Pretty Colors

[Ice Czar]

At the shop more often than not the size of the projects are rather large, be they several hundred feet of rail, 3 story tall all textured steel staircase, spiral staircases ect. And quite often because of that size and the need to generally haul them up the mountains on a given day for an install we run out of time when it comes to the final finish, the patina and the overcoat.

Thus I have often found myself in the dark in back of our shop with a propane weedburner putting off a three foot blue flame and a spray bottle in my other hand heating up the steel to increase the chemical reaction rate for the patina.

Now the primary component of our basic patina formula is water, bound hydrogen and oxygen, the secondary component is technical grade (35%) hydrogen peroxide again hydrogen and oxygen.

Generally we heat, then apply the solution, but with the drop in temperature during winter, and especially cooling from wind after dark Ive started to apply the solution through the flame while the steel is still hot.

Thats when I noticed it, the disassociation of the hydrogen and oxygen flares the blue propane flame to an orange flare, increasing its overall size. Im not sure if its the added fuel of the hydrogen or the added oxygen responsible, but standing out there in the cold, its playing with all the pretty colors that is really enjoyable.

[johnny]

Ice Czar, You work for Geoff don't you? I really hate trying to get an even heat on things in the winter. Especially tube.

John

[Ice Czar]

Yup thats the boss, you know Geoff?

Luckily there isnt alot of tube, except those Chandeliers that wouldnt clear the floor at my house

[johnny]

Ha! I knew I recognised that patina formula.

Yea, I know geoff, and Jeremya, and Josh,and Max. I hooked Geoff up with Steve rollert. The guy he bought the 100Lb LG from.You may have seen me stop by once or twice riding a black honda.

[Ice Czar]

think I have

we have a new "special red" formula, tried it out the first time today to match a sample (supposedly this cheap Chinese steel was just left outside up round aspen to get this red color)

its an acetic acid prewash (soak) with an extra strong hydrogen peroxide wash (2 parts H20 1 part H2O2).

That little giant nearly broke my thumb off a bad bounce on an 1/8th"x16"x12', the work hardening on something that wide and long is a @#@$%#

[johnny]

Yea, I always hated cold texturing, that's why his 50Lb hammer is such a wreck. I've gone home from that shop more than once with my hands stinging.
How did your patina work? for a rich red, I usually use either feric nitrate over your regular rust patina, or japanese brown.

[Ice Czar]

it works great, there is something going on with an acid \ base reaction? not sure, only happens in the presence of ferrite. The normal formula you get all sorts of ferrite chloride (the muriatic wash followed by H2O2) but the acetic wash with H202\H20 bubbles like a baking soda reaction, the red is vivid