What fluid do you use in your parts washer?
 

One of the POs decided that coating every square inch of the underbody with axle grease was a good idea. Now that I am having to strip it all off, it is a major PITA.

I just bought a new parts washer from HF. One of my buddies says that I need to use paint thinner as the solvent, that the water-based solvents are not very good. Except the directions of my washer say absolutely no combustible solvents. He said he's used paint thinner in his washer for 20 years - no problem. I've tried Simple Green in a bucket and it was largely a waste of time.

I use paint thinner, but it is mineral spirits NOT LACQUER thinner.

I like varsol...

Re: What fluid do you use in your parts washer?
 

How are you going to get the underbody in a parts washer?

I use kerosene (@ $4 per gallon) to wash parts.

If you are talking about a pressure washer don't put anything combustible in it.

Rick-l:

The fenders and body work require direct application. I've been using Gunk and lost of rags for that. But virtually everything that can be unbolted including suspension and engine peripherals are going in the washer. My recent discovery of rust in all the usual places (outer rocker panels, suspension pan, etc) is driving me to deal with this sooner than later.

I have a HF washer with the same warning label in it. I have used mineral spirits for 4 years with no issues. It is likely that the pump will not live as long. I got my spirits from a commercial oil distributor in 5 gallon buckets.

I rigged an old dishwasher as a parts washer. I use cheap dishwasher soap, with the water heater set on 'kill' I will also throw in some of the HF parts washer 'concentrate' or Simple Green to help out.

Is it connnected to a hot water line, or do you use the washer to heat your water? (I don't have hot water in my gargage, but I like this idea).

It's hooked up to the 5gal hot water heater in my shop, which is turned up to "nuclear" - at full tilt, the water temp is about 150F

Varsol's my favorite but it's harder to find. I have found it in gallons at O-Riely's, but paint thinner is what I use when I can't find Varsol.

I use stoddard solvent, cleans really well, and leaves no residue. It is made for parts cleaning, I buy it at a local fuel/oil distributor, I think it should be easy to find anywhere. I like this better than anything I have ever used for general parts cleaning.

Been using off-road diesel fuel for triage work. Works well. Regular parts solvent, from auto parts stores, is getting very expensive.

I used Super Agitene. It clean well, doesn't stink up my garage and it has something in it (lanolin?) that makes it easier on the hands and leaves a light coating on the clean parts so they don't rust or oxidize the way they would if you used Brake Kleen for example. Kind of expensive but I've had the same solvent in the cleaner for something like 3 years.

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1176772511.jpg

I buy mine from MSC Industrial Supply.
-Chris

The aviation world uses Varsol, which is good enough for me, a pilot for 40 years. Typically, Varsol is sprayed on engines--the dirtiest of which, on airplanes, are way cleaner than virtually any 911 engine--and left to self-evaporate.

Oh, and by the way, if your PO was a New Englander, what he did with the axle grease is a standard Vermonter/New Hampshire technique--world's best undercoating.

Varsol is the ExxonMobil Chemical brand for a line of conventional aliphatic fluids with low, medium and high flash points. These fluids boil in the mineral spirits or white spirits range. These grades are characterized by mild odors, clean evaporation and solvency power to meet the requirements of a broad range of applications, often replacing less refined kerosene. Heavier Varsol fluids exhibit tight, well-defined properties that provide more consistent performance than many process oils available today.

http://www.exxonmobilchemical.com/Public_Products/Fluids/Aliphatics/Worldwide/Grades_and_Datasheets/Fluids_Aliphatics_VarsolNaphtha_Grades_WW.asp