Cleaning the engine

[nhman]

Any recommendations for cleaning the engine and engine compartment? After the first summer of use the engine compartment and engine are dirty and dusty. I would like to clean it up. Can you use engine cleaner and a hose??

nhman

 

[Thomas]

All I do slide a can down over the exhuast pipe and tie wrap a plastic bag around the air intake before washing,than useing a mild dish washing liquid w/the pressure washer set low I began cleaning..I also use heavy cloth for those extra dirty places.

Once done and looking good its the air compressor turn to blow dry the engine etc..just be careful around the electric areas,for may want to protect them as well when washing.

At one time you could purchase a spray can of engine cleaner..foam..that was a pain to use if you had a fel to work around. /w3tcompact/icons/frown.gif

 

[soarkrebel]

Your going to think i'm crazy but this works. get some DOW bathroom cleaner, it has to be DOW. you know the scrubbing bubbles. spray it on and wait oh 5 to 10 minutes. then hose it off. best degreaser in a can. i learned from a used car dealer. that is how they made those high mileage greasy engines clean. my trucks engine has 157,000 plus miles on it and clean as a pin. try it and see for yourself.
I also will use mineral spirits with a engine cleaner attachment hooked to my compressor. but the dow method works better. on real dirty engines it may take two apps. i also like to spray wd 40 on my atv's and will do it to my tractor. makes it look good and new. and it helps when you wash it again to get the dirt off.

 

[frank_f15]

the best way is NOT to let i get real dirtty to begin with, by this i mean clean it every so often, i usually just wipe it off, but u can spray it clean, just make sure it is a cold engine, and u don't use a very high spray around electrical system.

 

[r0GuE]

I would be very cautious cleaning the engine. Nothing good can come of that in my personal experience. But I guess if you’re careful.
Does everybody do this.. It never even crossed my mind. Not to be belligerent, but it is just a tool. My thoughts are that the number one concern is proper operation and long life. Neither of these are effected by some greasy grime on the engine (are they?).
Water can contaminate the oil, electrical or bearings,… different cleansers can remove protectant coatings and encourage corrosion.
I’m probably be paranoid (or lazy /w3tcompact/icons/grin.gif ) but that’s my thoughts.

 

[chim]

I use Castrol Super Clean. It melts a lot of the oily deposits, and a little scrubbing with an old paintbrush gets the rest. I keep a couple of those plastic spray bottles with the trigger pump in the garage. One has full-strength Super Clean and it gets a lot of use on tires, engines and almost anything else that gets a lot of crud. My pickup is white, and the lower body gets a shot when I do the tires.

Another has a diluted mix of Turtle Wax Wash ( or whatever the 'mart has on sale). The bottle needs to have the soap diluted so it will go through the pump. To wash vehicles, I just wet them down, spray the diluted soap all over it, and scrub them with a really soft-bristled brush. The last couple years I have used one of those California Water Blades in lieu of a chamois most of the time...................chim

 

[Bird]

Rogue, I'm at exactly the opposite end of the spectrum from you./w3tcompact/icons/laugh.gif I don't disagree that some cleansers and solvents could cause problems, but I've been washing the engines on my cars, pickups, tractors, lawnmowers, etc. for well over 40 years, sometimes with plain water and garden hose, sometimes, when necessary, using degreasers, sometimes using a hydro blaster (hook up both water hose and air hose to the gun), and sometimes using the pressure washers at coin operated car washes. And I take almost no precautions except to not spray water directly into the air intake. And then, after washing, I always run the engine long enough to get it thoroughly warmed up and to evaporate any moisture. I'm not recommending my methods to anyone else; just telling you what I do personally. I don't like a dirty engine 'cause I might have to work on it someday./w3tcompact/icons/wink.gif

 

[JimC]

I agree with you, I have used Dow Scrubbing Bubbles on Cars, Motorcycles, Marine Diesel engines and now my Kubota BX2200, great stuff, works better than most degreasers and if you don't get it off before it dries, no problem, just wash it off later.

 

[WVBill]

This past Summer, I used Orange Blast (from Wall Mart). Comes in a pump-sprayer. Eats right through the grease and grime. Hosed it off with a regular garden hose (no pressure-wash needed). Smells just like oranges and matches my Kubota's color!

 

[OkieG]

Bird's method is pretty much the way I do it, too. Except, I haven't found the need to use chemicals. The pressure washer is a great invention. Just faucet water through the pressure washer cleans all the grease, crud, oil and dust I've encountered on an engine...and it does make the engine much nicer to work on!

OkieG

 

[cpicton1]

Pressure washers are great. I use mine to clean everything. You do need to use caution though. The high pressure will push water into places where a garden hose alone might not. It is possible to damage rubber, gaskets and blow your decals off if you get to close or leave it pointed at one place to long. Keep it moving and don't get to close. Most pressure washers have replacement tips. Chose one with a wide angle. I also use cleaners that are made for pressure washers. They do help. I use the low pressure tip for the engine and dash where the switches are. If you clean your tractor often you shouldn't get a large build up of dirt, grease & oil.

 

[theboman]

My brother has a do hicky that hooks to an air hose and has a tube that goes into a bucket full of cleaner and we have used diesel fuel and kerosene to clean dirty grimey motors. It works great.
A tip from a local garage. When REBUILDING a motor and you want to REPAINT the block use oven cleaner. Spray it on, run the motor hot enough for the cleaner to work (they would drive the vehicle when possible to a nearby car wash) and spray off the engine, but be warned OFF goes the paint in many cases.

 

[Buster57]

For the engine I use Simple Green straight in a spray bottle or Car Wash 2000 very diluted. I water off the engine with a garden hose, low pressure or thumb high, then use a weed blower to air dry.
I wash my engine and the exterior of the tractor every week so it never gets to dirty.
My dealer gave me a can of aerosol clean and polishe stuff from Honda. This is for dirt bikes and really works terrifically. I like to polish the whole tractor with a can of that while watching 60 minuets.

 

[Bird]

Bo, I reckon you're talking about the do hicky you can see <A target="_blank" HREF=http://www.toolpeddler.com/m584db.htm>here</A>. I was using one of those with a special solvent that was mixed with kerosene when I was a teenager working in my dad's service station. And I just gave one away last week before I moved to town. I've used it to spray solvent on engines, to spray a diesel/motor oil mixture on the bottom side of mower decks, and even to spot spray Roundup on weeds; very handy tool.

 

[cpicton1]

Make sure you don't use kerosene or other flammable liquids in your air spray adapter around any open flames. Spraying this way can atomize the flammable liquid and make it explosive. Under no circumstances should you ever use <font color=red>gasoline</font color=red>. If you don't worry for yourself, then think of your loved ones. When you are gone, they are the ones that will feel the hurt. /w3tcompact/icons/sad.gif
Think Safety