Removing Yellowing from Plastics - Part 4

[vwestlife]

Yes, I'm responding to a post from 2012, but for a reason...

Trust me: it isn't doing any de-yellowing at night (without UV lights).
It may be bubbling (which is probably caused by the Vanish itself), but there will be no de-yellowing - UV is needed to make the process work.
All it's doing at night is getting wet - it might make it look cleaner in the morning, but that's probably just old nicotine/tar being washed off by the bubbling.

This video disputes that, and shows a Mac 128k being whitened by submerging the plastic into an opague container filled with diluted hydrogen peroxide (not a gel solution) and left overnight, without exposure to UV light. The amount of de-yellowing is not that great, but it looks like it's doing more than just cleaning the plastic:

 

[Osgeld]

I did a SNES last year in just plain h2o2 in a mostly transparent tub outside over an entire overcast weekend

The console was washed in hot water soap degreaser and ISO alcohol so nothing was left on it, and it went from fairly tan to just about perfect no problems

In fact I never use the high octane gel formulas just dollar tree stuff with some dollar tree oxy clean dissolved in some hot water and it works fine, takes longer and takes even longer without strong sunlight, but I'm starting to wonder if that's more heat than uv

 

[Lorne]

An Update:

In 2009 (16 years ago!), I Retr0Brite'd a Televideo 910 console.
It turned out very well.
Here's the before and after:



The Televideo has been sitting in its original box since it underwent the Retr0Brite treatment in 2009.
I pulled it out last week to have a look at it.
Here's what it looks like after 16 years of just sitting in a box:



It's not as yellow as it was but it's not far off.
I had no idea that it would happen again but I guess it makes sense.
The stuff that's in the plastic that makes it turn yellow, is apparently still in the plastic.

I found my old recipe for Retr0Brite in Part 2 of this thread.
What do you think ?
One more shot at it ?

Tezza: have you checked on your pieces that you de-yellowed 16 years ago ? Has the same thing happened to yours ?

 

[tezza]

Yes, that is exactly what happened to mine. The retrobrite wasn't permanent, and the yellowing returned in many of the worst affected units.

 

[thunter0512]

An Update:

In 2009 (16 years ago!), I Retr0Brite'd a Televideo 910 console.
It turned out very well.
Here's the before and after:

View attachment 1304904

The Televideo has been sitting in its original box since it underwent the Retr0Brite treatment in 2009.
I pulled it out last week to have a look at it.
Here's what it looks like after 16 years of just sitting in a box:

View attachment 1304906

It's not as yellow as it was but it's not far off.
I had no idea that it would happen again but I guess it makes sense.
The stuff that's in the plastic that makes it turn yellow, is apparently still in the plastic.

I found my old recipe for Retr0Brite in Part 2 of this thread.
What do you think ?
One more shot at it ?

Tezza: have you checked on your pieces that you de-yellowed 16 years ago ? Has the same thing happened to yours ?

I would leave it in peace. Any "treatment" makes the plastic more brittle. Enjoy it the way it is now, not how it was when it was new.

 

[Lorne]

thunter0512:

Too late, I've already started.
Slow going at the moment though right now as it's too freaking hot where I am.
I'm starting at 6:30 am, and it's good for about two hours per shot, before it's too hot and dries out.

And I disagree.
Age and the environment are what make plastics brittle, not the Retr0brite treatment.
I have never seen a structural difference after I've treated the plastic, and I've done a ton of them.
I'm not even sure it actually takes any of the plastic off, making it thinner.
It just seems to whiten the top layer (fractions of a micron thick) making it look as it did.

Humans (not me though) use Botox, plastic surgery, etc, to make themselves look younger than they are.
Aren't our aging computers deserving of a little treatment once in a while?

 

[Torch]

Many years ago, before I knew what the yellowing was (in most cases), I assumed the item came out of a trashy home, where the inhabitants chain smoked and everything was coated in a grotesque layer of nicotine. I don't want that look anywhere in my house.

I love making disgusting looking plastic look new again with nothing more than Salon Care 40 and some Saran Wrap.
Never had issues with uneven shades or marbling. And even the thinnest plastics have never turned brittle on me.

As far as it returning years later, I don't really care because I'll simply do it over again. No different than vacuuming carpets, dusting furniture or washing my cars even though I know they'll get dirty again.

I'm also finding it's not a thing of the past. I have a Xerox Work Center laser printer, and the top tray started to yellow within 2 years. Where I work has big commercial versions of that Xerox printer and they all started to yellow within a year.

 

[Quagmire]

Many years ago, before I knew what the yellowing was (in most cases), I assumed the item came out of a trashy home, where the inhabitants chain smoked and everything was coated in a grotesque layer of nicotine. I don't want that look anywhere in my house.

I love making disgusting looking plastic look new again with nothing more than Salon Care 40 and some Saran Wrap.
Never had issues with uneven shades or marbling. And even the thinnest plastics have never turned brittle on me.

As far as it returning years later, I don't really care because I'll simply do it over again. No different than vacuuming carpets, dusting furniture or washing my cars even though I know they'll get dirty again.

I'm also finding it's not a thing of the past. I have a Xerox Work Center laser printer, and the top tray started to yellow within 2 years. Where I work has big commercial versions of that Xerox printer and they all started to yellow within a year.

I'm interested. What's your procedure with the Salon Care 40 and Saran Wrap.

 

[Torch]

I'm interested. What's your procedure with the Salon Care 40 and Saran Wrap.

I just coat the plastic with Salon Care 40 creme and then cover it with Saran Wrap to keep it from evaporating. Leaving it in the sunlight seems to do the best. I usually leave the item inside by my south facing patio doors. If it's not white enough by the end of the day, I put on another coat and let it go another day.

You can use a UV light, but it has to be the correct wavelength. I always get transition lenses for my eyeglasses and noticed that if the source of UV can darken them, it'll whiten plastic. I have bulbs that are for sterilization, but won't darken lenses or do much to whiten plastic.

The Salon Care 40 developer creme was available at my local Sally's Beauty Supply, a huge bottle was only $10. There was a more powerful version without a #, but they won't sell it without some kind of beauty license.

 

[Lorne]

It's not as yellow as it was but it's not far off.
I had no idea that it would happen again but I guess it makes sense.
The stuff that's in the plastic that makes it turn yellow, is apparently still in the plastic.

I found my old recipe for Retr0Brite in Part 2 of this thread.
What do you think ?
One more shot at it ?

Yeah, I think this looks a whole lot better !