[Sleeper]

Thanks, I used to be an electrician and have fish tapes to use pulling something through. I’m just concerned that I won’t be able get all the vinegar out. Vinegar is acid and can damage steel if not removed .

I’ve used Evapo-Rust Rust Remover before on tools and it claims to protect from more rust by leaving a film although I can’t say for sure.

 

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I was just thinking about the Evapo-Rust and I guess I could close off one end of tube and pour the stuff in with a funnel and let it set overnight.

 

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After running the brush & vinegar through, use a garden hose to flush the tube. Then use a propane torch to heat the tube and boil off the water. I wpuld think evaporust would be a bit expensive.

That’s not really an option because all this land here used to be under the ocean and our well water is heavy with salt and calcium that eats away concrete, copper and steel. Water heaters only last 3 years and have drinking water trucked in so I would have to completely remove the water deposits as well as the vinegar.
The evaporust is expensive, but I can reuse it the top and bottom rail on all 3 panels if I do it right

 

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@Sleeper - How many years do you need the fence panels to last? Are they rusted to the point of thinning the metal? If it doesn't need to last forever and the metal hasn't thinned, just brush out what you can and leave the rest.

Well that's a good question, I'm 74 and my wife said she is out of here when I'm gone and we may be gone before that as well because of the extreme weather here. My family wants to move to NV soon, but I just don't have the strength or energy to move right now. So I'd be happy if it just holds together until after this place gets sold.
I'll try to take some photos Tomorrow when its light out. I'm only concerned about the top and bottom horizontal rails of the panels. I bought new Square posts today and they come with caps. I brought the 8ft panels from Calif about 6 or 7 years ago and they were in great shape, but they were laying on the ground and got flooded 4 or 5 time during the years I've lived here causing the inside to rust. The outside looks great like brand new.

 

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Did you mention if there are caps on the top end and what they are set in concrete, /grave or stone? The last two might be letting moisture wick up from the ground.

I bought new posts and they came with the tops and I do plan on using concrete because this clay absorbs water like a sponge and is too unpredictable.

 

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It sounds like everyone is misunderstanding that I’m talking about the inside of the 1 in square horizontal tubing (Rails) and not the vertical square Pickets or posts.

I have Rust-Oleum Rust Reformer spray paint that I’m going to spray into the ends after I clean as much of the rust as I can reach inside the small 1”sq rails. I am not going to worry about the inside of the ¾” steel Pickets because that’s just too much. Of course, I’ll clean and spray paint any exterior spots.

So anyway, I found a gallon of Evapo-Rust that I had for a while and decided to pour it through each rail tube. And I’ll find something to seal off one end to let it soak a bit before pouring it out into the next rail. I usually clean the worst of the rust off first, but its going to be too much of a challenge to wire brush inside of an 8ft square tube. The brand new square posts have been dipped in paint at the manufacture so I’m not worrying about them.

 

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I took a couple of photos to show what I'm doing it won't be so confusing.

 

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Well the Evapo-Rust from HF seemed to work pretty well from what I could see, but time will tell. I could only do one rail at a time because I wasn’t sure if it could flow into the pickets although it appears that the pickets just welded onto the rails without any holes. It was a bit time consuming and the worse was waiting the 24 hrs. for the Rust Reformer Spray Paint to dry. I sprayed it into the ends and some rusted spots on the outside.
I had to fabricate special transaction pieces so I could attach one end of my fence to a 6ft chain-link fence post. That was a chore because I’m not supposed to do any welding because of my pacemaker. So I used my 120V Mig Welder and stretch my arms out as far as I could reach, then I couldn’t see and hoped for the best. LOL it was the ugliest weld I’ve ever seen, but it looks like it’s going to hold.

 

[Sleeper]

It looks good, but.... DUDE, NO MORE WELDING FOR YOU!!!!!! The idea is to leave there with your spouse ALIVE, not in a pine box!! 😠

Ok. I'm off my soapbox now. I'm not trying to tell you what to do, but for your own personal safety, you really shouldn't be welding if you have a pacemaker. Please be safe!

Glad you got your fence done... and lived to tell us about it.

Have 2 large arc welders that I don’t dare use. I read somewhere that it might be OK to use low amperage as long as I stay far away without the cables touching my body and for only limited time. So I kept the MIG welder far away from me and ran the ground cable around the farthest side. I’m not sure if it was the welding, but did feel a little lightheaded afterwards although it didn’t last long. I wouldn’t do it for any length of time, that’s for sure.