I want to purchase an ultrasonic cleaner to make the job easier to clean my glass pipettes out, but I don’t know anything about ultrasonic cleaners. And I’m wanting to buy one pretty quickly, because I have only one set of pipettes I can use. And they are pretty frequently in need of cleaning. And after doing this 2 or 3 times in a row. Which took me one and a half hour to clean them out properly. I decided enough is enough. I’m not going to do this stupid job anymore. I want a ultrasonic cleaner to make the job faster, easier and nicer to do. I’m also wanting to clean airbrush parts with this device. As I have read good stories on here of others who did this with succes with their own airbrushes. And I want to clean my glasses with this device as well. So I want it to be multifunctional. I could be searching on the internet for this, but I’m not that good at it now. And I’m having so much other things I want to do. I really can use your help and expertise on this subject to help me out with this matter. Hope you want to help me.
Hello,
I have had the ultrasonic cleaner in my possession for 6 months now. I use it to give my airbrush a thorough cleaning, but also to clean 3D objects printed with resin. Am satisfied with it so far.
Greetings Tasmo
I bought one ages ago but found it pretty much useless for cleaning an airbrush, or much of anything else for that matter. My advice would be to save the money and invest in some IPA, disposable plastic pipettes, cotton buds and an airbrush cleaning brush. Just my $00.02.
100% it takes me all of 15 minutes to thourougiy clean the AB with cotton buds, lacquer thinner and brushes. And I use maybe 15 cents in material. It would take the rest of my days to justify a ultrasonic cleaner
Why build one? They’re relatively inexpensive on Amazon.
I have a cheap one from Harbor Freight that has served me well for years - IIRC it was around $ 70 . Airbrushes get a dunking in it every so often - highly recommended.
Why is it useless? I disassemble my airbrush and place the parts in a small jar. I cover the parts with lacquer thinner. I fill the ultrasonic cleaner with water and set the jar in the water. I then run the cleaner through a couple of cycles. The parts come out spotless and all of the hidden hard to get places are spotless. I also use the Ultrasonic cleaner for other items, not just my airbrushes.
Well I did pretty much the same thing only without putting it in a jar- I just put it straight in. I tried different cleaning fluids too but every time it came out no cleaner than it went in. Same thing with a piece of jewellery- no difference after the wash. I’ve heard others say they are great - I was only speaking from my own experience- like I said it was just my 2 cents on the subject.
I use a VCUTECH (Grey) Ultrasonic Cleaner (model VCUSNDJP2500T) purchased from amazon for cleaning glasses, air brushes, and for removing mineral deposits from shower/water nozzles. Highly recommended.
It sounds like your unit is defective.
I never really gave it a second thought to be honest. IPA and cotton buds work fine for me- each to their own.
Thanks to all of you have provided me answers to my question.
However, there are tons of ultrasonic cleaners on the market I have seen on amazon.de and bol.com.
The 2 main stores I’m doing business with.
I’m understanding @Mead93 and @Karl187 who think with me about cost and prizes of the hobby.
And I respect that, but this time I have decided I’am willing to purchase a ultrasonic cleaner.
It is like with mixing paints for usage.
There are lots of different ways you can do this, for Tamiya and Mr. Hobby paint bottles I have purchased a paint mixer to make this job more easy and less tedious doing this.
For that same reason I want to purchase the ultrasonic cleaner.
And I’m seeing these things doesn’t have to be expensive, other then what I thought after looking at Airbrush Services Almere for this.
However, despite the examples given.
I still not no what to pay attention to for purchasing an ultrasonic cleaner.
Does just any cleaner will do the required job?
Can I get a 30 euro cleaner and be sure it does all the jobs I want to do with it and more?
Do I need to pay more attention to specifications like hz or something?
Might not have specified this enough in the title, but I’m in need of some help with the specifications of the device itself and what to pay attention for.
That’s the same way I clean my airbrushes. After the cycle or two with the parts in a jar of lacquer thinner, I run those parts through a cycle or two with the parts in some Mr. Clean/Simple Green/etc., i.e., whatever cleaning solution I have on hand. I also clean the resin off the parts I print in my 3D printer by putting them a plastic container full of IPA and putting the container in my ultrasonic cleaner partially filled with water. For anyone looking to clean 3D printed parts in an ultrasonic cleaner, be very much aware that the ultrasonic waves will heat the IPA. Limit the length of time you run the cleaner with the IPA in it so you don’t run the risk of reaching the flash point of the IPA. Also, it’s better to put the IPA and parts into a separate container and then place that container into the ultrasonic tub partially filled with water.
I think some of the price differences are whether the cleaner has a heating element or not. To save some money, you could buy one without a heating element and add hot water with a cleaning solution added to the tank. Another element that effects cost is the volume of the cleaning vat. If you’re just cleaning pipettes and possibly airbrushes, you don’t need a large cleaner. Look closely at the reviews to see if the particular models you are looking at have had many failures. A large proportion of the ultrasonic cleaners on the market are probably made at a few factories, and it really depends on the QC specifications given to the factory by the company that the cleaner is made for.
@BMoran Thank you for the information provided in your answer. Am I right that the heating element you are mentioning is an example of luxury? Or would I need such a thing? Would a ultrasonic cleaner to clean watches, jewelry and other things be good enough for what I’m going to use it as well? I would like to learn more about this topic. I may perform searches on the internet to find more information on the subject.
For what you are wanting to use an ultrasonic cleaner for, a heater would just be a luxury. I don’t have a heater in my cheap unit. When I am cleaning my airbrush, I usually, but not always, put hot tap water in the tank along with some cleaning solution. When I was still reloading ammo for target shooting, I always used hot water when cleaning my used brass prior to reloading. I bought my unit from Harbor Freight, which is a company here in the US that sells cheap tools that are almost all made in China. I saw the same unit sold under Hornady’s label (they make ammunition and reloading supplies) for twice the price. The only difference beside the price was the color of the plastic housing and Hornady probably gave the manufacturer stricter quality control specifications. I would recommend 750ml as the smallest size to consider. You will certainly find other uses for the unit once you get it, and the smaller ones marketed for jewelry will limit you. I think my unit has a 1 to 1.25l tank. Amazon is a good source to research units by carefully reading the reviews. I paid $50 for mine over ten years ago. A similar unit probably goes for $75-100 now. One other thing - do not put a watch that has had the battery replaced in the ultrasonic cleaner unless you got a guarantee from the jeweler who replaced the battery that the watch has a water-tight seal. Most of the time, when a watch battery is replaced the water tight seal is compromised unless it is an expensive watch and the battery is replaced by a factory certified shop.
I got a cheapie off Amazon. I was about to give up on my airbrush because of the time i spent cleaning it. Now i pull the airbrush apart. Drop it in the cleaner. Turn it on the longest time and walk away. Changed my relationship with my air brush forever.
I have a cheap-o ultrasonic cleaner from Amazon. Works pretty well. I’ve only used warm soapy water in the tank. Its a basic jewelry cleaner type.
I prefer to hand clean airbrushes the conventional way generally. However the ultrasonic makes for a nice deep clean on occasion. I usually run two cycles.
For nasty dried enamel paints placing airbrush nozzle, color cup or other small parts in a small jar, filled 3/4 full with lacquer paint thinner, sealing jar and placing in the rack in the water filled unit works amazingly well cleaning up the parts. One doesn’t want the jar touching the tank etc. The vibrations in the water will transfer through the jar and vibrate the lacquer paint thinner and accordingly the microbubbles with clean away the typical enamel gunk.
The sealed jar with cleaner & parts is also handy for washing white metal parts like Fruil track links after clean up and before assembly.
An inexpensive ultrasonic is worthwhile in my limited experience.
What to put in the ultrasonic cleaner? I have seen special cleaning fluids for sale at for example airbrush services almere. Would I need some special fluid to put into the cleaner?
Only ever used water with a small squirt on dish washing liquid.