cleaning combustion chambers /valves
Thread Starter
Drifting
Joined: Aug 2010
Posts: 1,704
Likes: 8
cleaning combustion chambers /valves
Hi guys, 85 TPI l98,cat deleted
looking at some burnt headgasket/cylinder pics, i've noted that valves and cylinder dome and valves are incredibly clean,barely lookin' new, due to water been injected into the chamber through the cracked headgasket.
i'm thinkin' about just spray distilled water into the TB ,engine idling, mixed with some injectors cleaner stuff.What do you think about guys?Can i broke something?Is this just like seafoamin' the engine?I would like to broke down all the old carbon deposit a 30 years old engine obviously had.But i'm worried about to do something bad.Can i damage my O2 sensors (i'm running an extra wide band Innovate too)Is it worth tryin'? all opinions are welcome guys let me know ,thanks.
Alberto
looking at some burnt headgasket/cylinder pics, i've noted that valves and cylinder dome and valves are incredibly clean,barely lookin' new, due to water been injected into the chamber through the cracked headgasket.
i'm thinkin' about just spray distilled water into the TB ,engine idling, mixed with some injectors cleaner stuff.What do you think about guys?Can i broke something?Is this just like seafoamin' the engine?I would like to broke down all the old carbon deposit a 30 years old engine obviously had.But i'm worried about to do something bad.Can i damage my O2 sensors (i'm running an extra wide band Innovate too)Is it worth tryin'? all opinions are welcome guys let me know ,thanks.
Alberto
Team Owner
Joined: Aug 2004
Posts: 21,543
Likes: 3,216
From: Park City Utah
Spraying water into the TB while running is a long standing mechanics' method to clean combustion chamber deposits, and yes, it works incredibly well. Done long enough, it can leave the piston crown and combustion chamber/valves looking like new.
Dangers are feeding too much water in at once, causing hydro lock, but if you are using a mist/spray bottle, that won't happen. Need to manually throttle then engine some to keep it form stalling, and you want it to be hot when you do this procedure.
Dangers are feeding too much water in at once, causing hydro lock, but if you are using a mist/spray bottle, that won't happen. Need to manually throttle then engine some to keep it form stalling, and you want it to be hot when you do this procedure.
Thread Starter
Drifting
Joined: Aug 2010
Posts: 1,704
Likes: 8
Spraying water into the TB while running is a long standing mechanics' method to clean combustion chamber deposits, and yes, it works incredibly well. Done long enough, it can leave the piston crown and combustion chamber/valves looking like new.
Dangers are feeding too much water in at once, causing hydro lock, but if you are using a mist/spray bottle, that won't happen. Need to manually throttle then engine some to keep it form stalling, and you want it to be hot when you do this procedure.
Dangers are feeding too much water in at once, causing hydro lock, but if you are using a mist/spray bottle, that won't happen. Need to manually throttle then engine some to keep it form stalling, and you want it to be hot when you do this procedure.
Alberto
Team Owner
Joined: Aug 2004
Posts: 21,543
Likes: 3,216
From: Park City Utah
IDK if mixing things w/it would help or not. A chemist might know.
The water is "old school"...because it works. It worked in 1910, and it still works today. It's one of those fundamental things that always works...like a level, or a plumb-bob.
The water is "old school"...because it works. It worked in 1910, and it still works today. It's one of those fundamental things that always works...like a level, or a plumb-bob.
Team Owner
Joined: Aug 2004
Posts: 21,543
Likes: 3,216
From: Park City Utah
LOL! IDK....probably not. Probably some white steam is about all they'll get....along w/the roaring engine noise!
You hear about people using "treatments", such as seafoam, top end cleaner, etc...and they get lots of smoke -and that is "evidence" that the product is working; "look at all the crud that came out!". In most cases, the smoke is caused by the product itself. For example, one of the ingredients in Seafoam is oil. If you shoot oil down the intake of a running engine...it's going to produce smoke.
You hear about people using "treatments", such as seafoam, top end cleaner, etc...and they get lots of smoke -and that is "evidence" that the product is working; "look at all the crud that came out!". In most cases, the smoke is caused by the product itself. For example, one of the ingredients in Seafoam is oil. If you shoot oil down the intake of a running engine...it's going to produce smoke.
Last edited by Tom400CFI; Oct 1, 2014 at 05:23 PM.
Instructor
Joined: Feb 2014
Posts: 139
Likes: 0
From: Lakeland FL
Spraying water into the TB while running is a long standing mechanics' method to clean combustion chamber deposits, and yes, it works incredibly well. Done long enough, it can leave the piston crown and combustion chamber/valves looking like new.
Dangers are feeding too much water in at once, causing hydro lock, but if you are using a mist/spray bottle, that won't happen. Need to manually throttle then engine some to keep it form stalling, and you want it to be hot when you do this procedure.
Dangers are feeding too much water in at once, causing hydro lock, but if you are using a mist/spray bottle, that won't happen. Need to manually throttle then engine some to keep it form stalling, and you want it to be hot when you do this procedure.
I've fed many motors water over the years. Works real good for cleaning carbon off the tops of pistons and the combustion camber.
I prefer a squirt bottle with a 1/16"-1/8" hole. Warm motor kept about 2000-3000 RPM and feed it too it.
Disclaimer: If the motor suddenly stops (locks up) you put too much water down it. Break out the wallet!
Race Director
Joined: Apr 2002
Posts: 10,036
Likes: 346
From: Anaheim CA
I watched a mechanic at a dealership use a radiator fill hose on a station wagon. He revved up the engine pretty high and was POURING water into the carburetor. I was amazed at how much water was going into that engine. Lots of junk came out the exhaust. Black smoke turned into white smoke and he was done.
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Thread Starter
Drifting
Joined: Aug 2010
Posts: 1,704
Likes: 8
i'm concerned if you still run cat in your car, all that crude comes out from exhaust headers directly into your cat's filter material cloggin' it,may be?or does the steam itself clean out even the cat element?just guessin'
Team Owner
Joined: Aug 2004
Posts: 21,543
Likes: 3,216
From: Park City Utah
Seems like a legitimate concern. IDK what to say about that; I suspect that most of the particles are too small to clog the cat, and any larger ones would be "vaporized" in the cat by heat....but IDK for sure. Never done this and then pulled the cat to look. Never had a problem w/a clogged cat from doing it either.
Thread Starter
Drifting
Joined: Aug 2010
Posts: 1,704
Likes: 8
ok guys i'm here to report back ,parked the car out of town in a country road,open the hood loosen coupler hose clamps ,take out the coupler leaving the MAF in place connected,started engine,it was warm ,i used a spray bottle,like these for glass cleaner,distilled water,our water here is rich of carbonate.revved engine up to 2800 and sprayed carefully through the TB blades small amount of water at the time about 1 liter (yes i'm a metric guy).Expecting a big white smoke,but strangely nothin' happen ,no smoke just an engine revvin' high with no visibile smoke.Used at the same time injectors cleaner into gas tank,even if i suspect our old injectors don't like modern chemicals...that's all guys 
i looked the video and was scared by the amount of water injected,but i think this guy was just a DROP of water from hydrolock
regards Alberto
i looked the video and was scared by the amount of water injected,but i think this guy was just a DROP of water from hydrolock
regards Alberto
Last edited by tunedport85inject; Oct 2, 2014 at 03:47 PM.