[Jesters]

Originally Posted by 1LoC10

Simple Green

Thanks.

Originally Posted by FarmTruk

If it's just mainly surface dirt and grime, I've always used the quarter-eating DIY power-washers at the local car wash. Just be real careful to not directly spray the electrical stuff with the highest wand pressure. And I've always had a can of WD40 handy if I needed to displace some moisture, but in 25 years of washing engines in this manner, I've only had to do that once.

If you are concerned with getting water on electrical stuff, you can always cover it with a plastic grocery bad.

I've also just used my garden hose, bucket of warm, soapy water, and a rag & brush. The garden hose doesn't have the same pressure as the car wash wands, so that's a plus.
If it's got a heavy coating of oil, baked and caked on, off-the-shelf engine degreaser works fairly well. May need to scrape the heavy deposits off with a putty knife, and I've found that it comes off a little bit easier if the engine is slightly warm (not hot).

So basically, I've always washed my engines in pretty much the exact same way as I've washed the rest of the car/truck. Never really give much thought to any issues with it, and like I said, only once has there been a problem, which was a little moisture in the distributor. WD40 cleared that right up.

Thanks a lot. I have a power washer here at my house. It has low pressure and high pressure so I'm pretty so that'll work?

Is there anything I should spray the engine and stuff over with after I'm done spraying it down? Maybe to keep it clean for awhile.