| Author | Topic |
|---|
Location:
Brisbane
Registered:
November 2002
|
 Helpful tip re: cleaning engine bay
|
Mon, 13 September 2004 10:13
|
 |
Hiyas
This is very simple but it's the kind of thing you sometimes may not think of so I thought I'd share while I'm bored. I am getting a car ready for RWC and realised the engine bay was filthy. While it's not a mechanical PROBLEM as such, everything looking a bit dirty and grimy certainly won't help one's chances.
I've often wondered how to clean an engine bay without huge difficulty... for RWC or otherwise. When looking for a bucket in the shed today I stumbled across it - a paintbrush!
Just got some normal car wash mixed with water... wet down one side of the engine bay to soften any dirt, and gave the whole area a squirt with that fab $2 degreaser. Then, dipped the (fairly soft) paintbrush in the bucket of soapy water and firmly brushed down the engine bay... the crap all just came off and it was really simple to get into the parts I thought would be very hard to reach. You can just use the paintbrush and an extra spray of degreaser to 'dab' at any stubborn bits.
Poured some more water over to rinse off the crap and then did another run to be safe... came up looking a treat! Unfortunately my digital camera is on the blink, but luckily I found some before and after pictures on Google...
BEFORE:
AFTER:
Ok so I'm being a bit funny with the pics, but it really did work a treat 
Common sense suggests that you should avoid electrical componentry (connectors, distributor, etc) as much as you can, and that you should avoid letting water pool in (for example) plug holes... and that you should probably take the car for a bit of a drive not long after to blow/cook off any water that may be sitting about. Note that I didn't drive mine because it was unregistered, but otherwise I would've 
|
|
|
Location:
melbourne
Registered:
December 2003
|
|
Re: Helpful tip re: cleaning engine bay
|
Mon, 13 September 2004 10:33
|
|
awesome stuff.
i might give that a go tomorow. can only hope mine turns out like that
|
|
|
Location:
Brisbane
Registered:
June 2003
|
|
Re: Helpful tip re: cleaning engine bay
|
Mon, 13 September 2004 10:35
|
|
|
i used thinners and a dry rag to clean my ma61 bay - u dab the thinners on, and wipe it off pretty well instantly...it works wonders. Im told KERO also does wonders, but it doesnt affect the paintwork.
|
|
|
Location:
Adelaide
Registered:
August 2004
|
|
Re: Helpful tip re: cleaning engine bay
|
Mon, 13 September 2004 10:57
|
|
Something that i read somewhere to try is oven cleaner!!!
I haven't tried this myself yet, but the original forum reckons it works well.
|
|
|
Location:
Brisbane
Registered:
November 2002
|
|
Re: Helpful tip re: cleaning engine bay
|
Mon, 13 September 2004 11:26
|
|
To be honest I think that car wash and degreaser should be all you need. They are both designed for washing oil/dirt/road grime off cars... the engine bay is jut a little more concentrated and you might need to spend a little time. The degreaer is good because it's pressurised in the can too and helps push a bit of the junk off... I only used one can but I'll revisit it in a week or so when I have the head off it - will have even better access then.
V8-MA61.. I wouldn't encourage people to use thinners on their paintwork
|
|
|
Location:
Brisbane
Registered:
June 2003
|
|
Re: Helpful tip re: cleaning engine bay
|
Mon, 13 September 2004 11:27
|
|
| 7M-Brisbane wrote on Mon, 13 September 2004 21:26 |
To be honest I think that car wash and degreaser should be all you need. They are both designed for washing oil/dirt/road grime off cars... the engine bay is jut a little more concentrated and you might need to spend a little time. The degreaer is good because it's pressurised in the can too and helps push a bit of the junk off... I only used one can but I'll revisit it in a week or so when I have the head off it - will have even better access then.
V8-MA61.. I wouldn't encourage people to use thinners on their paintwork
|
is it for the skilled only leigh? 
|
|
|
Location:
Elwood, Melb
Registered:
August 2003
|
|
Re: Helpful tip re: cleaning engine bay
|
Mon, 13 September 2004 12:15
|
|
Yeah oven cleaner works a treat.
But whatever you do don't goto those DIY carwashs and use the engine cleaner, I was a dickhead on the first day I bought my car and decided it would be a great idea one week later after it wasn't such a good idea  because I wasn't able to drive the car throughout that week.
High pressure water + engine bay = you do the math.
And yes I WAS a dickhead!
|
|
|
Location:
Brisbane
Registered:
November 2002
|
|
Re: Helpful tip re: cleaning engine bay
|
Mon, 13 September 2004 13:09
|
|
|
Blake - nah I just think it's better left alone... as with our friend just above, not everyone thinks things out before doing them... precisely why I made that little disclaimer regarding certain things going without saying.
|
|
|
Location:
adelaide
Registered:
April 2003
|
|
Re: Helpful tip re: cleaning engine bay
|
Mon, 13 September 2004 13:22
|
|
even degreaser can destroy the paint in your engine bay ... be careful, especially on older cars
as for thinners... are you insane?!
|
|
|
Location:
Brisbane
Registered:
June 2003
|
|
Re: Helpful tip re: cleaning engine bay
|
Mon, 13 September 2004 13:27
|
|
wanna see how clean my engine bay is now, and what it was like before?? The ma61 looks like show condition, and the ma70 looks good too, except i shouldve done it when the motor was out - too much shit in the bay now to remove to do it properly!
In BOTH my cars this has worked superb. You dont need much, and it does NO damage if you put it on with one rag, and wipe it straight off with another. IF you rub the thiners there for a long period of time, it will however remove paint!
|
|
|
Location:
adelaide
Registered:
April 2003
|
|
Re: Helpful tip re: cleaning engine bay
|
Tue, 14 September 2004 01:11
|
|
no i believe you, thinners is great for cleaning things with... though i think you will find it is what most people would clean paint overspray off windows etc with... as it dissolves the paint
be careful with it!
personally ill continue using soapy water
interesting point : my spray painter told me to wash my car with a bucket of water and some shampoo...
|
|
|
Registered:
May 2002
|
|
Re: Helpful tip re: cleaning engine bay
|
Thu, 16 September 2004 13:38
|
|
i got FIVE hot chicks out of the $2 degreaser and paintbrush - thanks champ ! 
|
|
|
Location:
Brisbane, QLD
Registered:
February 2003
|
|
Re: Helpful tip re: cleaning engine bay
|
Fri, 17 September 2004 08:23
|
|
i use the degreaser found in en-zed and bunnings etc
works well, especially when used in conjuction with a hose
none of this paint brush stuff 
|
|
|
Location:
Brisbane
Registered:
June 2003
|
|
Re: Helpful tip re: cleaning engine bay
|
Fri, 17 September 2004 11:26
|
|
|
i tired petrol and degreaser to clean out my engine bay and it didnt work..i recently hit it with thinners and it looks new now..
|
|
|
Location:
Brisbane
Registered:
July 2002
|
|
Re: Helpful tip re: cleaning engine bay
|
Fri, 17 September 2004 22:58
|
|
i dont tihnk id be using thinners on my engine bay, but i guess we will leave that up to the ruthless owner
i instead used water down degreaser in a spray bottle...
(and ofcourse sand paper and polish and such)
my engine bay went from
to this
|
|
|
Location:
Sydney
Registered:
July 2002
|
|
Re: Helpful tip re: cleaning engine bay
|
Sat, 18 September 2004 01:04
|
|
I had a few scratches on my strut towers through the engine install (and other stuff). I drew over the scratches with a black laundry marker and then wiped it with a cloth. The cloth took all the gloss off. End result is that you can't notice it until you're looking for it.
... it kinda has relevance to the topic. I wanted to share too.
|
|
|
I supported Toymods
Location:
Perth, Western Australia
Registered:
December 2002
|
|
Re: Helpful tip re: cleaning engine bay
|
Sat, 18 September 2004 17:02
|
|
|
Hydrocarbon based Degreaser/Kerosene, and the high pressure water spray used appropriately works a treat!
|
|
|
Location:
Kita-Ku, Sapporo, Japan
Registered:
January 2003
|
|
Re: Helpful tip re: cleaning engine bay
|
Sat, 18 September 2004 18:00
|
|
just for the record, i'd recommend against using oven cleaners... at all... they have some eville shit in them (even the wonderful hydroflouric acid in some!)
if you must use it, use chemical proof gloves and lots of ventilation..
same goes for anything that claims to "brighten metal" (esp mag wheel cleaners and such) HF is often there around 5%... nasty..
|
|
|
I supported Toymods
Location:
Perth
Registered:
May 2002
|
|
Re: Helpful tip re: cleaning engine bay
|
Sun, 19 September 2004 10:12
|
|
|
Use Marine Clean from PPC. Hot water in a 2-3:1 mixture. Spray it on, leave it a few mins, wipe it off and repeat. That ripped some nasty ass grease from my engine bay, actually looked white! Mind you, not as white as now.
|
|
|
