You will need to have the shell completely stripped. Doors, hood, trunk lid, fenders, etc. will need to be separated from the shell to get them thoroughly. We can dip all those parts as well, but they need to be done separately. It is important that any aluminum is removed as well.

The dipping process is for steel, stainless, and cast iron only. Anything aluminum, magnesium, or “pot metal” cannot be dipped by this process. If your car has an aluminum hood, fenders, or other body parts, we may be able to dip it in our Aluminum strip immersion tanks. Cast trim and fender extensions can be stripped by us using a different immersion tank. Many cars have aluminum VIN tags or VIN tag rivets which will need to be removed prior to us receiving the car. Springs such as trunk springs, hood latch springs, and door springs should be removed as well. We can clean these with other methods. Finally, wood is not able to be processed in these tanks. The immersion process will saturate the wood and contaminate our tanks.

Yes. We do have a separate immersion tank for stripping Aluminum wheels, engine parts, trim, and body parts.

No. Our process has been refined and used for over 25 years. The chemicals and process used will remove and then clean the metal. There will be no loss of metal thickness. The result is a rust-free clean body.

Several basic reasons:

1. Chemical Immersion Dipping will get into all the cracks and crevices that media stripping cannot physically get to.
2. Media Blasting of any kind can warp body panels. With blasting you are using pressure and abrasive media to strip layers of paint, primer, filler, and rust.  In this process, the heat generated along with the pressure required can stretch or warp the panels.  Blasting both sides of the metal can make it even worse.  There are methods like “wet blasting” and soft media blasting that can minimize this but is not guaranteed.
3. Chemical Immersion Stripping leave as cleaner surface. When media blasting, media will be left in areas that are difficult to clean such as rockers, frame rails, and pinch seams.
4. Chemical Immersion Stripping requires no neutralizing once completed. With soda blasting, the metal surfaces will need to be fully neutralized (including all the hidden areas) or there can be delamination of the primer/paint.

Yes. Any remaining rubber, sealants, sealer, paint, and body filler will be removed in the process. Only clean neutralized metal will be left.

No. This is a common question that may be one of those internet wives tales. Our process uses a final Alkaline dip to neutralize and clean the metal. No acid or chemicals will be leaching out of the seams at a later date. This may be the case with other automotive body-dipping processes, but this has never happened in our thousands of cars and parts dipped since we opened.

This varies by application, but our recommendation is to apply an epoxy sealer primer made for bare metal. Good epoxy primers are a multi-part catalyzed product. We don’t recommend a specific product, but the PPG DP50 line of epoxy primer is very popular with several of the restoration shops that use us. Generally, you will need to scotchbrite or sand the surface to remove any surface contaminants, clean the metal, and give a good bite for the epoxy to grab on to. The specific primer will give you guidelines on the grit required. Once the surface is thoroughly scuffed, clean with a quality wax and grease remover recommend by the primer manufacturer. Clean with a final wipe/cleaner, then apply the epoxy per the manufacturer’s instructions. The epoxy sealer will give you a good, rust-preventative base for the future bodywork and primer-surfacers. There are a few Aerosol Can Epoxy Primers that can be used in lieu of mixing and spraying from a gun when you have smaller body parts.

There are a several user-friendly products made for this application. These are aerosol can rust-preventers with wand hoses that spray in a 360-degree pattern. You insert the hose through a frame hole and push/pull while applying the product. Some of the manufacturers of these products are 3M, Eastwood, Fluid Film, KBS Coatings, and SEM.

Yes, we do steel and stainless steel tanks of all sizes for lawn equipment, motorcycles, automotive, diesel, and large equipment. We can handle tanks of about any size. We do not clean plastic or aluminum tanks. Our process will remove all the sludge and rust, leaving your tank clean metal. Gas caps and fuel sending units will need to be removed prior to the process.

Steel tanks don’t necessarily need a treatment after cleaning if they are used often. However, many of the tanks we clean are for older classic cars that do not see a lot of driving during the year. Many of our clients use a gas tanks sealer product to seal and protect against future corrosion. The more common products used are manufactured by Eastwood, KBS, and POR-15.