso in a tank. it will hurt a bit if you put your finger in it. and if you're sensitive
to loud noise, your ears will ring after you use it, but you can't hear it. it has it's uses but it's not a miracle

 

We have ultrasonic welders at work used for fusing ldpe boxes. You can't hear 'em, but the folks who operate them wear serious ear protection.

 

i have the HF one and I sure like it. I use it for lots of stuff. I think once you have one you find things to put in there. yes as stated not a be all for cleaning carbs but it does help and its easy on you labor wise.

but I have nitro hobby engines and it does wonders on cleaning those (after taking apart obviously bearings probably shouldn't go in there) jewelry, nuts and bolts, car emblems just whatever I come across I often just throw it in there first to see what happens.

I also use simple green usually a 1 to 2 ratio and sometimes a little dish soap, Ive never tried anything more aggressive. so really if the part or thing is small enough and it can get wet, I will usually toss it in before committing any of my labor to it.

 

sounds like a pretty good endorsement. I've also seen one on Ebay for about athe same pice that is a little larger and has a longer cycle.
Didn't realize that it was a problem for the ears. I'll have to look into that, being an old gizzard as I am, my hearing is already a little impaired.

 

I've found the sound to be irritating, but not headache inducing. As has been mentioned, the solution can make a difference. From experience, I would not use simple green (regular formula) on aluminum carb bodies. I did for the first two on mine and got that white cloudiness that I hear means your aluminum is being eaten. Those two carbs ended up being etched and I ended up actually wet sanding them and using nevr dull, the result was almost a pewter appearance, so it wasn't too bad. I've heard, but not confirmed, that Simple Green HD is safe for aluminum.

I used the ultrasonic cleaner on a lawn mower carb that wasn't working after doing nothing other than spraying carb cleaner on them and it started first pull after that.

 

Check out this study on ultrasonic cleaners and its effect on hearing. It's a little old but probably still applies.

http://www.dtic.mil/get-tr-doc/pdf?AD=ADA048115

Perhaps the small ones aren't so bad, but it might be good to be careful.

 

I don't doubt it's not great for your hearing, it's irritating as all get out so I put it in a room that I am not in. Just saying I never got a headache from it.