What to use to clean Intercooler?

[Steel Horse]

Hey, My blower is at Steig's and I wanted to clean my intercooler because I dont have the thing to catch the oil to keep it out of the blower and it's really dirty. I want to clean it cause it is brown and dingy and I am sure it has oil in it, Im not sure what chemical's I can put on this so I figured i'd ask, cause I know someone has been in the same situation Im in now. Thanks for your help.

 

[Quick Strike]

Brake cleaner.

 

[ConsSVTCobra]

Hey, My blower is at Steig's and I wanted to clean my intercooler because I dont have the thing to catch the oil to keep it out of the blower and it's really dirty. I want to clean it cause it is brown and dingy and I am sure it has oil in it, Im not sure what chemical's I can put on this so I figured i'd ask, cause I know someone has been in the same situation Im in now. Thanks for your help.

+1 on the quote. Not ONLY TRUE, but to the point!

 

[Steel Horse]

ttt

 

[SVTBoxer]

Good question I'm in the same process right now!!!!!

 

[MY DREAM]

Use carb cleaner, it will take the gunk off faster and better than the brake cleaner.

James

 

[Mike K]

Use carb cleaner, it will take the gunk off faster and better than the brake cleaner.

James

Whats the difference between Brake Cleaner and Carb Cleaner?

 

[MY DREAM]

Whats the difference between Brake Cleaner and Carb Cleaner?

The brake cleaner is made to remove the brake dust not oily build up. The carb cleaner is made for removing oils and other residue and buildup. Since you have oil on the inter cooler the carb cleaner works great.

Here it is dirty:

After I cleaned it with carb cleaner:

I used brake cleaner and it didnt do much of any thing, then I grabed the carb cleaner and it came right off.

James

 

[Mike K]

The brake cleaner is made to remove the brake dust not oily build up. The carb cleaner is made for removing oils and other residue and buildup. Since you have oil on the inter cooler the carb cleaner works great.

I used brake cleaner and it didnt do much of any thing, then I grabed the carb cleaner and it came right off.

James

Sorry, cant see pictures on Photobucket but i have delt with intercoolers on two stroke detroit deisels so i know how nasty they can be.

Do you happen to know which brand name Brake Cleaner/Carb Clearner you were using?

I seem to have just the oposite experiece when it comes to cleaners. Our carb cleaner sucks ass when it comes to cleaning stuff off. I have also noticed that there is a huge difference between the manufactures. For example we currently have some CRC Brakecleen both in the green and red can (green is non-clorinated) as well as Cyclo Brake and Parts cleener.

I have noticed that the non-clorinated products clean a whole lot better, while the CRC (red can) leaves a slight film behind it.

I actually prefer the CRC green can or the Cyclo stuff (both non-clorinated) over our PD680 Parts Cleaner (I heard its so bad the military 'banned' its use :dw: ) which does a pretty good job of cleaning parts.

I would, however, highly recommend getting some nitrile gloves when using the stuff and avoid any sensative areas (forearm, arm pits, etc). And no, latex will not work, it will only take seconds to eat through the latex gloves.

Either way, if it gets it clean it gets it clean.

 

[MY DREAM]

I used the red can of CRC brake cleaner and I used Auto Zone brand carb cleaner. Gloves are a must! I'm glad you brought that up.

James

 

[Mike K]

I used the red can of CRC brake cleaner

Ahh, ok, i dont like that stuff either :nonono:

 

[Steel Horse]

So I cleaned it. I used 1 can of carb cleaner. Then sprayed it with purple power and rinsed 3 times. Then Kept flushing with water, Finally used 1 more can of carb cleaner to get rid of the rest of the oil. looks brand new. I bet there was a qt. of oil in that sucker. Definetly going to invest in a oil catcher thing. Thanks for all the input on what to use.

 

[MY DREAM]

So I cleaned it. I used 1 can of carb cleaner. Then sprayed it with purple power and rinsed 3 times. Then Kept flushing with water, Finally used 1 more can of carb cleaner to get rid of the rest of the oil. looks brand new. I bet there was a qt. of oil in that sucker. Definetly going to invest in a oil catcher thing. Thanks for all the input on what to use.

This might help you with the oil seperator.

http://www.svtperformance.com/forums/showthread.php?t=255621

James

 

[Screamin Cobra]

Use carb cleaner, it will take the gunk off faster and better than the brake cleaner.

James

thanks for the im gonna look into that