cleaning black grease from sliding door aluminum track

[RichieRitz]

any ideas what would work best to clean up? i want to clean years of black crud all out and start over with a dry lube.

 

[Skybolt]

Mineral spirits and/or acetone.

Curious what dry lube your thinking about?

 

[RichieRitz]

 

[RichieRitz]

don't know how well it will work for this application.

 

[Skybolt]

don't know how well it will work for this application.

if it's for the cabin door, then probably not. The bearings in the rollers need real WD40. The outside roller doesn't.

 

[RichieRitz]

I KNOW ACETONE IS OK ON NEARBY FIBERGASS BUT NOT SURE ABOUT MINERAL SPIRITS..THANKS. Yes the cabin door.

 

[RichieRitz]

This black stuff is like graphite and bad news if you want a clean hatchway. Gotta get rid if it.

 

[Skybolt]

I KNOW ACETONE IS OK ON NEARBY FIBERGASS BUT NOT SURE ABOUT MINERAL SPIRITS..THANKS. Yes the cabin door.

Actually it's the other way around. Acetone isn't ok on near by fiberglass.

 

[RichieRitz]

https://support.jamestowndistributors.com/hc/en-us/articles/360014275473-What-Can-I-Use-Acetone-For-

 

[RichieRitz]

https://support.jamestowndistributors.com/hc/en-us/articles/360014275473-What-Can-I-Use-Acetone-For-

 

[RichieRitz]

Who knows. Will try the alcohol wipes first and work our way up to the strong stuff Thanks for your input

 

[Skybolt]

@Dxdave Acetone will melt away at the gel-coat if left on. Can it be used to wipe off grease and the like yes. But if left on the gel-coat it will soften it. Mineral spirits can be left on the gel-coat indefinitely. Acetone is used as a thinner for spraying gel-coat.

Bird poop stains the gel-coat at times and I use acetone to clean that off at times. But it is not completely safe for gel-coat.

 

[Yendor]

If it is similar to mine I would use GUNK, although I would admittedly start sparingly.

The black crud you are trying to remove is likely dirt and grime that has accumulated in the excess lubricant that the previous owner used to lube the bearings that Skybolt referenced. As such GUNK is specifically made to dilute such crap for removal and being water soluble, it is easily removed with soap and water without leaving deleterious residue that would bother the 'glass.

If you end up needing to get overly exuberant with it to accomplish the task at hand, bear in mind that it could also remove the existing lube in those bearings as an unintended consequence. However, I wouldn't expect nearly that much would be needed.

 

[RichieRitz]

Yea that sounds like plan. Thanks.

 

[mdolesh]

I used Super Clean and it worked great.

 

[RichieRitz]

Brake cleaner might be ok. Just thinking of what I got around the garage

 

[Espos4]

Windex and paper towel works for me, it’s usually just dried dirt. If you have an oily accumulation, windex may not work so well.

 

[mrsrobinson]

A little off topic, I learned this from the Anderson Window rep when I had a warranty claim. Only use grease/lube designed to be used on Aluminum to lubricate Aluminum.

 

[RichieRitz]

A little off topic, I learned this from the Anderson Window rep when I had a warranty claim. Only use grease/lube designed to be used on Aluminum to lubricate Aluminum.

Yea I think that’s part of prob. Some greases work on that aluminum and it “oxidizes” for lack of correct word but really ceaates a black mess.

 

[mrsrobinson]

They showed me what they used, I can't remember what it was, but it did specifically say for aluminum on the bottle. They warned me multiple times about using something not for aluminum. It was a brand new window, I had not done anything to it, it's what they used after cleaning the track, to get it sliding and working correctly.