Pickling Compound: What Color Should It Be?

by Jenny Ashley.
(Hershey, Pennsylvania, USA)

I am having an issue with my pickling compound I made. This is a new process for me as I just started doing metal work at my home studio. I got the sparex granuals compound and it said to just mix correct portion of compound to water, which I did.

Problem is that it is a yellow color and the one I used at school, and all pics I’ve seen in books and on web, show it should be a blue/green color.

It also doesn’t seem to clean the metal at all no matter how long I leave it in the heated pickle pot. Did I get a bad batch or mix it wrong? Please Help.

Jenny
Jenny Ashley Designs