Stainless steel looks great and requires very little maintenance until rust staining appears. ( see picture below) Most of the time it can be fixed . A mistake people make is thinking the metal itself is rusting out when simply it is just on the surface. Surface rust can be fixed quickly
To Fix it your going to want a few things.
- Red Scotch Brite pads
- Spray bottle filled with paint thinner
- Gloves, respirator,
- A cheap brush
- Some old rags
- Compound 302 (see picture below)
To apply this chemical you brush it all over the surface and let it sit for 5 minutes. It’s ok to brush extra or get it on areas not affected. It’s going to have a thick texture and color will be yellow. After 5 min sitting the color will be white. Next you will take your Scotch Brite and thinner and rub off all the compound. By now metal will be looking clean and you can use a rag and thinner to get remaining compound off and give it a final wipe down.
After following the steps above the steel will look much cleaner and new. A much better option than scratching it all up with different sandpapers. The goal is to preserve the appearance and keep it looking new with minimal damage.
So now you know how to fix it but what caused all this on the floor from the pictures above. It was from metal shavings. A Iron worker was grinding some steel above. He cleaned most of the mess but metal shavings kept falling days later and mixed with rain caused the rust. Even if it looks like fine dust tiny metal shavings can exist. Another cause is drilled holes or cheap metal screws. If the stainless steel is outside rain water will drip down causing giant rust stains. Fighting rust staining can be a never ending battle on an industrial setting it is much better than letting it spread. Once water lands on a stain it contaminates the water and flows out more. Casing each rain storm to slowly spread the rust staining. Altho most times its not spreading very fast it is better to keep up with it.