reusing acetone

is it possible or is it bad for the bearing?

I wouldn’t reuse it on my bearings, think about all the gunk floating around in the acetone you’ve used that cam out of previous bearings, you don’t want to go putting it into the next bearing you clean, that said you can probably re use it for other stuff, I reuse it to get labels off of small jars and to melt plastic housings or things I want to open.

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Yes and no.

If you’re seeing stuff in the acetone or discoloring, IMMEDIATELY get rid of it. You don’t want whatever did that to get back into the bearing.

I can often use the same little jar(think model paint sized) for 5 bearings I’m doing maintenance-type cleanings on.

Since I’m using so little acetone at a time, it won’t last for too many bearing cleanings. After 5, no matter what, it’s getting dumped out.

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Yes you can. Not forever, but a good long time. Just shake it before you take it out.

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It will be dirty, so no…

I’ve used a baby food jar filled a third of the way up for more than 10 bearings, as well as a coin. So, yes.

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I don’t think it would hurt to use reuse it once or twice, but I really don’t see a need to. I clean my bearings in a contact lens container (the small containers with “left” and “right” compartments). I can clean two bearings at a time in the perfect amount of acetone, and it’s so little that I can just soak it up with a cotton ball when I am done and dispose of it safely. I can understand why you wouldn’t want to discard a giant gar of acetone that has only been used once, but I don’t find disposing of the little acetone that I use even remotely wasteful. In any case, just give it a try! If the old acetone makes your bearing “dirty”, then you can just try it again with new acetone. Good luck! :slight_smile:

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WretchedRapture has it correct.

I use a small jar that obviously holds a very small amount of acetone to do the primary wash and soak, that acetone I dump after each use, I then use a slightly larger jar (baby food jar) size for the rinse phase, and I hold on to that acetone a while longer.

I would recommend you use a clear container so that you’ll be easily able to identify any particulate matter in your acetone, or any discoloration, at which time it’s definitely time to replace it.

Acetone is pretty darn cheap IMO, so don’t be afraid to replace it if in doubt.