jet washing an engine bay
Discussion
ok, basically i want my engine bay looking slightly nicer than what it does at the moment...
with a bit of work my car could be in concours condition, unfortuantly you open the bonnett and there's 25 years of crud and oil under there...
with the hopeful new arrivals of a set of carbs i wanting it looking good...
ideally, i want to jet wash it using a karcher-style power washer system but am a bit worried about water getting into places i don't want it getting into...
is it wise/safe to jet wash/steam clean in there? am i gonna do any damage?
if its not wise... what do you suggest?
cheers!
with a bit of work my car could be in concours condition, unfortuantly you open the bonnett and there's 25 years of crud and oil under there...
with the hopeful new arrivals of a set of carbs i wanting it looking good...
ideally, i want to jet wash it using a karcher-style power washer system but am a bit worried about water getting into places i don't want it getting into...
is it wise/safe to jet wash/steam clean in there? am i gonna do any damage?
if its not wise... what do you suggest?
cheers!
littlegearl said:
yeah, i've heard its too damn dangerous... but i really want a quick, easy way... alas, it appears elbow grease will be required!
It dosen't take much elbow grease. Just use an old paint brush to really work the gunk into any "heavily soiled" patches (no, not your undies), leave to soak in for a few minutes and then wash off using low pressure garden hose. Always a good idea to tape plastic bags around anything that could dislike the water (e.g. coil, distributor, fusebox etc.)
It won't do a 25 year old car much harm to use a low pressure hose (you could use a jetwasher, but I wouldn't chance it).
Use a little grease round the plugs and any other exposed terminals and wrap the coil, dizzy and alternator with plastic bags.
Use a stiff paintbrush to get degreasant (liquid, not aerosol) into every nook and cranny.
Go and have a cuppa.
After 20 minutes come back and hose off the engine.
This is best done over ground you don't care about. If your friends' parents' drive has just been block paved DON'T DO IT THERE (oops
) as 25 years accumulated crud makes a nasty mess of concrete and stone.
Alternatively, you could pay someone to steam clean it. Doesn't tend to have the negative effects on older engines as it does on all this modern crap
Use a little grease round the plugs and any other exposed terminals and wrap the coil, dizzy and alternator with plastic bags.
Use a stiff paintbrush to get degreasant (liquid, not aerosol) into every nook and cranny.
Go and have a cuppa.
After 20 minutes come back and hose off the engine.
This is best done over ground you don't care about. If your friends' parents' drive has just been block paved DON'T DO IT THERE (oops
) as 25 years accumulated crud makes a nasty mess of concrete and stone. Alternatively, you could pay someone to steam clean it. Doesn't tend to have the negative effects on older engines as it does on all this modern crap
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