Using ultrasonic cleaner to clean carb

[Ax-man]

I am sure this has been covered before but I need to go over it again and maybe get some more insight on this topic. I am not really sure I am doing this quite right. If we could get a little review going that would be great.

I have a US cleaner, not a top of the line unit mind you . I have gotten mixed results using it . It has been posted on this site that others have gotten great results in saving carbs using a US cleaner. I don't seem to be able to get these results like others do . Perhaps it is my machine or just not doing it right.

First , my instructions say not to put flammable liquids in the cleaning tray. I haven't done this, only put water in the cleaning tray. I use a glass jar filled with Seafoam to cover the entire carb and put that in the cleaning tray. I got this method off the You Tube channel and it is suppose to be as effective to clean a carb as putting the carb in the tray by itself. My US cleaner doesn't get any where near hot enough as to ignite the Seafoam so I don't know if the cleaner I have is doing a good job or not.

I have an 036 that needs a good carb cleaning and I am wanting to use the US cleaner to clean the carb. This time I would like to try something different. Perhaps a different solvent and a different method of using the US cleaner if I am not doing this quite right. I am not a fan of water base cleaners like using PineSol and water. I am not a big fan of Seafoam but it does seem to work to some degree but I haven't gotten good results like others have posted. Maybe their results are just plain different than what my results would be .

I have seen posted on this site that using Lacquer thinner is good but never tried it. Mineral spirits is on my list to try along with Coleman camp stove fuel ( white gas)?? along with denatured alcohol and paint thinner. All these solvents except the white gas are used to thin paint and varnish or clean painting equipment like brushes and sprayers and I don't know how they would work on a carb. The last thing I want to do is ruin a good carb using something I shouldn't be using in relationship to cleaning and eating up a chainsaw carb made out of a hunk of aluminum. If ethanol can eat up a chainsaw carb over time some of these other solvents can also do the same thing to my way of thinking

Like I said I don't know if my US cleaner is a good one or not or if I am not using it correctly. I always expect to see crud come out of the carb and into my Seafaoam filled jar in the cleaning tray but it hardly discolors the clear Seafoam solution so I don't know if this thing is working right or not. Maybe I am expecting too much and it is working the way it should. I don't know so any tips or insight on this would be appreciated. I hope this isn't too confusing.

 

[Rockjock]

All we use is water and some dish soap, our unit is heated so I believe that helps. Never tried seafoam or any of the other snake oils. I see literally 1000's of pieces of equipment yearly and am often told the owner uses these concoctions and yet they all inevitably fail. Better quality units yield better results.

 

[glock37]

Try straight mean green take carb apart throw parts all together and run uc for about 1/2 hr rinse with hot water blow dry oil all thread holes


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[AnthemBassMan]

I don't have one, but a few people I know use straight Simple Green in their US cleaner.

L8R,
Matt

 

[ChoppyChoppy]

New 036 carb is about $25. I don't fuss with many carb rebuilds anymore. It's cheaper to r2 it vs the labor to rebuild.... and that's IF it works 100% after even. Some carbs are just too plugged up or worn out.

Only rebuilds is if it's expensive or NLA.

I used Stoddard solvent in the ultrasonic cleaner. Works fine. Did crack the plastic lid somehow though.

 

[Ax-man]

I understand the term heated but the question is what degree do we call heated . My machine gets water lukewarm to the touch is that enough ?? To me it just isn't hot enough. I think I drink a cup of coffee hotter than what my US can get water heated up to.

I have seen that green cleaner mentioned before . I might give it a try but I haven't used it only because it is a degreaser and not a solvent to dissolve old fuel residue build up inside the passages of a carb. To my way of thinking it shouldn't work but I may be wrong so I am not dismissing the idea because it sure wouldn't hurt to try it. Soaps combined with water basically relives the surface tension between whatever is stuck on the surface to clean that surface . Is this strong enough to dissolve fuel residue?? I don't know. Sounds good and logical.

Saw ran excellent till yesterday and just puked in a cut. I am assuming that the old carb had junk in it but didn't effect the way it was running until new fuel got into it and loosened up the junk in the passages. This saw had been sitting around for a long time and I didn't do anything to the carb when I got it running because it ran good enough till yesterday. This has happened to me before . I hate monkeying with carbs which is why I didn't clean it to start with till I was sure I had a good runner.

 

[JTM]

Don't use anything flammable. It's an accident waiting to happen.

 

[Ax-man]

The first time I tried this set-up with the seafaoam I put the cleaner outside on a long extension cord fearing it might blow up . It didn't but anything can happen which is why I posted this thread.

 

[glock37]

Some cleaners will etch alum mean green doesn't put carb in a peanut butter jar plastic and fill hot water around it in uc


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[JTM]

I don't know if it would work for gummed up carbs but I know some folks that make things with fiberglass and they boil their resin spray guns in ethylene glycol to get the buildup off. I would be interested to know how it does on varnish. If try it do so outside because it steams like hell.

 

[Rockjock]

The US at work is set for about 160F, dish soap, simple green all work well. I often will just have straight water in it and show some customers that the carb is still dirty.. after the seafoam treatment.. I must have 50 bucks on my timmies card by now!

 

[Ax-man]

Without looking 160 is about what mine is set to , I think the highest setting is 180. I'll give the simple green a shot and see how it goes . I know that stuff is safe and won't hurt anything. If it works it will change my way of thinking of how to clean a carb.

 

[buzz sawyer]

The US cleaner solution will get warm because the transducer is vibrating it at a very high frequency - similar to a microwave oven but a lower frequency - typically from 20K to 40K cycles per second. Some people (and animals) can hear sounds in this range - they can actually be painful. Some cleaners have a separate heating element. They normally have a separate switch for the heater.
You need a surfactant to reduce the surface tension of the water so the vibrations can transfer more efficiently to the item being cleaned and to help dissolve contaminants. Flammable liquids are not recommended because the unit will create a small vapor cloud which is extremely flammable. Simple Green or any mild detergent usually works. I don't recommend things like Purple Power as it can discolor the metal.
Putting the item to be cleaned in a glass jar seems to be counterproductive - you are creating resistance to the to sound waves. The transducer is basically a loudspeaker that vibrates the bottom of the cleaner and in turn, the water and the dirt on the part being cleaned. Ideally, the item being cleaned should not touch the bottom of the cleaner. This would be like holding something against a radio speaker. It will reduce the efficiency and if massive enough, can cause it to overheat and fail. They usually come with a basket or plastic tray to place the items on.
All that being said, I'm inclined to agree with replacing carbs rather than attempting to rebuild unless it is a vintage saw and new carbs are not available.

 

[ChoppyChoppy]

Simple Green is not safe to use on aluminum.

 

[Ax-man]

This sounds good . Thanks. Not sure if that glass jar idea was a good idea or not and was in some way disrupting the flow of the sound waves. Goes to show that the everything you see or read on the internet is not to be taken as gospel and is not always reliable. This makes me feel better that I didn't really waste my money on this US cleaner and anxious to give it another try to see how it works out

 

[deaves61]

I use 2 parts water 1 part mean green at about 160°, carbs look new and work great, tried purple power once and it turned the carb black, etched to much.

 

[LoveStihlQuality]

I don't have one, but a few people I know use straight Simple Green in their US cleaner.

L8R,
Matt

I used simple green. It seemed to work but grey dulled metal parts.

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[LoveStihlQuality]

Simple Green is not safe to use on aluminum.

Yep, found that out!

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[LoveStihlQuality]

I have a harbor freight. I've preheated water and soap in microwave.

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[PogoInTheWoods]

USC's certainly have their place in successfully restoring funky carbs to perfectly good working condition. Mine paid for itself with the first cleaning of what would otherwise have been a new $68 carb. Just a cheapie Chicago Electric from Harbor Freight. I've run the snot outta that thing for over three years and it's still going strong -- heater and all.

50/50 PineSol and water, directly immersed and sitting on plastic rack or suspended in a small strainer, rinse cycle of pure water in baggie, then faucet rinse, low pressure air dry, light fog with WD40, put it back together. Has worked better for me than any of the other cleaners mentioned and doesn't discolor aluminum. I'll normally do at least a half hour cycle. You can usually tell how bad a carb is gonna be by the condition of the diaphragms.

And yes, anything in the way of the sound waves (like a jar) will obviously reduce the desired effect. If you are using something expensive like SeaFoam and choose to use a container, use a baggie instead of a jar.

And I'd like to know where I can get a new OEM ZAMA 036 carb for 25 bux retail. Repops, sure. New OEM? Dealer cost maybe...