Steam cleaning pickup trucks. Done in the industry?

[Spud]

Is it ok to steam clean the engine bay? It is vapor steam, also called dry steam, because it has under 5% moisture content.
Wondering if Steam cleaning of engine bay is a common industry procedure.


Would it be ok to steam pressure wash the underside of pickups? Being a pressure washer, this is wet steam, with a lot of water being discharged. Here in Wisconsin the road-salt is very corrosive.

 

[funwithfuel]

I wash mine when possible . Just stay away from electronics and harnesses. Just washing away grime and road filth shouldn't be an issue. For frame and underbody maybe spray down with fluid film . It's a product quite a few guys on here recommend. I'll be trying it this year as well.
Do you guys use the beet juice with your road salt up there. Makes for real sticky nasty here.

 

[Ronsii]

I've seen importer/exporters do it around here and I think... they were just using a hotsy.... first they back the truck up a steep ~40-50 degree open frame ramp then they hit the engine bay from the (front)top and go around to the back(under the ramp and hit the underside of it takes about 10-15 minutes per vehicle on the ramp. They usually do 30-40 vehicles a day they are vehicles destined for Canada eh'

 

[Spud]

I wash mine when possible . Just stay away from electronics and harnesses. Just washing away grime and road filth shouldn't be an issue. For frame and underbody maybe spray down with fluid film . It's a product quite a few guys on here recommend. I'll be trying it this year as well.
Do you guys use the beet juice with your road salt up there. Makes for real sticky nasty here.

When you say "wash", do you mean with a garden hose and nozzle or with a pressure washer?

The WisDot website says we use Calcium Chloride, Magnesium Chloride,Salt Brine or other liquid agents to help the salt stick to the surface. In some areas Sand is also applied.
The deicing and clearing of snow is very effective , but the downsides are environmental impact and considerable corrosion on all vehicles.

 

[Spud]

I've seen importer/exporters do it around here and I think... they were just using a hotsy.... first they back the truck up a steep ~40-50 degree open frame ramp then they hit the engine bay from the (front)top and go around to the back(under the ramp and hit the underside of it takes about 10-15 minutes per vehicle on the ramp. They usually do 30-40 vehicles a day they are vehicles destined for Canada eh'

They hit the whole inside of the engine bay with a Hotsy in hot-water or steam mode? They don't wrap any electrical connectors or wiring in some waterproof covering?

 

[Ronsii]

No wrapping that I know of... it's a high volume commercial setup, We were there working on running utilities to the new water recovery system for oil separation... environmental stuff like that.

I guess they could have had a guy prepping certain components as they had guys detailing also???? not 100 percent sure???? next time I'm in the place I'll remember to ask the guy I know.

 

[funwithfuel]

When you say "wash", do you mean with a garden hose and nozzle or with a pressure washer?

The WisDot website says we use Calcium Chloride, Magnesium Chloride,Salt Brine or other liquid agents to help the salt stick to the surface. In some areas Sand is also applied.
The deicing and clearing of snow is very effective , but the downsides are environmental impact and considerable corrosion on all vehicles.

Pressure wash,
Good god calcium chloride, we used that as dust control in the quarries. Super sticky, really really corrosive. I had that junk dripping out of places from under my beater 6 months after I left that place.

 

[Ct Farmer]

We pressure wash everything, truck, cars, equipment etc. inside, outside, everywhere. Try to cover and stay away from electronics and sensitive things but they do get splashed. Never had a problem except for one starter that got drowned due to a failed seal.

Usually set for about 190° F and 1500psi. using a concentrated butyl based soap at 400:1 dilutution. Always hot water rinse after to remove the soap residue as it is very alkaline. We rigged a 45° nozzle to the wand to help clean underside.

The green junk they use on the roads here is far worse than anything the washer will do. Stuff will eat brake lines right off in one year.

Fluid Film is very good stuff. Oxoyl works good too.

 

[Delmer]

The steam is hot, but the engine and wiring are cool, so you can get some water in places it's not meant, and give you everything from corrosion inside the connectors, to check engine lights, to maybe worse. I hose it off if it needs it, but try to avoid pressure directed at electrical connectors, alternator, starter and radiator.

The salt is worst on trucks that sit around too much, that's when it really needs to get rinsed off sometime in April. If it's running all day everyday, it will get rinsed off from running in the rain. A double frame will suck that salt in and never get rinsed out until it goes back to the furnace. About the only way I can think of to deal with it would be to weld the rails together and add some grease fittings to fill that space with grease.

 

[Spud]

Pressure wash,
Good god calcium chloride, we used that as dust control in the quarries. Super sticky, really really corrosive. I had that junk dripping out of places from under my beater 6 months after I left that place.

Wanted a rust free truck so bought my 2013 2500HD in Texas about 2 years ago. After 1 winter I have light surface rust on the frame.
I am in an automotive program at technical college; asked the instructors on how to prevent corrosion and they said you can't ..in Wisconsin. You can mitigate it somewhat but it will still happen, due to the chemical composition of the salting / deicing products the State uses.

 

[check]

Wanted a rust free truck so bought my 2013 2500HD in Texas about 2 years ago. After 1 winter I have light surface rust on the frame.
I am in an automotive program at technical college; asked the instructors on how to prevent corrosion and they said you can't ..in Wisconsin. You can mitigate it somewhat but it will still happen, due to the chemical composition of the salting / deicing products the State uses.

Pressure wash thoroughly underneath and let it dry. Get a few cans of white grease spray at walmart and spray it on anything that gets rust.

 

[doublewide]

I always heard never steam clean a hot injector pump.

Hmmm... Or was it don't cold water wash a hot injector pump.

Or maybe,.. Don't steam clean a cold injector pump.

Whatever it was. I think I would avoid the injector pump.

 

[Pixie]

They use all those chemicals here in NH also. Especially in the notches. I spray the whole underside with Castle Endura, a very sticky grease. White lithium had water in the can !!!!

I just rinse it with a hose in the hope of Not driving the salt etc into places it can't get out of. Might use a pressure washer on a warm day but I sure don't want it to freeze up with the water still in tight places. Also, I don't have a hot water pressure washer ....

 

[Mother Deuce]

I've seen importer/exporters do it around here and I think... they were just using a hotsy.... first they back the truck up a steep ~40-50 degree open frame ramp then they hit the engine bay from the (front)top and go around to the back(under the ramp and hit the underside of it takes about 10-15 minutes per vehicle on the ramp. They usually do 30-40 vehicles a day they are vehicles destined for Canada eh'

I know a little about that... We had a Ag cleaning station in Seattle. Was handling a lot of iron that was coming in to the states from the the Pacific "theatre" as it were. Anything that the USDA determines as needing to be cleaned before coming into the country needs to go to a approved cleaning station for removal of any and all soil. This is because of golden nematodes which live out in the pacific islands versus white nematodes that live here. Apparently the golden nematodes do not play well with the white ones and are considered a threat to our agriculture. So the trucks/machines were cleaned with cleaners for that job over a containment pit that was treated and when full was removed for disposal. Saw a few interesting things... We had a can hauler drop a can that had 450 Case in it. The guy's opened the door looked and logged it into progression. About 2 day's later they cracked the door to unload it and the machine was completely covered in baby praying mantises. I called USDA and they hustled right down and looked at the machine which by now looked like a football stadium doing the wave. They determined that the mantis infestation was not a huge issue. They did have a contractor come over and remove them. Praying Mantises kinda ok but no non-indigenous nematodes allowed!

 

[Nige]

I’d pressure wash (with hot water) or steam clean my engine bay without a second thought whether it was a diesel or not.

Best tip I could give is to make sure the engine is at full operating temperature before starting, that way when you stop things dry out a lot quicker.

If you’re worried about damp getting into electrical connections Google “Senson Electroguard Grease”.

As others have said don’t direst hot water or steam directly at electrical components like the ECU, but other than that - have at it.

 

[funwithfuel]

I always heard never steam clean a hot injector pump.

Hmmm... Or was it don't cold water wash a hot injector pump.

Or maybe,.. Don't steam clean a cold injector pump.

Whatever it was. I think I would avoid the injector pump.

Whether hot or cold. Engine should be at room temperature before washing an aluminum Bosch pump. I personally cracked one. At least, it was blamed on me washing it. I think it was a porous casting, but I haven't washed one hot , since.

 

[doublewide]

I think there is also a concern the the high pressure plungers may seize in their bores due to excessive heat.

 

[check]

An engine at full operating temperature generally means the exhaust manifolds are damned hot. I usually wash an engine warmed up so it will dry better after washing. But no part of the engine should be over 130 degrees or so. Cast iron does not agree with rapid temperature changes, and aluminum is even more delicate.

 

[Spud]

An engine at full operating temperature generally means the exhaust manifolds are damned hot. I usually wash an engine warmed up so it will dry better after washing. But no part of the engine should be over 130 degrees or so. Cast iron does not agree with rapid temperature changes, and aluminum is even more delicate.

But if the engine is at operating temperature, then some parts are definitely going to be over 130 deg F.

So I am a little confused here. I should steam pressure wash with engine at operating temp, or shortly after I have been driving it a few miles? Or only Steam pressure wash only after it has been sitting overnight and before I drive the truck ?

 

[funwithfuel]

Just stay away from the injection pump, computers and electronics. You'll be fine.