Cleaning thinset from tile saw

[highup]

I just got another DeWalt tile saw to see if I can fix whatever is wrong with it. Some people don't maintain their tools very well. This has thinset residue all over the darn thing and I'm wondering what can be put on it to loosen up the thinset. It's on the motor, the switch, the frame kind of everywhere.

 

[C.J.]

Scrape it off

 

[highup]

I want it to look pretty.
I googled around and saw tsp and phosphoric acid.
Will those etch the aluminum?

 

[highup]

The tub was so full of particulate there was a Swanson speed square hiding down in there along with a lot of chunks of tile.
I'm not a tile guy so I'm kind of guessing that you buy a brand new saw and then you never clean it you never wash out the tub and so on.
Correct?

 

[Mark Brown]

The tub was so full of particulate there was a Swanson speed square hiding down in there along with a lot of chunks of tile.
I'm not a tile guy so I'm kind of guessing that you buy a brand new saw and then you never clean it you never wash out the tub and so on.
Correct?

That's about right... unless you are a tile guy that works with a hardwood guy on occasion because then that guy will take your saw away from you and clean it when your back is turned so that you feel like a complete minge.
.....ask me how I know.

 

[C.J.]

I’d try a stiff bristle brush with just water first. That alone will prolly get you a good start.

 

[highup]

I use my pressure washer to clean up the first saw that was given to me. That thinset bonds pretty good. I'm guessing when someone drops a tile in that doesn't fit and they just drop it back on the saw and re trim it without hosing it off first. Oh yeah, like I said, I'm not a tile guy but that's the way I do it. I'd want to have a lot of plenty of thinset on a tile that I was trimming.
I may just hit it with the pressure washer tomorrow and see how much of it's just grinding residue that's piled up and hardened.
I may go down and get some tsp and wipe some of that onto the switch and the plastic motor body. Not dripping wet because I don't want it to get inside the motor but something I can wipe right back off.

 

[havasu]

How about Goo-Be-Gone, or WD-40?

 

[highup]

I read that molasses softens it. Might take a couple weeks.
I read someone mentioning a pressure washer with hot water, really hot water. It makes the aluminum expand and it blasts off easier. Sounds like a steam type pressure washer would do the trick pretty easy but I don't have to have one of those.

 

[Tile Tom]

A little time and elbow grease will get er done. Just get it wet and start scrubbing with a medium/stiff bristle brush. Maybe a flathead screwdriver to get into the little crevices?
It'll be a time taker for sure but it'll clean up nice.

 

[C.J.]

That saw would drive me nuts. I always had a bucket of water and a scrub brush to clean my stuff off even if I was just spreading patch.

 

[Jon]

I leave my trowels which I have used for spreading concrete type floor prep mixed with a latex in a bucket with kerosene soaking I would brush it on in your case . The kerosene doesnt evaporate as quickly as something like petrol. Years ago a guy suggested using heat on my trowel which worked the only trouble was that the trowel went all out of shape

 

[Tile Tom]

I don't even understand how you get mortar all over your saw like that?
I've had saws for 10+ years that I never clean anything other than the pan maybe a couple times a freaking year!

I would pay money to watch the knuckleheads that had that saw previously in action. I would bet they spend quite a bit of time cleaning before grouting...

 

[highup]

A little time and elbow grease will get er done. Just get it wet and start scrubbing with a medium/stiff bristle brush. Maybe a flathead screwdriver to get into the little crevices?
It'll be a time taker for sure but it'll clean up nice.

A brush is useless on this stuff. Pressure washer got me pretty wet, but the saw was so happy it purrs like new. Has a blade and a nice Ridgid pump too. The saw was noisy so that's why I saved the unit from the dumpster. If you're mechanically inclined, you can save tools from an early demise. DeWalt even puts the proper tool kit on the saw so you can fix it.

 

[highup]

I don't even understand how you get mortar all over your saw like that?
I've had saws for 10+ years that I never clean anything other than the pan maybe a couple times a freaking year!

I would pay money to watch the knuckleheads that had that saw previously in action. I would bet they spend quite a bit of time cleaning before grouting...

The guy does excellent tile work.

 

[highup]

Not nearly new looking, but pretty enough.
....for now. The flat side roller rail is a bit rough, so it needs some TLC.... Wet dry paper on block, a file or combination of those. The frame finish has a haze and the pressure washer might have been to agressive.... who cares. My total investment is zero $$ and 4 or so hours fiddling with it.... including driving down to pick it up.
Now I own 3 of these. Two working and one needs $120 for the gears and a bearing.

I'm saying I noticed just a little while ago was that the knob in the front used to adjust the saw height was backed off. It was so tight I almost needed two hands to turn it. Isn't that knob helpful to stabilize the saw? I can't tell if it's ever been used.

 

[highup]

I leave my trowels which I have used for spreading concrete type floor prep mixed with a latex in a bucket with kerosene soaking I would brush it on in your case . The kerosene doesnt evaporate as quickly as something like petrol. Years ago a guy suggested using heat on my trowel which worked the only trouble was that the trowel went all out of shape

Grandpa used to have a pan...
...in his van, to soak tools in. Probably kerosene too.

 

[Tile Tom]

If you're talking about the knob to the left of the handle, it's for depth/plunge cuts.

I also leave mine loose so the head is always up. I prefer to cut with my right hand on the grip controlling the head and left hand feeding the tile. I like to be able to lift the head and readjust if it's running off.

If other people are using the saw too, I hear them bitching about the head being up all the time....... My saw, my rules!

 

[Tile Tom]

The guy does excellent tile work.

Even if he does excellent work I would bet he spends a lot of time cleaning. Or pays his help to deal with the mess.

Either way, nice score! I can't tell you how many tools I have because someone just bought a new one instead of fixing the old one. I have probably 5-6 duofast carpet staplers because they needed a new cord! Lol.

Definitely pays to be handy!

 

[highup]

If you're talking about the knob to the left of the handle, it's for depth/plunge cuts.

I also leave mine loose so the head is always up. I prefer to cut with my right hand on the grip controlling the head and left hand feeding the tile. I like to be able to lift the head and readjust if it's running off.

If other people are using the saw too, I hear them bitching about the head being up all the time....... My saw, my rules!

If it's been two or three years and you haven't tightened that knob....
...will it turn if you needed it to?
The knob that tightens up the angle was not tightened either and I can't get it to budge either. It's locked up in the plastic knob part just spins like the other one.
The depth stop screw, the one with the wing nut will not turn either.
I don't think any of these controls have been touched since the saw was new and they're all frozen in place.
Does
"Shop pays for that"
ring a bell?

Why doesn't DeWalt put a steel threaded insert in the aluminum frame and maybe a miniscule film of grease to prevent these from welding themselves to the point of being inoperable?
...............................oh,
......wait a minute, I think I get it.