09/03/2026
What do your anodes look like?
We recently had an enquiry from a user who was experiencing issues with their zinc plating and one particular thing mentioned, really didn’t add up.
The solution was plating nice and bright and then all of a sudden, it was very dull and the anodes were going black.
We’ve not seen black anodes before, they shouldn’t really be going black! However, I thought it a good idea to post a picture of ours.
These are our standard anodes and we’ve been using them for AGES!!!! You’ll note a few things.
*the anodes have gone rather grey from the (obvious) solution level.
* the anodes have thinned from the solution level to the bottom.
* the anodes have titanium wire attached.
Anodes will change appearance considerably with use. What we have here is what we’d expect. Thinning anodes do need to be checked to ensure there’s enough surface area to effectively plate - anode density is important.
Titanium is your friend. Copper is the enemy. Keep copper well aware from your anodes! That pesky copper breaks down oh so quickly and can cause havoc in a plating bath. This is also important when you use a “bus bar” to hand the anodes. If that copper gets wet, it can cause issues.
Black anodes tell us usually that something is in the solution that shouldn’t be.
Every now and again, we’ll forget the solution and leave the anodes in for a week or two. They’ll be crusted up with salt deposit from the electrolyte. They’ll won’t be very good at conducting electricity so we do have to clean them up.
So anode care is very important. Ensuring you have a good balance across the tank is also good to test.
Every now and again, we’ll disconnect one side of the tank, mid process, to check that we still have current flow, and repeat for both sides. It’s a good exercise when using small tanks, to ensure that you haven’t a poor or missing current flow on one side - it’s easily missed.
Of course, the best thing we can advise is to remove the anodes, clean them and store them safely as well as storing the electrolyte safely too. It generally helps with keeping everything working well.
If you have a plating issue appear from nowhere, without warning, sometimes it’s easy to look into complicated fixes. Check the simple stuff first!
And keep that copper wire away from the anodes!!!
Keep it shiny! 😉
