Question for Dark30

[crazyice]

Hey, what kind of acid do you use to clean up your agates?

[DARK30]

Muriatic acid cut with water. Use it about 25% acid....50/50 max. You can find it in the paint section of the hardware store.

[DARK30]

By the way...those are not my stones in the pic above. I would like to make a similar assortment of my own tho.

I did find a nice peeler with a geode in it the other day. It should go around 8 or 9 ounces. I got er all cleaned up nice ....

Just another rock in the stash..

[GlassEyeangler]

Muriatic acid cut with water. Use it about 25% acid....50/50 max. You can find it in the paint section of the hardware store.

How long do you leave your agates in the solution? I left mine in for about 4 hours today and they look dramatically different, but should I have left them in for longer?

[DARK30]

That should be plenty of time. You will see when the bubbling stops. Try soaking them in some drain opener for a second time too...then wash,dry well, and put um in mineral oil for awhile. You can also treat them with armor all.

[GlassEyeangler]

sounds good, i will try that. i used the mineral oil and wow, what a difference. how do you dispose of the acid solution mix once you've used it? i'm hesitant to pour down the drain.

[DARK30]

No, the drain isn't a good place for it. You can dilute it further with water and pour it out outside tho...a gravel driveway is perfect.

[GlassEyeangler]

thanks for the all the help.