Removing Silicone Lubricant

[andrew.r.w]

Can anyone tell me how to safely remove silicone spray lubricant from rubber, metal, plastic, etc.?

I had my treadmill serviced, and the guy sprayed a lot of silicone lube on the deck beneath the belt in an effort to fix a squeak. The deck is impregnated with some long-lasting lubricant and does not require silicone. In fact, the belt slips on the drive roller now, and it is very annoying.

Thanks in advance for any suggestions.

[cabinetman]

I would first try plain rubbing alcohol (isopropyl). If that doesn't work, lacquer thinner should do the trick. Careful, though, lacquer thinner could melt some plastics.

[LCHIEN]

when we used silicone oil on O-rings for optical connectors, contamination of the optics was a problem. We could reliably clean the silicone oil with Freon-based solvents but those have been made illegal to use for ozone-depletion reasons. We had to resort to alcohol but that was much poorer in disolving the oil and had to be repeated a few times.

[jaybee]

You mean freon tp-35 is illegal That means that I have to deny having any And avoid using it to clean the things that can't be reliably cleaned with anything else

Nah!!

I'll just keep the stash I don't have hidden from casual view

[tuttlejr]

Suppliers to Paint and Body shops have a product that removes oil, wax, grease and silicone from surfaces. When I was an RM Paint jobber, the product was called Pre-Kleano. It was made from a blend of solvents. In a pinch, mineral spirits might work. You have to keep changing the paper towels to prevent reinfecting what you are working on.

[gsmittle]

You mean freon tp-35 is illegal That means that I have to deny having any And avoid using it to clean the things that can't be reliably cleaned with anything else

Nah!!

I'll just keep the stash I don't have hidden from casual view

Don't forget to not use the stash you don't have....

g.