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air filter housing problems, please help

  • Thread starter Thread starter newbie851519
  • Start date Start date
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newbie851519

Guest
'80 gs850gt
okay- i've taken apart the entire air filter system and housing, and it appears that in between where the breather hose from the crankcase connects to the air filter housing and where it vents into the top chamber of the housing, is pretty clogged. i've run a lot of hot water through it and non-flammable solvent, but it still seems very clogged. you can blow air through it by mouth, but it requires a little effort. i've scraped at the inside as much as I can with a screwdriver on the top end (round cylinder) and a knife on the sides (small slits), without having much luck.

- do i need to clean this out more? how do i do this more effectively?

also, there appears to have been a foam gasket on the ceiling of the bottom chamber, where the air filter unit itself meets the housing unit on the ceiling of the bottom chamber. it was an oval ring shaped thin foam pad, which i assume keeps it airtight when the filter is slided in. this foam has completely corroded and broken apart, leaving the housing (up and bottom chambers) full of tiny foam pieces (not a good thing i would think). i've checked the oem parts on bikebandit, to no avail.

-where can i get this little foam piece?

thanks for the help.

-nick j
 
I'll Second That!

I'll Second That!

On your first problem, I would suggest replacing all of those "oil separator" parts with new ones along with the hose that connects it to the "filter housing". They will have to come from Suzuki.

As to your second problem, the first thing you MUST do is clean all the tiny pieces out. I would try aerosol carburetor cleaner or submerge it in a vat of cleaner.

I discovered yesterday during servicing of the air filter that that very same "seal" has rotted on my bike also. This is the thin foam strip that is glued to the frame that supports the actual "air filter" itself. It pushes up against the "air cleaner housing" to make a dirt proof seal.

Does anyone know what options we have here? I don't see this part listed in the Suzuki parts list as available!

Thanks, Bruce
 
I would try soaking the whloe unit in a heavy dose of detergent and water. You can get grease and oil detergents at auto parts stores. They might just be 409 with a new label. Given the parts unavailability and expense it is probably time to consider some pods and the dreaded rejetting. I don't know what you do with the breather hose if you go to pods. Perhaps someone whos done it has an idea. If you want to stay stock then you'll have to get creative. For foam pieces I've bought the foam they sell for lawn mover air filters and cut it up on a band saw. You might also be able to replace the seal with a custom made o-ring. They sell kits that allow you to take a piece of o-ring off a roll and glue the ends togeather. One of the hardware stores in Jax will make them up. Yeah I know thats quite a trip from Portland, but you might can find one there that does it. Keep in mind all you need to do is get the filter sealed against the plenum that feeds air to the carbs. Silicone weather sealant might also work. It hardens but normally can be pealed off so you can change the filter again.
 
Don't use silicone -- it will deteriorate in the hot gasoline vapor environment.

Sealing your airbox is a rite of passage for every GS owner -- they all lose the foam seals under the side covers of the airbox (if your model has these) and the foam seal on the top of the air filter. (Your GS850 has the side covers, and these MUST be sealed too.)

Simply use foam self-stick weatherstripping from any hardware or home store (I've successfully used the gray and black kind) and trim to fit with a sharp knife and scissors. Use trim cement (sticky yellow goop like heavy-duty contact cement, sometimes called "gorilla snot") to stick the edges of the pieces of weatherstripping together so they don't leak.

For example, the top of a GS850 air filter takes four pieces, and you cement them to each other at the edges, then trim to fit the round corners. Coat the top surfaces with a bit of grease so they will slide against the surface of the airbox when you install the filter.

Your bike will run a LOT better -- far too many GS bikes are running too lean because of leaky airboxes. Running lean is running hot, and that will kill your engine pretty quickly.

A lot of airflow through the crankcase vent is not essential or desired. Clean it out as best you can, but as long as there's a passage of some kind, don't worry about it.
 
Last edited:
Side Cover Seals?? What??

Side Cover Seals?? What??

bwringer said:
Sealing your airbox is a rite of passage for every GS owner -- they all lose the foam seals under the side covers of the airbox (if your model has these) and the foam seal on the top of the air filter. (Your GS850 has the side covers, and these MUST be sealed too.)
Click to expand...

Am not sure what you mean by under the side covers...There are rubber gaskets covering the top chamber on both sides and sealing where it meets the chrome side covers, but I don't see any foam anywhere...
What do I need to seal on the side covers??

Thanks for the great advice, will do.
 
newbie851519 said:
Am not sure what you mean by under the side covers...There are rubber gaskets covering the top chamber on both sides and sealing where it meets the chrome side covers, but I don't see any foam anywhere...
What do I need to seal on the side covers??
Click to expand...

You have a metal airbox on your on your '80 850 and I think you have described the only seal the airbox side covers have--the rubber gasket. They are all you need there--just make sure the edges of the airbox fit in the little groove running all around the gasket (including the piece that separates the two chambers) so that it lays flat and produces a seal without any gaps.

Bwringer is thinking, I think, about the later 850's with the plastic airbox. They did have some foam behind the side covers and glued to them. It rotted pretty quick and shredded all to pieces. I threw mine away when that happened because I thought it was probably put there for sound deadening, anyway. I think I need to take another look and see if a seal is really needed there. I thought those side covers clamped on pretty tightly, but maybe not...

If you look around at specialty hardware stores, you can probably find some
closed-cell polyurethane foam weather stripping about 1/4 to 3/8" wide and about 1/4" thick, with adhesive on one side and a clear plastic membrane (kinda like scotch tape!) on the other side.

I cleaned the surface of the metal filter frame and stuck it on the surface where it would mate to the airbox. (It's easier to put it on the filter frame than to try to put where the OEM seal was.) If you fit the pieces close together, they will fit even tighter together when the filter frame is locked into place, so I didn't think I needed to glue mine at the ends.

The scotch tape-looking membrane is slick and lets the filter frame slide right into place without dislodging the weatherstriping or causing it to roll up, etc, etc. When you screw the filter frame into place, you've got a nice tight seal.

Gas and oil don't seem to bother it either. I've been using it just like this on my '79 and '83 850's for about 10 years--same foam. When you buy this stuff, you'll probably get 25 feet or so, so even if you have to do it again several more times, you'll have enough product.

I would try to get the rust out of that chamber in the top of the airbox. If you feel around inside the rubber airhorns leading to the carbs, you will probably feel something gritty. It's rust that's been sucked out of that top chamber--that air is unfiltered and it's getting into the engine. I've got the same problem on my '79. Acidic engine blowby causes the metal to rust. I'm now looking into whether I can clean mine well enough to apply POR-15--or maybe Kreem--in that chamber to stop the rusting.

Hope this helps

Tomcat
 
Hey "Newbie"Nick, how's it going? Another '80 850G in the NW - Cool!
I'll send you a "Private Message" here through the GS-R site. We're going to try and get a ride going out by Mt.St. Helens this season, more later.

These descriptions are right on, and exactly what I did as well. My side seals are just as you described. And I used the weather striping stuck to the top of the filter frame, as these guys said.

Good luck, Greg
 
great advice

great advice

thanks guys. I cleaned it out really well, and cleared out the breather chamber thoroughly with a paper clip (bent) and a lot of 409. Seemed to work really well. I dont think there's too much rust in there anymore...I'll have to take another look at it soon to see if I need to de-rustify it.
I used 1/4 inch foam weather stripping, thanks for the advice on that, it worked really well. It seems to make a really nice seal with the carbs, and the intake boots all look good, so I think I'm in fine shape now...
Just waiting on a few parts to get the bike in prime riding condition...

Thanks for the great advice, couldn't have figured it out as well without you all. Am glad this forum exists and there are so many good GS'ers out there.

-Nick
 
The olden days...

The olden days...

Do you folks realize that up until the late 70's crankcase breathers were just plumbed to exit down where the battery breather and fuel gauge "leak" overflow tubing are located? It is not necessary to have that "gunk" dump into your air box, I relocated mine while the bike was still under warranty and the Suzuki mechanic was happy that I did.

Just be CERTAIN that you plug the inlet into the air box to keep out dust and "critters"...

Bruce
 
need vacuum?

need vacuum?

Highcountry2000 said:
Do you folks realize that up until the late 70's crankcase breathers were just plumbed to exit down where the battery breather and fuel gauge "leak" overflow tubing are located? It is not necessary to have that "gunk" dump into your air box, I relocated mine while the bike was still under warranty and the Suzuki mechanic was happy that I did.

Just be CERTAIN that you plug the inlet into the air box to keep out dust and "critters"...

Bruce
Click to expand...

Interesting notion...I wouldn't have thought of that...

one concern: I would assume that by having the breather hose flow into the air box, it creates a vacuum on the crankcase breather. Is this a benefit in anyway? otherwise I guess it seems right to plug up the entry and relocate the breather out the overflow area...

What is the purpose of having it flow into the airbox? Environmental? Or other? Does it keep the air filter oiled?
 
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