what do i need to clean out my intercooler. i have every tool possible. just wanted to know as far as gaskets, etc. anything i have to buy? and cleaning solvent? any info is great.
cleaning my intercooler?
- Thread starter NSSVT
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I used about 10 cans of carb cleaner to clean the gunk out of my intercooler. As long as you don't bend the metal gaskets while removing the upper plenum and blower and intercooler itself, you shouldn't need to buy any new gaskets. Maybe change the plugs while its all apart, will be a little easier with everything out of the way.
+1 ^^ This guy made ten videos about cleaning his intercooler. Hope it helps....[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wLzZnozdUzg]YouTube - 2002 harley Davidson F150 Pulling off the supercharger[/ame]
I used Brake Kleen brand brake cleener and it worked alot better then the carb cleaner did for me. Also I reused all my old gaskets :thumbsup:
thanks. just wanted to know. i didnt know they had metal gaskets on them. i have both brake kleen and carb cleaner. thanks guys
Just don't spray the rotors in the S/C with cleaner. It will eat the teflon coating off and it will then gum up and flake off when you put it back on. Just wipe them down with a towel or rag.
There are several "how to's" on here. Follow them and you won't have any problems. I used brake cleaner on mine - the "acetone" it contained really did a good job on cleaning up the intercooler.
i just finished doing mine...not as hard as i thought it would be...one question though...the specs say torque the supercharger bolts to 33 lbs..that was not much more than hand tight...i was surprised how little that was,.....was that a typo in the writeup??....cuz they were a bitch to get off..... ken
also...if you do the plugs....i found that...i had to build a killer spark plug socket assembly....i also taped every joint with electrical tape...cuz when you pulled the socket off the spark plug after tightening...it would pop off the extentions..and remain on the plug..the socket assembly was as follows....
spark plug socket....2 inch extention....universal joint...2 inch extention...universal joint..then a 6 inch extention....worked great....till i had to to the final rear plug on the drivers side...i used the spark plug socket..with the 6 inch extention..and possibly the 2 inch as well...no universal joints though...hope that helped...i dont know how to post pics.....or else i would have posted a pic of the socket assembly.... ken
spark plug socket....2 inch extention....universal joint...2 inch extention...universal joint..then a 6 inch extention....worked great....till i had to to the final rear plug on the drivers side...i used the spark plug socket..with the 6 inch extention..and possibly the 2 inch as well...no universal joints though...hope that helped...i dont know how to post pics.....or else i would have posted a pic of the socket assembly.... ken
he speaks the truth... I know from experience:kaboom:
33 ft lbs is correct.
thats funny i did that same thing a little bit differnt but same concept the blower was till on .. im thinking about cleanign my blower next week ... truck only has 59 on the clock but i figured it cant hurt it and to see how bad it is ..
thanks again guys for the info. how about the teflon coating on the rotors. is it a good idea to remove it or leave it alone? i've heard of guys removing the teflon coating. and my truck has currently 81000 kms.which is 50000 miles. and i noticed oil in my bbk throttle body. could this cause problems, and will i gain any hp back after cleaning it?
If you've got oil on your throttle body, you've almost assuredly have a lot deposited on your intercooler.
A bigger concern may be that oil on the throttle blades infers oil vapor is now part of your intake air and may leave you more prone to detonation under WOT conditions.
I've never seen a "before" and "after" dyno run after cleaning the intercooler, but if it's caked with oil residue it's not cooling as well as it would if it were clean and there probably is some power restored from cleaning.
If your rotors are not currently flaking (and the only way to tell is look at them when your blower is removed, looking at the rotors themselves and the top of your intercooler for flakes) I probably would leave them alone. However, many feel that flaking is inevitable and if you have the blower removed, you might as well strip the coating off. Some testing done by Steigmeier seems to indicate there is little power loss form doing this.
A bigger concern may be that oil on the throttle blades infers oil vapor is now part of your intake air and may leave you more prone to detonation under WOT conditions.
I've never seen a "before" and "after" dyno run after cleaning the intercooler, but if it's caked with oil residue it's not cooling as well as it would if it were clean and there probably is some power restored from cleaning.
If your rotors are not currently flaking (and the only way to tell is look at them when your blower is removed, looking at the rotors themselves and the top of your intercooler for flakes) I probably would leave them alone. However, many feel that flaking is inevitable and if you have the blower removed, you might as well strip the coating off. Some testing done by Steigmeier seems to indicate there is little power loss form doing this.
oh ic. yeah at wot the other day on the highway it did some crazy rpm drop then up again like it was starved of fuel. kind of scared me as i thought i almost blew it up. when it did its little blurp it was at wot at the top of D. right before od.
just noticed the teflon coating is coming off badly and built up on top of the intercooler.
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