For a while now, I've been looking at benchtop parts cleaners, but I just really haven't found anything I like, that I can afford. The smaller ones are too small to put a cyl head in, and the larger ones are just too big for my garage. I have enough "big things" that are a pain to move out of the way, so I wanted something that would fit on top of my 18" deep work surfaces I just finished making (they go the whole length of the garage bay).

So I gave up trying to buy one, and decided to use an old stainless steel pump I have, a switch, some copper tubing I have laying around, etc, and build myself a simple parts washer. I figured I'd just buy a stainless steel sink from Home Depot or Lowes, and I'd have everything I need to build a parts washer.

Wrong! Stainless steel sinks seem to have a standard size of 22" deep, and after spending a lot of time trying to figure out how to lop the fawcett mounts off to make it 18" deep, I decided thats just not the right way of doing it. And inexpensive stainess steel sinks are typically 22ga and I can just picture accidentally dropping a BBF head right through. Bar sinks are much smaller, but heads don't fit

So, I moved on to other things, ran errands, then it hit me. Went to national wholesale and picked myself up a huge stainless steel pot. While only 15" diameter, its about 2' deep. I can soak a cylinder head in that, and when 2/3 of it is clean, lift it out and turn it over. The stainless is nice and thick, and the label said its not plated, its just simple stainless. Grabbed the pot and the lid, went to home depot and got myself a stainless steel kitchen drain, and we'll see tomorrow how it all fits together. I intend to have the drain pour right into a large pail, and the pump I have will drain the pail through the fawcett into the pot.

And I will be using a water based degreaser, I decided a while back that mineral spirits is not really the way to go in an enclosed space the side of my garage. Last thing I need is to fire up the plasma cutter and explode myself into my neighbor's house.

 

I have been thinking about this too. I'm going to use an old laundry sink. It will already have the drain but I will need to make a lid. What kind of pump are you using?

 

Try some of the food warming pans used by restaurants or for parties etc. Some are quite large while not real deep. Many are of the double boiler type that fit down into a larger pan. Many have lids also.

 

My friend used a pump from an oil burner furnace. Good pressure and volume, and it's made for pumping fuel/solvent. Best of all they're free if you can find an old oil burner furnace.

 

try your farm store's I onced picked up a trough of some sort cant remember what it was for feed or water it was about 14" wide and deep and 3 feet long made of heavy galvanized sheet I used it to make a livewell in a bass boat. just a thought