Spindrift
06-06-2004, 16:48
Now that the wallet has all but dried up for any new, significant mods, I've been looking for a few R&M items to sink my teeth into. Yeah, I know, should have been the other way around.
A while back, I looked at HowieE's web site, saw that scuzzy radiator of his and figured that was something I would take a look at. But when I did, my radiator and coolers looked good so I scratched that job off the list.
Fast forward a couple of months to this weekend. Here in NJ, it seems as though its been raining for 40 days and 40 nights. This afternoon I went outside and I could see my breath! It's June 6th and the thermometer read an astoundingly cool 56*. Gotta' move south. Anyway, I had run out of things to do so I figured I'd take a crack at cleaning the radiator.
Howie was kind enough to lend me his Master Blaster (aka "Hydro-Air Washer") which he modified to include a long copper spray wand. I bought some Greased Lightning Orange Blast at Pep Boys and I was ready. First, I warmed the engine to operating temperature, removed the fan shroud and loosened all of the brackets so that I could get the wand down and between the radiator and coolers, applied the Orange Blast, and waited.
My first attempt at using the Master Blaster was rather comical since the combination of water pressure and air pressure nearly ripped the thing out of my hand. I knew I wasn't going to be effective by myself so I enlisted the aid of my son to work the handle while I directed the wand.
Then the fun began. Since I couldn't see what, if any combination of dirt, bugs, leaves and other matter was coming out the front, I was relying on my son for a status report. It didn't take too long before the look on his face told the story. Almost immediately he said, "Dad, it's really dirty!" I was thinking to myself, "C'mon, how dirty could it be. It didn't look dirty." So we switched places.
What can I say. The amount of absolute crap that was flushed out was absolutely unbelievable and the "water" was just about black. I almost felt guilty for not digging a big whole to bury all of the carcasses that had piled up on my grille, bumper and the ground. Fortunately, none of the PETA folks witnessed what had happened.
I'm now the newest member of the Hydro-Air Washer Fan Club. The whole process made a believer out of me.
For those of you planning to haul heavy loads this summer, if you haven't already taken a crack at it, think about cleaning those radiators and coolers. You just might be glad you did.
And thanks again to Howie for lending his Master Blaster to me. This gizzmo is very cool.
A while back, I looked at HowieE's web site, saw that scuzzy radiator of his and figured that was something I would take a look at. But when I did, my radiator and coolers looked good so I scratched that job off the list.
Fast forward a couple of months to this weekend. Here in NJ, it seems as though its been raining for 40 days and 40 nights. This afternoon I went outside and I could see my breath! It's June 6th and the thermometer read an astoundingly cool 56*. Gotta' move south. Anyway, I had run out of things to do so I figured I'd take a crack at cleaning the radiator.
Howie was kind enough to lend me his Master Blaster (aka "Hydro-Air Washer") which he modified to include a long copper spray wand. I bought some Greased Lightning Orange Blast at Pep Boys and I was ready. First, I warmed the engine to operating temperature, removed the fan shroud and loosened all of the brackets so that I could get the wand down and between the radiator and coolers, applied the Orange Blast, and waited.
My first attempt at using the Master Blaster was rather comical since the combination of water pressure and air pressure nearly ripped the thing out of my hand. I knew I wasn't going to be effective by myself so I enlisted the aid of my son to work the handle while I directed the wand.
Then the fun began. Since I couldn't see what, if any combination of dirt, bugs, leaves and other matter was coming out the front, I was relying on my son for a status report. It didn't take too long before the look on his face told the story. Almost immediately he said, "Dad, it's really dirty!" I was thinking to myself, "C'mon, how dirty could it be. It didn't look dirty." So we switched places.
What can I say. The amount of absolute crap that was flushed out was absolutely unbelievable and the "water" was just about black. I almost felt guilty for not digging a big whole to bury all of the carcasses that had piled up on my grille, bumper and the ground. Fortunately, none of the PETA folks witnessed what had happened.
I'm now the newest member of the Hydro-Air Washer Fan Club. The whole process made a believer out of me.
For those of you planning to haul heavy loads this summer, if you haven't already taken a crack at it, think about cleaning those radiators and coolers. You just might be glad you did.
And thanks again to Howie for lending his Master Blaster to me. This gizzmo is very cool.