Cleaning extension cords...

FDNY1075

New member
I am in the process of a full detail on a piece of fire apparatus, it has 2 yellow electrical cord reels. They are heavy duty cords, that are rubber or a flexible plastic. I attempted cleaning them with simple green and a brush, then went foot by foot with a mf saturated with simple green. It was an improvement, but these cords are fifthly, covered in ash, dirt, paint, etc.



Is there a good otc product that I can use to try and make these look new? Maybe some sort of solvent?



Thanks
 
maybe a stronger apc such as Meguairs, CG, or Purple Power. Worse case scenario you may want to try something like goo gone.
 
Thanks for the input, I would normally try a dozen products until I got it where I feel it's clean, but I am on a time crunch and wasn't sure if anyone knew of something that would work much better than the other products.
 
Optimum Power Clean will erradicate the filth. At full strenth, even 1:1 - 3:1...simply unmatched in my opinion.



Edit:



By the way, as I roll up cords after a job, I generally wrap a MF (cheap one) around the cord and wipe it clean as I wind it through .:2thumbs:
 
I use SuperClean in a 3:1 ratio soaked on a damp rag to clean-n-wipe garden hoses and power extension cords (wear rubber gloves: your hands will thank you), then do a wet-wipe with a damp rag from a bucket of clean water as a rinse, and then wipe with a vinyl protectant, like AeroSpace 303, to keep the rubber on hoses or vinyl on cords pliable.

"Non-detailing" people thing it's unnecessary, but clean equipment is a reflection (no pun intended) of who you are.

I guess that's part of the obsessive-compulsive detailing (OCD) "disorder"
 
Formula 409 works very well for cleaning electrical cables. Just squirt it on a towel and pull the cable through a few times. Wear rubber gloves.



Keep cleaners away from the metal connectors. Some of those lay down wax or silicone and you don't want that on the metal. If the metal is really foul use rubbing alcohol to clean them off, but otherwise, leave the metal alone.
 
Fill a pail with strong APC, roll it up and let soak. But keep the ends out of the APC.

If that doesn't work and you need a solvent, try mineral spirits, but dwell time wouldn't be very long.
 
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