A concern we hear occasionally is, “Does my water source affect the wet blasting procedure?” Some oven ask if distilled water will be needed to vapor blast.

Some shops are connected to city tap water. Others utilize spring or well water. The issues that we hear is that chemicals in tap water, or minerals in well water might impact the wet blasting process, diminishing the results of wet blasting.

To set all issues to rest, the water source usually does not make a huge distinction.

There is a particular “edge case” in which the water source and abrasive interact in such a method that the pH of the water is changed, which we will talk about below.

Comprehending the pH of Water

A lot of water, whether it comes from a well, from a natural spring, or out of a tap from a city source, has a pH of best around 7.

When water has a pH of 7, that means the pH is perfectly neutral.

If the pH level of the water drops below 7, it is describe as acidic. When the pH increases above 7, then the water is refer to as basic.

Acidic water has more hydrogen ions than neutral water, and fundamental water has less hydrogen ions than neutral water.
How Do I Know If My Water is Too Acidic or Basic?

If you are vapor honing aluminum, stainless steel, chrome, or steel parts, and the finished part comes out looking blemished, you might have a pH issue with the water.

Usually, your part will come out with a small purplish or brownish tinge if this is the case. We’ve personally experienced this issue a few times within the past ten years of blasting parts and setting up processes.

What triggers this pH imbalance?

This is typically not brought on by your water source. In almost every case, this is an outcome of the specific abrasive and water having a chain reaction that changes the pH. Where and how the abrasive is manufacture is normally the source of this reaction. When this happens its often times very difficult to pinpoint the abrasive source and normally not found in the entire batch of abrasive. There have been times where only one bag of abrasive has posed such Ph issue.

As we previously pointed out, this is an incredibly uncommon occurrence however not out of the questions for sure.

However how do you resolve this scenario?
Testing pH and Altering the pH Balance is the only way to fix the problem.

To determine whether the water/abrasive mix is causing a pH imbalance, utilize a swimming pool pH screening package. Ideally, your water pH will be around 7.1 to 7.2.

You can utilize sodium bicarbonate to raise acidic water back to a neutral balance, right around 7. You can likewise utilize water treatment found at a swimming pool supply store to adjust the acidity or alkalinity to an appropriate level. If you are utilizing a swimming pool water treatment, utilize small amounts to evaluate utilizing a screening strip, as a bit of these chemicals goes a long way.

 

Recap

The majority of water sources, whether it’s city water or well water, will be all right for wet blasting. In the unusual case that you have staining during the wet blasting procedure, it is most likely caused by a chemical reaction in between the water and abrasive. To fix the problem, and bring the pH of the water back to a neutral balance, use sodium bicarbonate (if acidic) or a pH Up or pH Down pool supply item can also be used.