What are the steps you do when using lye as a clean up , for getting dye & wax off your traps. Do you wash in baking soda after cleaning traps.

Or if you have a different method for getting Dye & Wax or Formula 1 off your traps

If you want them shiny just soak in vinegar for a day or two. Don’t really know why someone would want dye off. Don’t even know if vinegar removes dye.

I just put traps into a five gallon bucket, top with water the pour in the lye. Let soak. Usually within 24 hrs they're done but might need a little wire brushing on stubborn spots or a longer soak.

No need to neutralize with soda as lye is caustic not acidic. A simple water rinse will suffice. Use care not to splash it as a strong lye solution on bare skin will burn and do damage.

Steel or iron only, no aluminum. Lye will eat aluminum. Brass/copper tags will be okay, aluminum hog rings not so much.

I've taken dye off my traps to paint them.

Add Lye to cold water (not to hot water). Heat water to simmer, added traps. Bring water to boil for an hour or two. Then pull traps from solution and rinse traps immediately. Rinse well.






No. Rinse off with hose.

Do NOT use lye in an aluminum pot or on cable with aluminum ferrules. It will eat the aluminum.

When lye reacts with aluminum one of the byproducts of the reaction is Hydrogen gas.Dont breath that.

Don't ever put cable In a lye solution. It will rust away from the inside.

How much lye per gallon of water?

I’m interested in hearing other answers to this question but I use a bottle like this to about 20 gallons of water.

Use industrial lye, 1 pint to 30 gallons.

1 lb. Lye to 10 gallons of water.
Rip roar'n boil will remove wax and clean traps.
Don't breath the fumes.



From time to time, you may want to skim curd off top of water-


When finished and water cools...Place Lye solution in garbage.

At the risk of drawing unwanted EPA attention I just pour out mine when done.

Oldtimers swore by lye for pecan trees. It was regular practice to sprinkle cans of lye around the dripline of their pecan trees every year.

Quaking Aspen trees do good on it also, they filter mine out

DO NOT DUMP LYE INTO HOT WATER!!!!! It can blow up in your face. Read directions on can. Unless you have your own septic system, might consider using the remains to clean out your pipes.