I had the opportunity to do some testing on Burt/ASM chips using Simple Green.
The results were acceptable, but not as good (or fast) as Paulsons with TSP.
Machine: Hornaday Lock N Load, 140W (see OP)
Cleaning Solution: Simple Green
Mixing Ratio: 6 Tbsp (tablespoons) Simple Green to 8 cups distilled water
Temperature: preset to 110 deg F (see additional Temperature discussion below.)
Setup: 10 chips at a time in the basket... I did not use the salad spinner
Time:
30 minutes total. Three runs of 10 minutes each, flipping the chips between each run.
The chips on the left are typical “before” chips. The chips on the right are typical “after.” The discoloration on the “after” inlay was present before the cleaning operation. This discoloration is common on these old Binion Horseshoe chips.
An attempt was made to do more chips at a time, both in the basket and in the salad spinner. No substantial time savings were gained with the agitation in the salad spinner. The greater number of chips decreased the effectivity of the static cleaning in the basket. Ten chips fit nicely in the basket... that is why ten was selected.
Some of the chips experienced some fading. This is presumed to have been caused be the long cleaning times in an increased temperature environment. The long duration caused the water temperature to increase continuously without additional heat being added. At the start of the testing, the water was 110 deg F... after 30 minutes of cleaning, the water had increased to ~135 deg F. I was in “Fuck it” mode while doing the tests, so I didn’t do anything to try to bring down the temperature.
A bit of oil worked well to bring back the boldness of the black edgespots. Some of the gunk was stubborn. An additional 10 minute run was made on some chips with varying amounts of success. Notice some chips still have gunk in the horseshoes.
Conclusion
In general this methodology is less effort than Dawn and a scrub brush. It also results in cleaner chips. There is a bit of a rough texture on some of the chips. Oil helped reduce this texture. This texture might be a result of the high temperature. I don’t think the Simple Green attacked the chip. Nothing like Oxiclean or TSP.
Recommendations:
The following recommendations are suggested for anyone that is considering trying this method. It is plausible these recommendations will yield better results.
1. Higher concentration of Simple Green. Suggest double what was used in the tests above. i.e. 12 Tbsp.
2. Alternate cleaning solution. This ultimately is the challenge. Perhaps another biodegradable cleaner will yield better results.
3. Motor driven salad spinner. It is plausible that the agitation caused by the salad spinner can provide improvement. I have no interest in standing next to the machine for 30 minutes manually rotating the salad spinner. Devising a drive system solves that problem... whether it offers a benefit remains to be seen.