salt damage

[III]

How long can salt sit on a vehicle until some damage occurs? 1 week? 2 weeks?

[pappy]

im not certain but probally the first time it hit ur car it probally started causing damamge.....but i would guess it would have to sit on there for months for you to be able to tell??? im not sure on this one but this is my guess.

[togwt]

Water + salt =corrosion
Be aware that once you add water to salt it becomes acidic (corrosive); "Always add the acid to the water, never add the water to acid" Chemistry 101, take care to dry the affected area thoroughly after the salt has been removed. (same goes for interior, wet snow/salt that gets under mats/carpet)

JonM

[shotime]

So would spraying a base formula on it neutralize it? Acid + Base = Neutral, right? I live in WNY so this is a huge problem for me. I`ve always put my vehicles on a lift twice a year and hosed out the underside, but as you say, don`t add water to acid. I`ll never undercoat my truck. I was restoring a 240Z that was undercoated, it deteriorated and started to hold water. By the time I was done scraping all of it off I discovered the whole structural part of the body was rotted out.

[togwt]

So would spraying a base formula on it neutralize it? Acid + Base = Neutral, right? I live in WNY so this is a huge problem for me. I`ve always put my vehicles on a lift twice a year and hosed out the underside, but as you say, don`t add water to acid. I`ll never undercoat my truck. I was restoring a 240Z that was undercoated, it deteriorated and started to hold water. By the time I was done scraping all of it off I discovered the whole structural part of the body was rotted out.

Road Salt (Neutralizing):
Frozen salt is not a big problem providing the paint has some type of surface protection, salt when its frozen is inert but add heat and water and then it becomes acidic (corrosive) “always add the acid the water, never add water to acid�. Once you`ve removed the snow it may be advisable to `neutralize ` the road salt on any bare metal.
Undercarriage-
•Thoroughly spray an undiluted citrus cleaner (P2IS Total Auto Wash) and let it soak in; remove by thoroughly rinsing with water. If you have a pressure washer available, fill tank with citrus cleaner and spray undercarriage (do not use excess pressure as water may penetrate crevices and seams where it cannot drain, causing corrosion), let it soak and then remove with plain water
•Spray undercarriage with (POR-15 Marine Clean™) one application will leave no residues, noxious fumes or flammable solvents (Canada-POR15.com)
•Apply two coats (allowing first coat to dry) of a rust inhibitor paint (POR-15 Rust Inhibitor, allow drying between coats.
JonM

[dalmore]

Just for the sake of accuracy here - not all salts will create acidic solutions when dissolved in water - some will create basic solutions. Common table salt will indeed create an acidic solution when dissolved in water. But baking soda, another common salt will create a strongly basic solution in water. A salt is merely a compound held together with an ionic bond. Water is fantastic at breaking down ionic bonds. When an ionic bond dissociates in water it will form positively charge hydrogen ions (acids) and negatively charged hydroxyl ions (bases). If the acid created by a given salt is stronger than the base created, the result is an acidic solution. However, if the base created by a given salt is stronger than the acid, the result is a basic solution.

I don`t know whether road salt will create an acidic or basic solution. And for purposes of this discussion, I`m not sure it really matters. Both acids and bases are corrisive to metal - you want to remove both.

In theory, you might want to add acid or base to neutralize whatever solution is one your car. In reality, that is too dangerous for my tastes. If you add a corrosive base to an area that has no acid, you`ve just created a situation that will damage metal. Same thing iif you add acid to a place with no base. Water will dilute and weaken both acids and bases - lots and lots of water is the best thing for removing salts, imho.

As far as the never add water to acid quote - that`s more of a lab safety issue. Adding water to acid can cause the acid to splatter which would be a bad thing - paticularly if it splattered onto your skin. I don`t see where it applies in relation to road salt on a car.

FWIW

[CarDesign]

I live in ny and reacently raed an article in the newspaper which stated that salt can start the corrosion process on the undercarriage in one week.

[Nickc0844]

...either way, your wax/sealant/protection will more than likely be totally diminished :angry

[III]

So, if I just hose down my vehicle to wash the salt away am I doing more harm than good? This of course would be until I could do a full wash with soap.

[dalmore]

I say rinse as soon as possible and wash as soon as possible. You can`t be sure the salt on the car will stay dry so you are best to rinse off as much as you can. Don`t just get it wet, flood it.

Your mileage may vary.

[togwt]

dalmore-point taken, but we were dicussing the effects of road salt (sodium, which without water will not cause corrosion, hence the quote.
JonM

[audiboy]

corrosion of metal starts immediately after the manufacturing process. if you are really worried about it, i would spray or wash after you know your vehicle has been introduced to salt. i would say that regular car cleaning will slow down the corrosion pretty well.

[CarDesign]

i powerwash the undercarriage in the self cleaning bay at the carwash. Even though you are introducing water its better than that salt spray that can eat through lots.