GUnk engine cleaner .. safe?

[Boriqua]

Now that my bike is starting and running reliably I am on to other things.. I need new sprockets and chain and I have some other adjustments but by and large .. I am looking to dress it up a bit. There is some spudge on my engine. Not bad but enough that it annoys me. There seems to be paint on the engine. Would it be safe to hit it with some gunk engine cleaner and then hose it off or will it bubble and peal whatever appears to be on the engine. I figure any cleaning I can do will help it run cooler in this hellish weather also.
alex

 

[chuck hahn]

Suzuki actually makes thier own engine degreaser..should be at any dealership. Or it wont take long for them to get some in.

 

[Nessism]

Gunk is pretty safe. If the paint is loose and flaky it may come off but other than that it won't hurt anything. The citrus version Gunk stinks a whole lot less than the regular stuff which has a strong petroleum smell.

 

[Cipher]

I read years ago theres a sulphur content issue with some degreasers
read msds maybe?
sulphur plus water is H2SO4

 

[bonanzadave]

Get a little bristle brush and some simple green. Hose it off thoroughly.

 

[storm 64]

I've been using Gunk Engine Brite for years. It never affected the paint. Spray it on, scrub, wash it off. Repeat as nessasary...

 

[gbw]

I had pretty good luck with Simple Green and a toilet brush on my old 750. It was never perfect but it was better. I bought a toilet brush specifically for that purpose. Didn't really want to employ a used one

 

[JJ]

Get a little bristle brush and some simple green. Hose it off thoroughly.

That's what I do. Simple green Pro - the purple stuff from Home Depot. Either rinse with a pressure washer using just water, or take it to a car wash for rinsing.

 

[Brendan W]

I had pretty good luck with Simple Green and a toilet brush on my old 750. It was never perfect but it was better. I bought a toilet brush specifically for that purpose. Didn't really want to employ a used one

We bought one of those toilet brushes. Took less than a week for the whole family to insist we went back to paper.

 

[Guest]

We bought one of those toilet brushes. Took less than a week for the whole family to insist we went back to paper.

That just made my morning.

 

[JJ]

We bought one of those toilet brushes. Took less than a week for the whole family to insist we went back to paper.

I almost sprayed a mouthful of coffee on the monitor. Thanks for the laugh!

 

[gbw]

We bought one of those toilet brushes. Took less than a week for the whole family to insist we went back to paper.

Yeah, I don't care who you are. That right there is funny

 

[1948man]

We bought one of those toilet brushes. Took less than a week for the whole family to insist we went back to paper.

I once bought some John Wayne Toilet Paper. It was rough and tough and didn't take any $hit off anybody.

 

[gbw]

We bought one of those toilet brushes. Took less than a week for the whole family to insist we went back to paper.

I think you're doing it wrong

 

[Allie]

LoLoLoL Dpep you scamp you. I like Simple Green, great stuff!

 

[bwringer]

Not that I've ever been caught cleaning much... but I'll agree the Gunk products shouldn't hurt anything and do a good job. The citrus smells a bit less bad and is theoretically less bad for the environment. Simple Green is also OK as long as you rinse very quickly, but I can't say I like strong urinal deodorizer smell.

Stay away from "Purple Power" and similar highly acidic cleaners -- they're a very, very bad idea on aluminum. Read the labels carefully.



One thing I'll warn against is some 3M brand engine cleaner I bought at Napa yesterday. Holy crap, that stuff is mostly paint stripper -- the really, really mean stuff that smells like powerful hair bleach. Yeah, it removes grease, but it will also chew through paint, flesh, and anything that's not metal. And it could legitimately kill you in an enclosed space.

With some heavy-duty chemical gloves, it was just the ticket for cleaning up some very sorry-looking pistons, though.

I'm honestly wondering if this stuff is mislabeled -- there's no way in hell you'd want something that active anywhere near plastic or rubber parts, and it has a warning that it will strip paint quickly.

 

[Guest]

I've been using Gunk Engine Brite for years. It never affected the paint. Spray it on, scrub, wash it off. Repeat as nessasary... 

I've used it for years also, a very effective degreaser. Only problem I experienced was it had a tendency to dry out and yellow the protective clear coat on aluminum parts, such as engine cases. I went to a milder degreaser afterwards but the damage had been done.