Need more advice about cleaning sludge..

[dj215]

before the auto-rx application... i will remove the valve cover and replace the gasket seal.. so will i have access to the sludge after removing the VC? if so what should i use to wipe off the sludge as much as i can before i apply auto-rx? thanks guys

 

[dbdeland]

dj215,

After you take the VC off you should know how much sludge you have and if there is a large amount use a small scrapper.I would not spend to much time on it just get the surface Auto-Rx will take care of it. If you can take photos and post them.Are you going to remove the VC after you have completed your cleaning and rinse phases? good luck.

 

[Shaman]

First, take a pic of the head with the VC off, so we can see what you are starting with.

Next, if you want to get some junk off of the head, make sure that whatever you dislodge is taken out of the head, otherwise you risk clogging the oil pickup screen.

 

[Volvohead]

Take a picture, but resist the urge to touch the sludge.

Unless it's reached a critical mass that will cause an immediate lubrication failure, disrupting sludge deposits by hand will make the surrounding deposits MUCH more prone to later detach in sump clogging chunks. And that WILL cause a catastrophic lubrication failure.

Resist the temptation and just don't touch it.

Let the ARX do its work slowly and gently as designed. It works by emulsifying the deposits in amounts that will clear the sump pickup screen.

 

[dj215]

i dont wanna bring a camera to where im taking off the VC and no camera phone but i'll see what i can do

 

[darkdan]

I agree with Volvohead.

 

[dj215]

alright if its not too bad i'll leave it alone...

 

[Frank]

All you have to do is follow application instructions and drive to remove sludge. Thats it.

 

[Rich21]

Follow ther application instructions for heavily sludged motors. It will take two applications for sure if there is considerable deposits.

 

[Rhymingmechanic]

While you have things apart for the gasket change, thoroughly clean the valve cover itself. I am finishing the second Auto-RX rinse on a high-mileage Saturn, and just changed the VC gasket last week. Maybe this engine doesn't have a lot of oil flow or splash in the valvetrain area, because there was lots of black, flaky sludge everywhere except the end that gets splash from the timing chain.

I scraped bunches of sludge out of the valve cover and finished with solvent, a brush, and rags. I figure there's that much less gunk to eventually find its way down into the engine. I also just couldn't resist wiping sludge off the rocker arms--it was soft and came off easily. The whole time, there was a little BITOG voice saying "Don't disturb the sludge. Don't disturb the sludge."

 

[Steelhead]

run a compression and leak down test on a couple cyl's before and after RXing