hey I am rebuilding my motor and I have everything out of the bay while I rebuild things. I had an oil leak and everything is really dirty and greasy... how do I clean the following stuffs without damaging them?

power steering pump/pulley/bracket
a/c pump/bracket/tensioner/pulley
cooling fans - cooling and a/c fans/radiators
tranny outside casing/block/head...
alternator (really grimy and grungy)

I would think engine degreaser would work but I dunno about spraying it directly on/in the alternator or into the cooling fans. Same with the power-steering pump and a/c compressor, I don't want to damage it by spraying cleaner and it accidentally getting inside the pumps.

Also, the inside of my intake manifold is coated with a thick layer of black grease and dirt. The way my motor died it seemed to backfire combustion back through the intake. The throttle body and injectors are also coated in black greasy gunk. How do I clean this all out without damaging the parts?

thanks so much honda tech..

 

I've powerwashed entire engine bays before. Started the car right up and drove off. As long as you've got all open holes covered up and let it all dry before installing and running, you should be good to just go to town on it all with degreaser and powerwasher.
But then again, I could just be one lucky guy

 

I've sprayed mine down as well. Just make sure the inside of your IM and TB and stuff dry completely before using them. Stuff gets wet all the time if you drive your car in the rain. Anyone on here have any issues with this?

 

I think my buddy actually blew his engine because he powerwashed his vehicle while it was running... got it all into the intake. It wasn't running right soon after and within a week, cracked block.... I'm so paranoid about my cai now just from rain getting into it

 

Yeah, some heavy-duty engine degreaser and a pressure washer works great.

 

just pressure wash it, cover your intake (if aftermarket) and your distributor. make sure car is cool when you do it.

 

I'll get some pix up later today hopefully, seems my point was missed.

 

thanks tho

 

Most dealerships pressure wash the engines of all used cars too. You're just supposed to avoid the intake, battery, distributor, etc. We never even cover them.

I had zero problems at that job and none of my coworkers ever had problems either. We cleaned a lot of cars and they all got the engine sprayed down while the car was running.

I think the OP is talking about cleaning an engine while it's possibly out of the car though.

Now I'm confused. Why would you spray degreaser directly into an alternator anyway?
I never had an issue with the industrial degreaser we used at the job I mentioned above.

 

One of my friends suggested Simple Green for cleaning engine parts. That stuff works pretty good for cutting through dirt and oil.

He said all the stuff is really grimey. I can see spraying the alternator with degreaser if that's the case. Just rinse it off good and make sure it's dried out well before using it. It's not going to be the water that harms parts, it's the electricity flowing where it shouldn't BECAUSE of the water.

As for the intake, take all your sensors and such off and soak it good with cleaner. Get a bottle brush or something else to scrub with and go to town on it.

 

for normal engine bay cleanings, degreaser would be the obvious choice. but due to evil shenanigans - a bearing spun and a rod punched a hole in my block, spraying oil everywhere in the bay. the alternator and a/c compressor are especially coated with burnt oil, dirt, grease, and metal shavings from the bearing and rod blowing out the side of the block.

i'm just trying to be extra cautious and make sure that spraying degreaser directly on (and inside, inevitably) the alternator and a/c compressor won't destroy them.

thumper posed a great point that damage will not be caused by water on the components, but from water causing electrical shorts inside the components if they aren't dry. reminds me of spilling water on my laptop and turning it off until it dried. it worked fine when it came back on a few days later...

 

I'll get some pix up later to illustrate what i'm talking about.

 

You can always get a brush and brush the degreaser onto where you want it after wiping the bulk of it off with old rags. That and sealing anything shut you don't want it in will keep them from being contaminated. This is when Duck Tape is OK to use...

I honestly don't see why you removed those two pumps. When I swapped the engine in my first civic, I pulled the pump over and laid it on top of the driver side fender. My AC compressor I zip tied to my radiator support. It was a bit tight with the AC compressor, but a second set of hands would have made it easy.

 

I removed the pumps because I am painting the engine bay. this is my first swap, so I don't mind having everything out so I can see how it all fits together in there and understand it so if something breaks I know exactly what it is.

I settled on a combination of brake cleaner, degreaser, and wire brushing. I also had a realization that I could clean it all after re-assembling it - use lots of degreaser and then powerwash the **** out of the bay when it's all bolted in solid.

thanks for the helps to all.

 

i got water sucked up in my intake and now my block is blown lol if people want picks just PM me or ill just post it on hear