The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area Engine Shop Cleaning My 216 With This Hydro-Air ??

I acquired this pressure washer nozzle at a garage sale for a quarter this weekend. I was wondering for some advise on using it to clean my engine...inside and out. Should I use this to clean the inside of the engine as well as the out? I have the oil pan off and the head removed. I guess my only concern is by removing all the built up oil and gunk off the crank and bearings what should I do at that point to keep these parts from rusting up? Seems this black build up is what has protected everything while this motor sat the past 40 years. It may be a while before I assemble the engine and install it in the truck. What should I use to lube and protect the assemblies?

http://www.dm-products.com/accessories.html

The Hydro-Air is pretty cool BTW. You can hook it up to a water hose or connect a siphon hose into a bucket of HOT water and solvents etc. to really clean.

I would have the machine shop clean the parts .I think you are rebuilding this engine? Coat all internal parts with the same oil used to lube the engine.
I use the same type nozzle ,it does work very well with soap and water or solvent.I manly clean external small parts only. The nozzle can do damage to parts as well,use gloves and eye protection.

Thanks for the reply. No this engine is not being rebuilt at this point. I tested it and it ran fine when I bought it 10 years ago as I fired it up myself briefly after acquisition. Should I just leave the crankcase coated and oily as it is, install new pan gasket and fill with fresh oil then?

Thanks

yes leaving it as is would keep the internals from rusting.You might still add fresh oil to keep everything covered. If you don't run the engine be sure to turn it over so the oil is spread throughout.

I have soaked engines with Castrol Degreaser then hit them with a high pressure washer with good results, the key to a good job is pre-soaking. Our pressure washer uses very hot water and after 30 minutes of washing or more, the block is getting warm enough to dry out fairly quick so rust isn't a issue for me. If you don't have hot water, head to the car wash, they work real well for this. Have a few cans of WD40 on hand, or compressed air or even a leaf blower to dry things out. You will never get all the oil out of the bearings so the crank shouldn't rust up. The engines I cleaned were filled with oil with a few days and the oil pumps spun over to coat and protect the internals. The only parts left in the blocks were crank, rods, and pistons. I had the rest of the pieces off so I could clean it better. Like I said, if you are going to spray the inside, do a good job and really go at it or don't bother. If you don't come out with grease and dirt in your face, you didn't work hard enough!

I had a Ford flat head that had set for years but wasn't locked up. I filled it with two gallons degreaser and water, so much it was running out the top. I let it set for a day then pulled the drain plug and inserted the power hose through the drain plug. I let it spray for 30 minutes till the soap was gone. I then rolled the engine around cleaning top and bottom. Again using very hot water, this engine dried out very quickly. The next day I filled it with oil and fired it up. To this day, its still running (six years) and the oil looks brand new every time its checked.

Joe

Thanks Joe! Guess I will go at it. Water is only as hot as my water heater gets it. Maybe for the final rinse I can use a couple pots of near boiling water then soak her down with some wd40 to remove any excess moisture, throw the pan on and fill her up with fresh oil. Like I said, I just want to remove the thick gunk that had built up over the years.

Since we can't get the 100% oil free, you get very little rust or corrosion, and I think its a great way to clean something you are not putting much money into anyway. Joe