Sometimes my readers ask me questions about cleaning car air filters. For example – can I wash the air filter? So just here today you can find out how to properly clean the air intake filter in your car and if you can do it at all. Here we go!
Cleaning Techniques for Traditional Elements
First, a few words about whether the air filter can be washed with various commercially available chemicals. As practice shows, washing gives a positive result, provided that the filtering paper is not damaged and frayed from mechanical impact, otherwise, it will cease to retain dust. The exception is the paper carbon elements, it is not allowed to wash them.
The procedure consists of the following steps:
- Removing the filter from the car.
- Primary cleaning with blowing.
- Drying and Reinstallation.
Blowing must be done in any case, you can not immediately immerse the dusty filter in water. Otherwise, the dust deposited in it will immediately turn into dirt that will have to be washed off. After removing the element, carefully shake the debris out of it and first blow on the backside so that the dust particles fly out in the direction from which they entered. Then the filter is blown from all sides in these ways
- with a compressor, available at any tire shop;
- inflate a car camera with air and blow it out by putting an elastic tube on the valve.
After pre-cleaning the filter can be washed using special car cosmetics, sold in aerosol cans. The product should be applied to the surface of the paper and in each groove, and then soak for some time (indicated on the package). In the end, the composition, together with the dirt, should be washed off with a stream of warm water. But pay attention that you cannot Drive with a Broken Air Intake.
Washing the Filter With A Special Cosmetic
Another option – washing with household chemicals for dishes or laundry detergent, but such ways are less effective. The product should be dissolved in warm water, immerse the filter in it and wait 30-40 minutes, then rinse thoroughly. You can’t rub the wet filter paper with different brushes, it will immediately become frayed.
At the end of washing the air filter must be dried well, so that moisture does not get into the engine. It is desirable to dry the element naturally, without the use of hairdryers and other heaters. The paper may warp from strong heating.
Cleaning the Filter from Dust
Zero resistance elements differ not only in cost but also in design. They use modern filtering materials with a large surface area – a special thick paper or cloth. The former are cleaned according to the technology described above – blowing, washing without friction, and drying.
If a cloth is used in the design, you can clean the car air filter with a soft brush and detergent from an aerosol can. It is important to wait the amount of time indicated on the package after applying it and then rinse with warm running water. If the filter was not cleaned the first time, the operation should be repeated.
Thus, after cleaning, it is recommended to apply a special lubricant to the outer surface of the filter. It is painted in a certain color, which allows you to control the process of application and not to make misses. It is not worth abusing the cleaning of air filters, as it gives a temporary effect. The best way to protect the engine from dust is to replace the filter element in time.
