A/C Condenser Cleaner
05-21-2014, 12:29 AM
#1
Safety Car
Thread Starter
A/C Condenser Cleaner
One of the to-do items on my improve-engine-cooling list was to clean the radiator fins on my C6 -- on the car. I recall a really nasty radiator (and A/C evaporator) from my C4 days (removed from the car).
I first thought of pressure washing, then after a bit of research found that was a not a good idea.
I then stumbled across some Home Depot HVAC evaporator spray-on cleaner that didn't get good reviews, but the concept seemed good -- the cleaner goes on as a fluid then foams and expands, pushing the dirt and gunk out of the fins from the inside (seems the cheap Home Depot stuff @ $5/can didn't get the foam procedure in the correct sequence). So, I checked the Grainger catalog and found a whole bunch of the same type of stuff. After some research settled on a version called Nu Brite, about $12/can.
It did the trick, although the A/C condenser was the dirty one -- the radiator looked pretty clean. The stuff sprays on as a liquid, runs inside the fins, then foams up like an oven cleaner (but supposed to be safe for aluminum, unlike oven cleaner). Give it 10 or 15 minutes to work, then hose it off with water. One can did the condenser. I didn't remove the condenser to check closely, but the way the garden hose water flowed thru it I think it wound up much cleaner than when I started.
Remove the air cleaner intake tube, the top radiator cover/shroud (4 bolts), and pry back the front shroud with a bungee cord or some such (or have someone hold it open) while you spray the cleaner down on the front of the condenser. I soaked the oil cooler too altho it is so far down there I couldn't see if it needed it or not.
Nu-Brite Alkaline Based Coil Cleaner, 18 oz aerosol, Grainger stock no. 1ANJ2
I first thought of pressure washing, then after a bit of research found that was a not a good idea.
I then stumbled across some Home Depot HVAC evaporator spray-on cleaner that didn't get good reviews, but the concept seemed good -- the cleaner goes on as a fluid then foams and expands, pushing the dirt and gunk out of the fins from the inside (seems the cheap Home Depot stuff @ $5/can didn't get the foam procedure in the correct sequence). So, I checked the Grainger catalog and found a whole bunch of the same type of stuff. After some research settled on a version called Nu Brite, about $12/can.
It did the trick, although the A/C condenser was the dirty one -- the radiator looked pretty clean. The stuff sprays on as a liquid, runs inside the fins, then foams up like an oven cleaner (but supposed to be safe for aluminum, unlike oven cleaner). Give it 10 or 15 minutes to work, then hose it off with water. One can did the condenser. I didn't remove the condenser to check closely, but the way the garden hose water flowed thru it I think it wound up much cleaner than when I started.
Remove the air cleaner intake tube, the top radiator cover/shroud (4 bolts), and pry back the front shroud with a bungee cord or some such (or have someone hold it open) while you spray the cleaner down on the front of the condenser. I soaked the oil cooler too altho it is so far down there I couldn't see if it needed it or not.
Nu-Brite Alkaline Based Coil Cleaner, 18 oz aerosol, Grainger stock no. 1ANJ2
05-21-2014, 12:53 PM
#2
Race Director
One of the to-do items on my improve-engine-cooling list was to clean the radiator fins on my C6 -- on the car. I recall a really nasty radiator (and A/C evaporator) from my C4 days (removed from the car).
I first thought of pressure washing, then after a bit of research found that was a not a good idea.
I then stumbled across some Home Depot HVAC evaporator spray-on cleaner that didn't get good reviews, but the concept seemed good -- the cleaner goes on as a fluid then foams and expands, pushing the dirt and gunk out of the fins from the inside (seems the cheap Home Depot stuff @ $5/can didn't get the foam procedure in the correct sequence). So, I checked the Grainger catalog and found a whole bunch of the same type of stuff. After some research settled on a version called Nu Brite, about $12/can.
It did the trick, although the A/C condenser was the dirty one -- the radiator looked pretty clean. The stuff sprays on as a liquid, runs inside the fins, then foams up like an oven cleaner (but supposed to be safe for aluminum, unlike oven cleaner). Give it 10 or 15 minutes to work, then hose it off with water. One can did the condenser. I didn't remove the condenser to check closely, but the way the garden hose water flowed thru it I think it wound up much cleaner than when I started.
Remove the air cleaner intake tube, the top radiator cover/shroud (4 bolts), and pry back the front shroud with a bungee cord or some such (or have someone hold it open) while you spray the cleaner down on the front of the condenser. I soaked the oil cooler too altho it is so far down there I couldn't see if it needed it or not.
Nu-Brite Alkaline Based Coil Cleaner, 18 oz aerosol, Grainger stock no. 1ANJ2
I first thought of pressure washing, then after a bit of research found that was a not a good idea.
I then stumbled across some Home Depot HVAC evaporator spray-on cleaner that didn't get good reviews, but the concept seemed good -- the cleaner goes on as a fluid then foams and expands, pushing the dirt and gunk out of the fins from the inside (seems the cheap Home Depot stuff @ $5/can didn't get the foam procedure in the correct sequence). So, I checked the Grainger catalog and found a whole bunch of the same type of stuff. After some research settled on a version called Nu Brite, about $12/can.
It did the trick, although the A/C condenser was the dirty one -- the radiator looked pretty clean. The stuff sprays on as a liquid, runs inside the fins, then foams up like an oven cleaner (but supposed to be safe for aluminum, unlike oven cleaner). Give it 10 or 15 minutes to work, then hose it off with water. One can did the condenser. I didn't remove the condenser to check closely, but the way the garden hose water flowed thru it I think it wound up much cleaner than when I started.
Remove the air cleaner intake tube, the top radiator cover/shroud (4 bolts), and pry back the front shroud with a bungee cord or some such (or have someone hold it open) while you spray the cleaner down on the front of the condenser. I soaked the oil cooler too altho it is so far down there I couldn't see if it needed it or not.
Nu-Brite Alkaline Based Coil Cleaner, 18 oz aerosol, Grainger stock no. 1ANJ2
