i want to clean under my hood etc few questions

ok so my engine are is disgusting and i want to clean it up a bit. i know at the car washes by me, at the self serve stations they have engine degreasers or whatever. obviously i can use this otherwise they wouldnt have it there id imagine. what are some tips on using this and water on the engine and surrounding areas? obviously i wont be spraying an inch away as itll damage it im sure but is there anything i should be aware of before using it? also after i use it what are some other tips on cleaning up the engine bay etc? ive never gotten this detailed with my car before but im not getting a new one anytime soon so i figure im going ot start taking better care of this one. any help is appreciated. thanks!

 

[coppe]

First do it with a cool engine; i´ve cleaned my own engines for a long time, and what i do is first disconnect the baterry, (+ or both and isolate the + in the batt with a plastic bag or something), then with a moist rag (with water or soapy water) y clean all the dust and superficial dirt, after that, i clean all of the engine surroundings (the firewall, and every sheet of visible painted metal) with some soft surface cleaner like windex and a moist rag, after that, y use another rag with a bit of gasoline in it, to cut through the hardest grease layers in the intake, covers, block, steering and brake system, etc. I also have an old tooth brush and tooth picks, to work certain spots.

After all that, use another batch of soapy water, and rinse everything with clean water and a rag (wetting the rag, not spraying or hosing it down)

Maybe you will need a couple or more washes, but it will do the trick. It takes a while, but i kindda like doing it as relaxation therapy hehehe... also if you used the gasoline, wait for it to evaporate before reconnecting the battery.

Once i used one of those special autozone engine bay degreasers, but it ate through some of my plastics, but other guys seem to have great succes, it might depend on how dry are the plastics.

Also i dont trust karchers or water compressors, since they can get water in certain places you don´t want to have it, even more if your engine has a certain amount of miles on it, it might even disconnect cables and mess lot of things.

But.... if you use them, you need to cover the big black fuse electrical distribution box, the air intake and computer modules (i think the location of those and suggestions are on the owner manual. Water compressors do a good fast job, but once they messed my car up (even using the presure and power specifications for engine cleaning in the instructions), so i don´t like using them.

If your engine plastics are in good shape, you can cover the parts mentioned before with plastic bags, spray the special degreasers, wait the indicated time, and rinse it down with the hose, and scrub the stubborn spots.

Hope this helps.

 

[bigwayne3000]

yea, that was a big help, thanks... if using your method w/o the pressure washer should i still cover up those parts to avoid getting wet from the towel or will the water from the towel just not be significant enough to make a difference?

 

[coppe]

yea, that was a big help, thanks... if using your method w/o the pressure washer should i still cover up those parts to avoid getting wet from the towel or will the water from the towel just not be significant enough to make a difference?

well.... i don´t cover those parts when doing it my way, so that i´m able to clean the exterior of that parts..... but... i tend to squeeze almost all of the water out of the rag when cleaning the electronics and intake.

And another thing i do after that, is use some plastic protector (like armor all, or silicone os some of that stuff average trim conditioner) in all of the plastics, this keeps them from drying out, and it really makes it look like new. Just be sure to wipe out the excess, or a lot of dust will stick to the surfaces.

Other thing i´ve found out about my method, is that it preserves all of the signs, and painted letters in the parts in the engine (like the handles of the dipping sticks, oil and steering caps, etc.), and cleaners tend to wear them out. I do this like every 2 monts or so, and that is more than enough, but i don´t do lots of off roading or dirt roads; if you do the latter, maybe using armor all is not a good idea, cause you´ll coat everything with dust.


glad to help.

 

[94Jo]

I use a gel engine degreaser (can get it at autozone, walmart etc) put a nice big coat on it, let it sit, and then i spray it off with a big squirt bottle. I use a squirt bottle instead of a hose so i can be more precise and not flood my driveway. The oil and dirt just flows off with the degreaser. what really helps me is I use a air compressor attachment with a long nozzle that I can put in crevases my fat hands cant reach. It blasts the dirt and oil and lets me "wipe" all the hard to get to areas.

 

[Equnoxe]

eh, i work at the *blue beacon*, its a truck was lol, i wash my engine a lot, i don't cover it up or anything. (regular soap + brightener + defrease) then i just grab the pressure washer, blow everything down (hold the gun about 1 foot away from everything) soak it in wax and rinse it off. i usually leave it running while i do this, and drive it around after to let the engine bay dry out.

never had any problems, but i know a few truckers who couldn't start their trucks after we washed their motor just stay away from your fuse boxes, intake, and other obviously problem starting areas.

 

[Joe Dirt]

Simple Green is your friend.

 

[Gus Gorilla]

$3 at the carwash. My local actually shoots simple green out of the sprayer under light pressure. Soak it all excluding fuses, pcm, and intake. Rinse normally at about 1ft high pressure. Do it every time and it will become and stay spotless.

 

[FireZingr]

Yeah, I just take mine to the car wash spray it down with Simple Green and blast away with the pressure gun while the engine is running. Done this probably 50 times and have never had a problem at all.

 

[X6StringerX]

I use Gunk Engine Degreaser liberally. However, I do take the time to cover my MAF, fuse/relay box, and battery. I've never ran into any problems doing it this way.

 

[ninobrn99]

I use an all purpose cleaner and/or degreaser, nylon and brass brushes, and one of those spray bottles from the lawn and garden sections that you pump to pressurize. Do a small section at a time and wipe dry when done. Once everything is clean, I use a coat of CD2 Engine Detailer. It's nice because it's a foam and covers a bit more area a lot easier.
Apply it, then drive around for a while, come back, pop the hood and wipe the excess to even out the shine.