Know How to Remove Rust from Stainless Steel
                     Know How to Remove Rust from 
Stainless Steel
- Reba Scientific Pty Ltd
Know How to Remove Rust from Stainless Steel
While stainless steel is known for its corrosion-resistant properties compared to the tool or mild steel. Just as its name 
suggests, it is stain-“less” steel instead of stainproof steel. Sadly, in several situations, even stainless steel can form 
corrosion which can look like mild tea staining discolouration to flaky, thick rust. This can create a situation of panic for 
owners of stainless steel equipment, railings, tanks, sinks, grills, appliances, sculptures, boat hardware and other 
objects which turn ugly due to the thick layer of rust. Because of this, “How to Remove Rust from Stainless Steel?” 
becomes an important question. The exciting news is that rust on stainless steel can easily be removed and prevented 
from quick recurrence if the proper steps are followed.
One of the most common reasons behind rusting on stainless steel 
is surface iron contamination that was collected during or after 
manufacturing, and the alloy structure change along the heat-
affected zone of welds. These are corrosion situations that should 
be protected with proper passivation but are sometimes ignored. 
Moreover, even stainless steel that has been passivated properly 
can still be attacked by rust due to chloride formation because of 
harsh chemicals such as muriatic acid as well as long term 
susceptibility to highly corrosive environments such as marine 
areas, swimming pools, winter ice-melting salts, or repeated 
cleaning with bleach-based cleaners. In these situations, frequent 
rinsing with clean water is helpful to take away the chlorides from 
the surface, but regular re-passivation is also prescribed in order to 
keep the stainless steel looking intact and nice.  
In case, corrosion occurs, be it just a little “tea staining” 
discoloration or full-fledged rust, it is crucial to deal with it as 
soon as possible. The longer the corrosion remains, the worse 
it will get and may even lead to very severe pit corrosion.
  
Taking off the rust from stainless steel is not at all difficult and 
can be done with the help of several different chemicals, 
grinding, abrasives, blasting, etc. However, these methods do 
not take into account the integral issue of passivation to help 
protect the stainless steel from future corrosion. This is the 
most essential part of fixing the rust issue because efforts to 
remove it seem wasted if the rust comes back again rapidly.
Products used to remove rust from stainless steel 
You can get many environmentally friendly, citric acid-based 
CitriSurf products that ease the process by performing both 
tasks in one treatment so that the stainless surface stays 
beautiful and clean for as long as possible. Hence, 
Passivation with Citric Acid is quick, easy, safe and 
inexpensive. Now when you know what and How to Remove 
Rust from Stainless Steel, you can keep your equipment 
maintained and functioning for years to come. 
Contact Us:
Reba Scientific Pty Ltd
Website: https://www.rebaaus.com/
Phone no: +61 3 8526 8252
Mail Id: [email protected]
Address: 1 Redwood Drive, Notting Hill, Victoria 3168, Australia