Old skool carb cleaner???

[kb9lae]

Anyone ever use or hear of using distilled water to boil your carbs? Supposedly this is a way to freshen them up after sitting for a year or so without using chemdip.

[mdunn]

I have heard of using distilled water with lemon juice and biling them. I hear the acid nature of the lemon juice cleanes them right up..never tried it though.

[tconroy]

Your both right! The water and lemon juice boil is good because it opens the pores in the metal and gets all the grime out.I would'nt do it indoors if I were you unless your a single person.My wife hates the smell of fish so i have to cook outback on the campstove so it dont stink up the house.

[kb9lae]

Do you have any details about this procedure? IE.. do you slow boil, or fast and hard?? Do you place the carbs in before it boils to give them time to adjust to the temp change or put them in once boiling? Do you put them in whole, as a set, indivually, or taken apart? As you can see I have many questions:-D:-D

[salty_monk]

I would think you could dip them whole which would help free off all the screws & then a second time once they are in pieces. I think that's what I would do......

Boiling it hard or soft probably won't make a huge difference, I'd go slowly & see what happens, keep rubber bits away from the bottom of the pan if poss. I don't think it will matter if you start cold or plunge it either.

Citrus is a natural degreaser. It's also one of the only things that will get rid of the smell of fish off your hands... I would think you could also use one of the environmentally friendly degreasers or the citrus based "green" dish soap as an alternative to Lemon.

I guess it's distilled water so it doesn't have any deposits in it such as calcium etc.

Dan

[TheCafeKid]

And be careful! Distilled water will super heat before it boils, because there are no impurities in it to cause it to boil. Heating it to normal h20 boiling temp and dropping in the carb could cause it to flash boil and getcha!

[tkent02]

And be careful! Distilled water will super heat before it boils, because there are no impurities in it to cause it to boil. Heating it to normal h20 boiling temp and dropping in the carb could cause it to flash boil and getcha!

Wouldn't lemon juice be an impurity?

[TheCafeKid]

yes it would, but i was refering to the person who was talking about JUST using distilled water.

[tkent02]

OKay, next question, how much lemon juice in the water?
Does it really matter?
Anything else to add to give it a little more kick?

[KiwiGS]

And be careful! Distilled water will super heat before it boils, because there are no impurities in it to cause it to boil. Heating it to normal h20 boiling temp and dropping in the carb could cause it to flash boil and getcha!

Pure water at sea level boils at 100C. Whilst impurities and height above sea level will change the boiling temp.It will not change it by much.
It would make sense to bring the carbs to the boil rather just dumping them in (You know what happens when you drop pasta in to boiling water)
I have heard that you only add a "few drops" of lemon juice but that is second hand and I have never tried it.

[TheCafeKid]

Give it a shot...put a cup of distilled water in the micro..it wont boil for ever..then after a few minutes in there drop a fork in the cup..boils instantly...Thanks Mythbusters! (and yes corndog...Keri's booty is damn sexah..along with the rest of her..lol)

[salty_monk]

Milk does that too....

I reckon you'll need more than a few drops of lemon to make a big difference. My friend uses Citric acid (purified) to clean medical equipment & they use it at a high concentration.

Dan

[Matchless]

I pulled my carbs last month, stripped all the rubber parts and separated them. Then I made up a strong mix of cold water washing powder and soaked the carb bodies in there overnight.The cold water washing powder completely degreased the outside as well.
Then rinced the carbs with clean water and blew out all cavities with compressed air.
Thereafter I sprayed penetrating oil (Q20), WD40 should do the same, on the complete carb and into all the cavities and drillings and let it stand for a couple of hours.
Next I buffed the top covers and the float bowls.
Next step was to blow out and clean as prescribed with a can of carb cleaner.

When assembling a small spot of copper slip anti seizing compound on the threads of the pilot adjusting screw may stop it seizing up in future and some water resistant grease (marine) around the head of the crew to stop water getting in if the anti tampering cap has been removed.

[hampshirehog]

On the same theme but with a slightly different take, my standard procedure is to simmer, just below boiling point (plenty of air bubbles) with a drop (single drop) of detergent - standard washing-up liquid. Do it when the wife is out (stinks the house out) and use an old pan as the petrol taints badly.

I've only ever bothered with tap water - never distilled - and it works a treat.

Wally

[gaillarry]

I've boiled lots of carbs in lemon juice. Plain tap water, small bottle of lemon juice concentrate, bring to boil, drop in carbs for 10 mins and remove. I use an old turkey pan I stole from the kitchen, big and deep enough to hold the carbs submerged. This stuff stinks and foams when boiling to don't leave it unattended. Once the carbs dry you'll notice a white residue on the metal, wipe if off with WD40 or LubeAll. Carbs come out like new.