Metal finishing Q&As since 1989
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Why has urine corroded an aluminium and steel toilet frame?
We make a steel toilet frame which extends in width via an aluminium tube insert. Where the steel and aluminium are together a lot of urine splashes and we have a frame that has not been cleaned for over a year The aluminium has corroded and snapped. Is this a battery type reaction or will the aluminium tube be corroded anyway by the urine?
Mark Benyonmanager - UK
July 5, 2011
July 12, 2011
Hi Mark
Given any sort of salt environment aluminium connected to steel will corrode rapidly. Aluminium is used as a sacrificial anode on steel ships so your steel frame should be well protected!
Two points
It is good design practice to avoid mixed metals in a hostile environment; even to the extent of ensuring that any weld filler matches the structure.
And why has this toilet not been cleaned for a year? The design should not have hidden areas where "spillage" can accumulate.
Geoff Smith
Hampshire, England
Q. At work we have a lid on our lift station for our septic. We are making a new lid and it is made out of aluminum so my question is will urine eat the aluminum?
Travis Kieffer- Litchfield, Illinois, USA
June 27, 2012
A. If urine attacks the aluminum, improve your aim.
Jeffrey Holmes, CEF
Spartanburg, South Carolina
August 4, 2012
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