Comparision of some injector cleaner ingredients

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From a Miata owners ingredient study of some common injector cleaners from MSDS information; http://www.jhodson.net/miata99/inj-cleaners.txt

"I made this file to show the differences between Injector cleaners.
Some cost $2 others cost $13, the mid priced bottles are a best buy.
This method does not come close to sending all your injectors for a clean and balance.

Most cheap injector cleaners are just
pure kerosene or alcohol., like $2 GumOut.

Some MSDS forms say trade secret, but tell what chem. that is not toxic and would clean an injector?
The top brands , tell the truth here.


MSDS data:
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Techron Concentrate
Distillates, hydrotreated light < 50 %weight Aka: Paint thinner(oil based)
Stoddard solvent < 35 %weight Aka: dry clean solvent, white solvent
Solvent naphtha, light aromatic 5 - 10 %weight : zippo lighter fluid
Benzene, 1,2,4-trimethyl- 95-63-6 1 - 5 %weight : powerful toxic solvent
Xylene , powerful solvent


Techron is naptha and 3 kinds of benenze.
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GUM OUT INJECTOR CLEANER (WINTER GRADE)

Chemical Percent
Trade secret or proprietary formula < 1 ( secret #1)
Petroleum distillate(s) (unspecified) 40-70 ( most likely paint thinner)
Detergent/Inhibitor mixture 1-10 ( secret #2 )
Isopropanol 30-50 (rubbing alcohol, GAS DRYER "CH3CHOHCH3")

I can not begin to guess why we need more alcohol when all gas has it already.
Gasoline, must contain 2% oxygen by weight, in most smog chocked areas of the USA.

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Seafoam ingredients:
1 PALE OIL 4229 40-60% = A base or process oil refined until its color = yellow.
2 NAPHTHA 20 25-35% solvent powerful , common in all good injector cleaners. Zippo juice !
3 IPA 125 10-20% = Isopropyl Alcohol (rubbing alcohol), Useless in gas , cuz it already has tons.

in my opinion , putting oil into your gasoline is not too smart. Think about it?
fouls plugs, makes lots of carbon , and messes up OXy sensors. You decide.
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"GM TEC" ingredients:

2-BUTOXYETHANOL, a paint and ink solvent , used even in Clorox cleaner 409
Naptha, , raises octane rating of gas, , simular to Zippo ligher fluid. Coleman camp fuel.
4-METHYL-2-PENTANOL, (aka:Methyl isobutyl carbinol) used as a lacquer paint tinner
9-OCTADECENDIC ACID.(aka:Oleic acid, found in Olive oil) ( this acid is interesting)


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BG-44k: ( madly popular but little different than old Chevron Techron)

Light Aromatic Solvent Naphtha , ( Zippo lighter fluid)

1, 2, 4-Trimethylbenzene , commonly found in up to 7% by volume already in Gasoline.

Xylene ,(1,2-dimethylbenzene & 1,3-dimethylbenzene & 1,4-dimethylbenzene), xylol , powerful solvent

Cumene ,(isopropylbenzene, ) powerful solvent,raises octane of gasoline.
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GUNK , RADIATOR SPECIALTY COMPANY, FUEL INJECTION AIR INTAKE CLEANER

2-Propanone 30-60 % aka: Acetone
Ethylbenzene >10 % a powerful solvent
Hydrotreated Heavy Paraffinic Distillate 1-10 % weak solvent
Methanol 1-4% , solvent.
Propane 10-30% , gas
Toluene 15-45% ,powerful solvent
Xylene (mixed isomers) 5-20%
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Red Line SI-1
1-5% Alkenylamine - (a detergent ,even used sometimes,in baby shampoo)
1-10% Isoctanol - ( C8H18O , aka, 2-ethylhexan-1-ol, or Octyl alcohol)
1-10% 1,2,4 Trimethylbenzene , (C9H12 )
5-20% Aliphactic Napthta , zippo lighter fluid. , aka: white gas, low octane)
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Valvoline Complete Fuel System Cleaner
52 - 62% Kersosene
28-38% Light hydrotreated petroleum distillate
6-16% Stoddard Solvent ( stoddard is the name of the man who invented dry cleaning)


Warning, some of the chemical names have 20-30 synonyms."
 
Once again, MSDS' do not tell the whole formulation story.


Quote:
putting oil into your gasoline is not too smart.


Oils are used as solvent carriers, UCLs, and to prevent evaporation. These oils are generally very low viscosity, highly refined oils and burn cleanly.

There are thousands of variations of alkylamines. You can't compare water soluble alkyl's with oil soluble alkyl's.
 
The MSDS data for Red Line SI-1 is not correct as shown. See here for one dated April 18, 2008.

50% PolyEther Amine
10% Isooctanol
20% Aliphatic Naphtha

The PolyEther Amine is one of the really good gas cleaners used - found in Red Line SI-1, Amsoil Pi, Gumout Regane and a few others.

Rumple
 
The alcohol added to gasoline (ethanol) is not the same alcohol as that found in several of those cleaners (isopropyl).

Isopropyl is a more powerful solvent than ethanol. I actually took a bottle of Everclear and a bottle of rubbing alcohol and tested them side by side in cleaning oil off metal parts. Ethanol stinks as a cleaning solvent.
 
I've heard an old wive's tale that using injector cleaner with solvents in it will quickly reduce the life of your fuel pump (or flat out kill an old one) because the solvents burn up the fuel pump windings (since the fluid flows THROUGH the motor).

Is there any truth to that, or is it mostly hogwash?
 
I'm no chemist, but I know that Techron has eliminated pinging in 100's of Suzuki's and took my Grand Cherokee from pinging on 90 octane to not pinging on 80 octane. Worth every penny of it.
 
Tracking down and organizing these MSDS's is great. The explanations and commentary are a little lacking and at times ill-informed.
LOL.gif
 
The Techron additive is awesome. Even though Ford now endorses BP, there is an actual Ford TSB out there for sticking fuel pump sending units, and the solution per the TSB is to use a bottle of Chevron Techron fuel system cleaner and fill up with the Chevron (or other top tier) gasoline for a few tanks to fix it. And it works everytime.
 
The strange thing is Ben99GT whenever I drove in Arizona or New Mexico and I was able to get Chevron gasoline, especially if I also used Techron, my engine would run totally great.
 
so whats good to use?
i use only BP gas for last year or two that has that cleaner in gas itself so i odnt know how good it works. can somebody name product that i can buy in retail store. thanks
 
If going retail, I'd probably seek out Gumout Regane Complete. I've used Techron, Seafoam, and Regane before and found Regane the most effective out of the 3. Techron (never used the super concentrate) never did much. Seafoam did relieve pinging that my wife complained about ..but Regane really did improve drivability to a detectable level. I've used the clear yellow bottle.

There may be other products that are as effective or just as effective in a cost comparison thing to Regane. I just stopped seeking alternatives after PI came to market. It provides all the benefits that I can ask for in a fuel additive/cleaner.
 
Originally Posted By: widman
I'm no chemist, but I know that Techron has eliminated pinging in 100's of Suzuki's and took my Grand Cherokee from pinging on 90 octane to not pinging on 80 octane. Worth every penny of it.

where the heak did you get 80 octane?
 
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