[GreenKeys] WD-40

[Jones, Douglas W]

From: Jeffrey Angus [jdangus at att.net] -- Sunday, September 6, 2020 6:53 AM

> What's the procedure for removing WD-40 and getting my printer to work again?

My understanding is that WD-40 is basically kerosene, with some industrial perfume added to give it a nice smell and perhaps something else.  The primary problem with using it as a lubricant is that it is temporary.  The kerosene evaporates.  The small amount of other stuff in it may turn to gunk, but that will dissolve in light instrument oil.  What you need to do is use light instrument oil -- something that doesn't evaporate.  If the gunk issue is serious, degrease first, then re-lubricate.  That's ususally only necessary if the gunk was serious before you used WD-40; the kerosene in WD-40 dissolves gunk and lets the mix of gunk and kerosene act as a lubricant until the kerosene evaporates, and then you're back where you started, gunk.

         Doug Jones
         jones at cs.uiowa.edu