Remove Rust with Coke

COKE DOES WHAT?! Yeah, that was my thought exactly. I’ve seen a bunch of these DIY-short-videos that tell you to pour Coke or ketchup on metal, then remove it for a glorious new look. I’m skeptical when it comes to that kind of stuff because I feel like those people are in it for the views. As it turns out, it’s dead on accurate. Which is a little scary. But take a look at this!

My parents offered me their old counter stools when they upgraded. How could I turn down 4 free stools and the chance to do a DIY? No brainer. These stools won’t sit at our dining room table on the regular. They’ll stay in the basement until we have a party and need the extra seating. But, they still needed some serious cleaning.

I removed the 4 support bars/foot rests from the bottom of each stool. They look in decent shape from far away, but take a look at this close up…

All the corners were rusted out. These stools lived at the beach for years and the salt air did a number on these frames. I’m not sure if these were originally brass and the rust ate away the color, or if it was originally silver and the rust made it turn this weird yellow brass color. Either way, the surface felt like sand paper. Basically, the rust had rust on it and it was gross to touch.

I put the frame in the sink and wrapped paper towels around the entire thing. Then I took a can of Coke and poured generously over the paper towel.

If you have a large storage container you don’t mind getting really dirty, you could probably just pour a 2L bottle over what you need to clean, but this works just as well. Let it sit for about 10 or so mins. The Coke will begin to break down the rust.

When you’re ready, remove the paper towels. Here’s what the corner looked like after it soaked in the Coke, but before I scrubbed it with a billow pad. I scrubbed this corner with the same amount of pressure I use to scrub my dirty dishes.

and the after….

I could not believe this is the same metal frame! The Coke removed all the rust. There’s permanent discoloration from years and rust, but the large rust spots are gone! The surface is so smooth.

Here’s another before and after rust spot!

I’ll probably never drink Coke again, but I’ll definitely use it as a cleaning solvent!