How can light to moderate rust stains be removed?
Corrosion or rust staining can be caused by coastal or deicing salts, atmospheric contaminants, inappropriate cleaning products, and superficial carbon steel or iron contamination. The mild abrasive products that are used for removing adherent or hardened deposits will remove most light to moderate rust staining. Light staining can often be removed by the standard cleaning products used to remove dust and fingerprints from surfaces. Try one of these first before using more aggressive cleaning products. In some parts of the world, you can obtain mild abrasive (200 mesh or finer calcium carbonate) household cleaners that contain dilute acids that are very effective in dissolving rust stains. The acids that are often used for this purpose are citric acid, nitric acid, phosphoric acid, and oxalic acid. Do not use any product that contains hydrochloric acid for this purpose because it can cause surface corrosion. The potential environmental impact of using acid must be assessed before use.
