Did seafoam treatment on the 525i today...

[billb]

Wow! For some reason, it really livened up the rev range from 3000-5000 rpm at idle! I haven't road tested it yet, but I ingested 1/3 pint slowly over about a minute, then shut it down for 5 minutes. I let it in through the small diameter hose coming from the "pcv" fitting on the valve cover, which was very convenient. Came back and started it up, and immediately got check engine light (code 1222 I later checked). It ran sort of crappy for a bit, missing on 2, then 1 cylinder, then evening out, but not before fumigating the neighborhood for mosquitoes. I followed this treatment with an oil change to M1 15W50 (what I had been running previously). After a few minutes of running, the check engine light went out, so we're all good again.

Junior and I might go out for a test drive a little later and see if any improvement is noticed.

[632 Regal]

are you cleaning the injectors or what?

[billb]

are you cleaning the injectors or what?
This stuff I suppose is like BG44K, in that you ingest it into the intake via a vacuum line, and it goes to work knocking all the carbon crud loose. I'm taking it out in a little bit to see what else comes dribbling out the back (supposedly O2 sensor safe, but we'll see). I may drop a little in the next tank to clean the pintle side of the injectors, but I was more interested in the carbon on the pistons and on the head.

[sterling]

Why not just put it in the tank with the gas?

[billb]

Why not just put it in the tank with the gas?ingesting it right at the throttle body is CONCENTRATED!!! It is not diluted with 18 gallons of fuel. It probably goes in with 1 cup of fuel in the time we're talking about. That's why I changed the oil right afterwards. Putting it in the tank is more of a preventative than a cure...


And it runs like a scalded dog now. Still got some noise, but I'm suspect of the Vanos unit after 123k miles.

:D

[JR'Z 525]

I've been told to use it in my Johnson 150 outboard after it's been setting up for the winter months. Never thought about using it for the cars. Where did you get it?
John R.

[liquidtiger720]

Let us know how your o2 sensor and cat. converter look like after you take it out =)

[billb]

I've been told to use it in my Johnson 150 outboard after it's been setting up for the winter months. Never thought about using it for the cars. Where did you get it?
John R.
http://www.seafoamsales.com/

$3.88 plus tax for a pint. So far pleased with the results...we'll see if the cat holds up.

[TC535i]

I'm going to try some Berryman B12 Chemtool in my Kia tomorrow. They say to dump 6 oz into the engine (straight into the oil) when it's cold. Let it idle for 3-5 minutes, then change the oil out. Supposed to cure what ails ya... Engine's running fine, just looking to clean a little of the crud off a 100k mile motor.

Also supposed to be cat/O2 sensor safe.

[MBXB]

My indy uses it as part of his Inspection II routine. He does it before the oil change; swears by it.

[GS535i]

GM/Chevrolet sell a product called Kleens; readily available as a liquid and in aerosol cans, it is primarily used for decarbonizing the intake /upper cylinder track - and it works!
I had a GM 5.7 liter that trapped a piece of carbon behind the valve (Unknown bad ignition wire ....) - on a startu, it suddenly pounded so badly and was so loud that everyone was convinced that the crank was broken. We dumped Kleens into a running intake, stalling the engine out with the last 1/4 can, and let it soak overnight. Filled a football field with white, acrid fumes the next morning - cleared, and has been perfect for several years.

[RobPatt]

I've also had short term success w/the seafoam via the intake, however this link to another thread, thanks to Bill R., offers good insight on the bigger picture going on when these treatments are performed......

Well, it's post # 54386, but 54373 keeps coming up, so here's the cut and paste....
------------------------------------------------------------------
Bill R.
Grand Master Join Date: Jan 2004
Posts: 1,618

Rob, this has been discussed many many times in the past.. first item

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

When you dump a bunch of solvent directly into a running engine you wash all the lubrication off the cylinder walls... and the rings and pistons depend on a fine layer of oil to keep them lubricated... Say an m50 which has a stroke of 75mm will have each piston travel 150mm per revolution times 1000 rpm for a fast idle.. and you have the piston traveling a little under 500 feet per min with the cylinder lubrication being washed off with solvent... So you'll have the chance for greatly increased piston,cylinder and ring wear for starters
Then you introduce the fluid through a vacum port on the manifold..
Now back when carburators were the norm the ideal manifold carried the mix of fuel vapor and air to all the cylinders evenly, but with fuel injection it just has to carry air flow only evenly each cylinder so they get about the same amount. You dump a can of solvent through the vacum port and that fluid is going to follow the path of least resistance like fluids always do. Which means that the center cylinders or whichever ones are the shortest path from the vacum port you chose are going to get all the fluid and the outer cylinders at the front and back of the block are going to get none.
Next item, a large portion of that solvent is going to wash straight down past the rings and into the crankcase where it dilutes the oil, contributing to possible wear there.
Next item, If you suddenly dump this can in until the engine stalls and do the hot soak, you end up with a big mass of solvent and anything that it loosens up such as carbon all going to a hot catalyitic converter which has a likelyhood of overloading the cat and damaging it ,not to mention possible damage to the o2 sensor or sensors.
If you just use a combustion chamber cleaner that mixes with gas and add it to the tank it will be distributed through the injectors evenly to each cylinder and will be a much more gradual cleaning process not likely to wash any cylinders down or cause any other damage.
The oil resin you see in the intake manifold ports isn't hurting anything and it just indicates that more crankcase blowby is coming through than should.
Almost all the modern engines i take apart have very little carbon in them even at high mileage, nothing like it used to be in the 60s and 70's

[billb]

and I sure would not do anything against the wishes of Bill R. ;)

I did this with a warm engine, in about 2 minute's time, at idle (about 700 rpm). Shut it down after the last bit was gone through. Then waited 5 minutes, started it up, and ran it at idle for a few minutes until it ran on all cylinders. Then a few minutes at intermittent higher revs (2500-4000 or so). Then changed the oil and filter, running Mobil1 15W50 before and after this treatment. I feel that this wear will be negligible to the current status, and it was only 1/3 of a pint (about 5 ounces).

But thanks for bringing it back up!