Washing a car engine: ways and means

2024 Author: Erin Ralphs | [email protected]. Last modified: 2024-02-19 11:42

Do you wash your car? The answer is most likely yes. But do you do engine washing? If not, it's like taking a shower but never brushing your teeth. It's not worth doing that. The engine also needs to be washed. You can tell that besides you and the occasional mechanic, no one sees your engine bay, and who cares, right?

However, cleaning the engine prevents engine damage and keeps the car's resale value high. Oil leaks on the motor and the ingress of grains of sand on it contributes to premature wear of the crankshaft pulley and bearings, and can also lead to more serious damage. Thus, cleaning the engine allows it to stay cooler and run more efficiently.

Is engine cleaning easy?

If you want to do well - do it yourself. We often use this expression. That is why there is so much information on how you can clean the engine yourself. But, despite this, cleaning the engine is not so simple as it might seem at first glance. In the engine compartment of all cars, especially modern ones, there are a lot ofvarious electronics, wires and contacts, which can be easily damaged if done carelessly. That is why washing a car engine has its own characteristics and requires the use of special tools and methods.

Wet wash: maybe not worth it?

The most affordable and frequently used for this type of washing is the use of special car washes, the most famous of which are Karcher car washes. Now there is a lot of controversy about wet washing, someone says that it is very effective, and someone prefers not to use it because it harms the car.

Indeed, after a wet wash, the car often simply does not start, and electrical connectors, wires and electrics can be damaged due to a large amount of water. Seals and other elements of the engine compartment may become unusable. The most terrible consequence of such a wash can be the failure of the engine control unit or the engine getting a water hammer.

Other washing methods

Because a large amount of water entering the engine compartment can damage the wiring or damage other parts of the car, lead to corrosion of the engine compartment, it is worth considering other methods. For some time after such a wash, the car may simply not start. In this regard, new methods of cleaning the engine were developed and appeared to avoid car breakdowns. To one of thesemethods include dry cleaning of internal combustion engines with detergents.

Means for washing the car engine

It is recommended not to use various powders to remove dirt from the engine, as this will take you too long and the quality of work will leave much to be desired. In order to simplify the work and not harm the car, more and more new engine cleaners in different packages are constantly appearing on the market. The most common are:

• plastic containers;
• aerosol cans;
• bottles.

These containers may contain liquids, gels or sprays. At the heart of each cleaner is a solvent, which allows you to effectively, and most importantly, quickly get rid of contaminants. However, special attention should be paid to the composition. A number of cleaners contain alkali, which is why you should not leave them on aluminum parts of the motor for a long time. Such a substance can easily corrode metal.

Sprays are often sold in special bottles and are used for the so-called dry washing of a car engine.

Benefits of dry engine cleaning

This type of sink has a large number of advantages:

1. The ability to avoid various short circuits associated with the flow of water into the engine compartment.
2. No engine problems after washing.
3. Oil, grains of sand and other dirt from the engine practically does not get on other partsvehicle.
4. Degreasing and effective removal of oil and other stains.
5. Easy to apply.
6. Washing a car engine doesn't take long.

What do you need for dry cleaning?

Purging is not a big deal. All you need is:

• Apply engine cleaner to the surface to be cleaned.
• Wait as long as indicated in the instructions (usually 5-10 minutes). During this time, the product will be absorbed and dissolve the dirt.
• Use a rag or a special sponge to clean the surface from contamination.

If you do your own engine wash in this way, it is important to remember that the engine must be warm. A cold motor will not allow effective cleaning, and a high temperature motor may cause burns or ignite the detergent. Of course, as with other chemicals, it is best to use gloves and be careful.

Steam wash

Usually, it is customary to use chemical cleaners for engine cleaning, but progress does not stand still, and new ways appear. For example, recently, the cleaning of the engine compartment with water vapor using a steam generator has become widespread. To wash the car engine in this way, you will need to go to a car wash. Special units bring the chemical composition with water toa certain high temperature, after which, at the same high temperature and under a pressure of about 8 bar, steam enters the gun.

Engine washing by steam should only be carried out at a car wash by specially trained people. A person who does not know all the intricacies of working with such equipment can get injured or damage the components of the car.

Steam cleaning benefits

Since steam cleaning of the car does not provide for contact of car parts with water, there is no risk of corrosion of engine compartment elements and other breakdowns, and there is also no risk of not starting the car. In addition, this type of washing has a number of other advantages. The most significant of them include:

• no water damage to electrics, eliminating the possibility of a short circuit;
• no mud smudges on other car parts;
• removal of even the most stubborn dirt and seals (oil, caked dirt and others);
• Cleanser consumption is minimal as it is mixed with water and delivered as high pressure steam;
• cleaning work takes little time.

In addition, most car washes that do this type of cleaning carry out engine wash with a guarantee. This way, if there are any problems with the engine after a steam wash (the probability of this is extremely small), the car wash where the cleaning was carried out will cover part of the cost of repairing your vehicle.funds.

Disadvantages of steam cleaning

Because this type of cleaning is very effective, fast, safe and comes with a warranty, steam engine cleaning is significantly different in cost from wet or dry cleaning with chemical detergents. However, such a high price can be justified, given the ability to avoid a huge number of problems that are not excluded with wet or other types of cleaning.

Wash frequency recommendations

There are many different opinions about how often an internal combustion engine should be cleaned. However, the best option would be to listen to the recommendations of manufacturers. Various car manufacturers agree that an engine wash should only be done when absolutely necessary, and not just to improve the appearance of the engine compartment.

Thus, it is recommended to clean the engine only in a number of cases:

• if you are going to carry out diagnostics in order to identify leaks, breakdowns and other damage;
• when the engine is very heavily contaminated with oil in case of leakage of pipes or seals;
• before carrying out major repairs involving the dismantling of the unit or its dismantling;
• if you are going to list your car on marketplaces for sale - usually one ofplacement requirement is a photograph of a clean engine compartment.

Based on this, you should not wash the engine immediately at the slightest contamination, since the need for this is not prescribed by the manufacturers.

Wash the engine yourself or use the services of specialists

If you still need to wash your engine, but there is no knowledge and experience, then, of course, it is better to turn to specialists. They are well aware of the washing process, they know all the necessary detergents, and what composition is best to use in a particular case. In addition, contacting specialists will save you time searching for the necessary information and cleaning the car yourself, and most self-respecting car washes also give you a guarantee for the work done.

Better DIY

However, if you prefer to do everything yourself, then choose a method and get to work. It is important to remember that during wet cleaning it is better to use a small pressure of water or not to use this method of cleaning at all, since it is likely to break through the thermal insulation of the hood and damage various fragile elements. And this can significantly affect the operation of your car.

Also, do not use products that are not intended for washing the engine. At best, they will be ineffective, and at worst, they can cause great harm to the vehicle. It is better to remove flammable compounds away and not resort to them in any case. To be sure to protect yourcar, it is better to cover the various sensors and connectors with plastic wrap in advance to prevent liquids from getting there.

When washing the engine, it is better to use warm water (about 50 ° C), which will allow you to more effectively and quickly remove dirt. After washing, you must wait until all parts are completely dry and only then you can start the engine.