Steelex K200
General purpose soak cleaner for ferrous and non-ferrous metals. Can also be used as an electrocleaner.
83 named products
The Chemicals division
El Fath’s chemical division offers a plethora of solutions under one roof, including electroplating & specialty chemicals, zinc flake coatings, phosphating & anodizing chemicals. These solutions address the surface finishing and protection needs of sectors including automobiles, hardware, electronics, white goods, jewellery, aeronautics, railways and defence.
El Fath Intelligence
Not sure which products you need?
Pick the substrate and the finish. The advisor builds a complete process cycle with a named product at every stage.
01 — Surface Conditioning
Surface Conditioning
9 products
Surface conditioning is an essential requisite to obtain fine plating finishes. It comprises a planned cycle of controlled steps, precisely selected for cleaning and subsequent preparation of the substrate. Pre-cleaning by solvent emulsion degreasers or heavy-duty soak cleaners removes heavy accumulations of oil, grease, buffing compound and drawing lubricant by immersion, electrolysis or spray. To obtain a water-break-free surface, substrates are often further cleaned by industrial detergents with or without electrolysis.
Soak / ultrasonic cleaners
Ferrowash 15
Low temperature, heavy duty alkaline soak / electrolytic cleaner for ferrous components.
Ginbond E 24
Fast acting alkaline etchant and cleaning compound for aluminium alloys. Produces a fine etch, more rapid and economical than conventional alkaline cleaners.
Ginbond NS 35
Mildly alkaline, caustic soda and silicate free cleaner for aluminium. Does not etch the base material, good for other sensitive metals and leaves no siliceous film.
Ginbond 812
Heavy-duty alkaline electrocleaner with chelating action. Rapidly removes smut, light surface rust, fingerprints and soil from steel, leaving the surface bright and free of contamination.
Ginbond 814
Chelated electrocleaner for copper and copper alloys including brass. Very effective at removing soils, with high tolerance for hard water.
Ginbond Z 72
General purpose alkaline cleaner for soak or electrolytic use on a variety of metals. Ideal for buffed zinc die-castings and brass parts prior to plating.
Acid pickle aid inhibitors
Gictane Inhibitor 11
Economical acid inhibitor for sulphuric or hydrochloric acid pickling, applicable to a variety of steels including high carbon steels. Prevents immersion deposition of copper on steel.
Gictane Inhibitor 19
Highly efficient inhibitor for the sulphuric acid pickling process, designed for continuous pickling lines.
02 — Plating Chemicals
Plating Chemicals
27 products
The core of the catalogue: complete additive systems for every decorative and functional deposit — nickel, chromium, copper, tin, brass, antique finishes and zinc, together with the chromate conversion coatings that protect them.
Bright nickel
Superglo Brightener 33nickel
Widely used, versatile bright nickel system producing very quick bright levelled deposits. Highly tolerant to variations in temperature and bath concentration, with excellent low current density coverage. Suitable for manual vat and barrel installations.
Unispec 16nickel
New generation bright nickel additive system for rack and barrel plating, developed to produce highly levelled bright deposits at lower brightener consumption.
Spectra 3070 Brightenernickel
Ultra high performance nickel brightener producing a superb glossy, levelled, fully ductile nickel deposit. Plated nickel-chrome components take on an eye-appealing bluish tone.
Nickel Additive 922nickel
Universal primary make-up brightener used in conjunction with the bright nickel systems. Increases tolerance to impurities and enhances brightness and ductility.
Satin nickel
Pearlsheen Nickel Processnickel
Produces a neat, silky, highly decorative nickel deposit with a satin finish. Suitable for rack plated components.
Black / antique nickel
Groblack Antique Nickelnickel
Produces a decorative black finish in nickel.
Growel Antique Nickel Processnickel
Cyanide or cyanide-free nickel alloy plating process applied as an overlay on bright nickel to produce an eye-appealing glossy bluish-black anthracite finish.
Nickel auxiliaries
Unispec Leveller 248nickel
Special additive compatible with the bright nickel processes to impart additional levelling. Ideally suited to poorly polished surfaces.
Nickel Additive 52nickel
Purifier for bright nickel systems, improving tolerance to metallic impurities such as dissolved copper and zinc.
Decorative chrome
Durobrite SRHS Chromechrome
Easy to operate decorative, self-regulating high speed chrome process giving a pleasing bluish bright chrome deposit over a very wide current density range.
Hard chrome
Durohard Chromechrome
Mixed catalysed, high efficiency, high speed hard chrome process with deposit hardness up to 950–1000 Vickers. Cathode efficiency up to 22%, operating at 50–60 A/dm².
Trivalent chrome
Triplus Chrome 300chrome
A major step forward in eliminating hexavalent chrome from decorative chromium plating. Innovative process using only trivalent chromium compounds, producing an excellent finish over bright nickel.
Chrome auxiliaries
Mist Freechrome
Powder or liquid fume suppressant for decorative chrome baths. Eliminates chromic acid mist, keeping the plating shop atmosphere healthy and minimising chromic acid consumption.
Cyanide copper
Cyco Dull Copper 1123copper
General purpose bath for copper strike as well as heavy cyanide copper deposits. Suitable for rack and barrel operation, providing a fine grain copper layer.
Alkaline non-cyanide copper
Cuprobrite NC 81 / 82copper
Alkaline copper plating process that eliminates cyanide. Provides strike deposits on ferrous and non-ferrous substrates including zinc die-castings, aluminium and magnesium. Used as a strike prior to hard chrome on printing cylinders and tin/silver on aluminium bus bars.
Acid copper
Cuprobrite 310 / 100copper
Innovative acid copper brightener system for excellent glossiness. Also chosen for copper–nickel–chrome combinations irrespective of coating thickness.
High build copper
Cuprabuild HS 900copper
Acid copper process designed for high thickness build-up — printing cylinders, copper bottom vessels. Builds thickness without internal stress; fine grained micro-structure gives hardness up to 120 VHN with a semi-bright, extremely smooth deposit.
Acid tin
Stannolume Bright Acid Tintin
Unique combination of carrier additive and brightener producing a mirror-bright, silvery white tin deposit with good solderability and ductility, meeting stringent electronic and electrical industry specifications.
Brass plating
Growel 1122 Brassbrass
Brass — an alloy of copper and zinc — plated on mild steel, aluminium and zinc based die-castings for decorative applications. Also plated on mild steel to obtain good bonding of steel to rubber.
Antique finishes
Gibonol C 115antique
Produces a decorative oxide finish on copper and copper alloys at room temperature, with an attractive colour range from light brown through bronze to black. Ideal for barrel operation.
Cyanide zinc
Zincbrite 610 Brightenerzinc
Highly concentrated brightener system giving excellent brightness at both low and high current densities. Suitable for vat and barrel applications with very low consumption.
Acid chloride zinc
Zinthobrite 978zinc
Very versatile chloride zinc process producing extremely bright and levelled zinc deposits in both rack and barrel systems. Highly tolerant to iron impurities, with remarkable levelling and ductility, and very good receptivity to all chromate conversion processes.
Zincalite 985zinc
Acid zinc brightener with superb brightening ability, operable up to 50 °C. Formulated for low brightener consumption and usable in potassium chloride, mixed potassium/ammonium chloride and ammonium chloride electrolytes.
Hexavalent passivation
Ginthox 995passivation
Yellow passivate. Produces a bright, iridescent coating on chloride zinc plated parts without nitric acid, giving high corrosion resistance and an excellent base for paint and organic finishes.
Zincafix 958passivation
Single liquid concentrate producing a glossy olive green coating, suitable for zinc deposits from all types of zinc plating process.
Ginthox ZB 992 / Ravenox ZB 993passivation
Jet-black chromate conversion coating on zinc plated parts.
Trivalent passivation
Trichrome HB 1720passivation
Trivalent chrome passivation producing a pleasing thick blue finish — free of hexavalent chromium.
03 — Plating on Plastics & Aluminium
Plating on Plastics & Aluminium
4 products
As manufacturers increasingly look to plastic for lighter, more corrosion resistant, less expensive products, the application for plating on plastics is limitless — the ideal substrate being ABS. On aluminium, El Fath Group offers complete technology to plate the metal and its alloys with excellent corrosion and wear resistant coatings meeting stringent OEM standards. Suitable pretreatment — soak degreasing, etching, desmutting and zincating — is the key factor for adhesion.
Plating on plastics
Ginplate Activator 442 / 444
Highly effective single-step palladium–tin colloid with smaller particle size, designed to metallise plastic prior to electro-deposition.
Ginplate NI 414 (ABS)
Electroless nickel process imparting a uniform, conductive, pit-free semi-bright electroless nickel base coat on activated plastic surfaces, with lower ammonia consumption than contemporary products.
Plating on aluminium
Gictane 70
De-oxidiser and conditioning agent that enhances desmutting, especially suited to plating on silicon-rich A 356 aluminium alloy wheels.
Alzincate MV
New generation multi-cation, smooth, fine grained, compact zincating process. Ensures adhesion of subsequent electro-deposits and is the ideal choice for silicon-rich cast aluminium wheels.
04 — Phosphating
Phosphating
3 products
Phosphate coatings are predominantly applied to ferrous metals, though also used on zinc and aluminium for specific applications. On their own they are insufficiently protective, but they are excellent as a pretreatment before painting, powder coating, impregnation with enamels, lacquers, oils and waxes. The coating is thin and adherent while being porous and insulating, permitting mechanical interlocking of the applied paint film while its electrical inertness localises corrosion beneath adjacent unbroken painted areas.
Conversion coatings
Zinc Phosphating
Crystalline zinc phosphate conversion coating applied by immersion or spray. Thin, adherent, porous and insulating — the standard key for paint, powder coating, enamel, lacquer, oil and wax.
Iron Phosphating
Light iron phosphate pre-paint treatment for ferrous substrates, applied by immersion, spray or brush.
Cold forming
Cold Forming Phosphate
Phosphate coating used as a lubricant carrier in cold forming operations such as drawing, stamping and cold extrusion.
05 — Strippers
Strippers
2 products
For rework, salvage and selective removal — stripping a deposit without attacking the basis metal underneath.
Alkaline cyanide strippers
Metstrip S 60
Powdered cyanide-based product dissolved in water to strip nickel, copper, cadmium, zinc and silver from steel, iron alloys and magnesium, at room temperature to 50 °C without current. Also available pre-mix free as Metstrip 165 S.
Chrome strippers
Growel D'chrome
Newly developed product using 20% sulphuric acid to remove chrome without attacking the copper surface beneath — developed specifically for rotogravure cylinders.
06 — Electrophoretic Lacquer
Electrophoretic Lacquer
2 products
The LacKote series is a cathodically electro-deposited polymer system for decorative and functional coating technologies, and is environmentally friendly. The product uses proven polyurethane/acrylic chemistry for maximum durability and stability, offering superior resistance to aggressive acidic and perspiration environments through advanced polymer engineering and improved solvent resistance.
Cathodic ED lacquer
LacKote Ultra
Cathodically electro-deposited polymer system for decorative and functional coating. Proven polyurethane/acrylic chemistry for maximum durability, superior resistance to aggressive acidic and perspiration environments, improved solvent resistance. Cures to a tough polyurethane with excellent hardness, UV, solvent and wear resistance, and chemical resistance to both acid and alkali. Supplied as a 55% w/w solids concentrate let down with demineralised water to ~10% w/w.
LacKote LC
High performance polyurethane and acrylic electrophoretic lacquer for decorative and protective applications on zinc die-cast, brass, copper, bronze, chrome, aluminium and stainless steel. Low VOC, minimal waste.
07 — Plating Salts
Plating Salts
11 products
High purity raw salts and acids for bath make-up and maintenance, supplied to the same specification as the additive systems that run on them.
Zinc electrolytes
Potassium Chloride 99% (K+S)High purity potassium chloride for acid chloride zinc electrolytes.
Zinc ChlorideZinc chloride for acid zinc plating electrolytes.
Zinc OxideZinc oxide for alkaline and cyanide zinc bath make-up.
Nickel electrolytes
Nickel SulphatePrimary nickel salt for Watts-type bright nickel electrolytes.
Nickel ChlorideNickel chloride for anode corrosion and conductivity in nickel baths.
Nickel SulphamateNickel sulphamate for low-stress engineering and electroforming nickel deposits.
Buffers
Boric AcidpH buffer for nickel plating electrolytes.
Copper electrolytes
Copper SulphateCopper sulphate for acid copper plating electrolytes.
Chrome electrolytes
Chromic AcidChromium trioxide for decorative and hard chrome electrolytes.
Precious metal
Silver SaltSilver salt for silver plating electrolytes.
Alkalis
Caustic SodaSodium hydroxide for alkaline cleaners, etchants and alkaline plating baths.
08 — Plating Anodes
Plating Anodes
11 products
Soluble and insoluble anodes in strip, hooked and ingot form, matched to each electrolyte.
Nickel
Nickel Anode — Inco stripsElectrolytic nickel anode strip for bright and semi-bright nickel baths.
Nickel Anode — Norsek stripsNickel anode strip for nickel electrolytes.
Zinc
Zinc Anode — hookedHooked zinc anode for vat zinc plating installations.
Zinc Anode — stripsZinc anode strip for rack and barrel zinc plating.
Zinc Anode — ingotsZinc anode ingots for basket-fed zinc installations.
Brass
Brass Anode — stripsBrass anode strip for brass plating electrolytes.
Copper
Copper Anode — phosphorisedPhosphorised copper anode for acid copper plating.
Copper Anode — oxygen freeOxygen-free copper anode for cyanide and alkaline copper baths.
Insoluble
Chromium Anode — stripsLead alloy anode for hexavalent chromium electrolytes.
Stainless Steel Anode — stripsStainless steel insoluble anode for alkaline and electrocleaning duty.
Tin
Tin Anode — stripsTin anode strip for acid tin plating.
09 — Heat Treatment Salts
Heat Treatment Salts
5 products
Salt bath media for hardening, quenching, tempering and case hardening — the thermal side of the metal finishing shop.
Heat treatment
Hardening Salts
Neutral salt bath media for the hardening of tool and engineering steels.
Quenching & Tempering Salts
Salt bath media for controlled quenching and tempering cycles.
Case hardening
Carburizing Salts
Salt bath carburizing media for case hardening of low carbon steels.
Nitriding Salts
Salt bath nitriding media for surface hardness and fatigue strength.
Nitro-Carburizing Salts
Salt bath nitro-carburizing for a hard, wear and corrosion resistant compound layer.
10 — Line Equipment
Line Equipment
9 products
Tanks, accessories and fluid handling for the plating line. Full plant design and installation sits in the Engineering division.
Line hardware
Process Baths & Tanks
Polypropylene, PVC and lined steel process tanks built to the duty of each stage in the cycle.
Immersion Heaters
Titanium, quartz and PTFE immersion heaters with control for each process stage.
Plating Baskets
Titanium and steel anode baskets with polypropylene mesh options.
Anode Covers & Bags
Anode bags and covers to keep anode sludge out of the electrolyte.
Dryers
Hot air and centrifugal dryers for rack and barrel work.
Fluid handling
Filtration Units
Continuous filtration units sized to bath volume — the single most effective cure for roughness and pitting.
Ultra-filtration Units
Ultra-filtration for electrophoretic lacquer and closed-loop rinse recovery.
Dosing Pumps
Metering pumps for automatic brightener and additive replenishment.
Power
Rectifiers
Air and water cooled DC rectifiers, including pulse and periodic-reverse options, sized per tank.
Supply
Request a data sheet, a sample or a price
Name the product or describe the process, and our technical team takes it from there — trial samples and start-up support included.