Help Degreasing with Diesel

Magic Star

Magic Star

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Hi guys,

I started to prepare my Lister for re-painting and was wondering if I can use the diesel to degrease the whole engine prior painting.
Do you think I can use the diesel and paint straight over, or must I get some thinner or white spirit to prepare the engine surface? Does diesel leave some chemicals that are not compatible with paint and I should stay away from it?

thanks for your help.
 
As Sailorman says, diesel is an oil, but if your engine is really caked in grease or thick oil deposits you could use diesel to get the worst off, then finally degrease the whole lot with Jizer. This might save you a bit of money because you would use less. It all depends how bad your engine is before you start, this is what I did when I did mine just to cut the costs down a bit.
 
James_Calvert said:
White spirit is the same as thinners no 1 isn't it?
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Use a proper emulsyfiable degreaser, work in ALL the nooks and crannies and allow to soak a while. Wash off with very hot water-boil the kettle as many times as required.

The hot water will heat up the engine a little and will tend to evaporate away quicker than cold water.

You should be left with a surface that will take engine paint well.

PS-keep it out of the electrics................................
 
I agree with X-phil, diesel followed by Jizer is also safe in a confined space, for catching fire and also breathing the fumes.
Poundland toothbrushes , plus good lighting,and a mirror on a stick to see the hidden gunge.
Also agree that a warm dry engine gets the best results, good if you can blow a fan heater on it for a few hours.
 
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Diesel is good for horribly greasy stuff.
It also leaves things a bit oily, so a little bit of rust resistance.
Also less flammable than say petrol or white spirit.

For final de-greasing, I'm using the cheap degreaser detergenty stuff from screwfix at the moment, seems pretty good.
It gets chain lube off my motorbike and hoses away without leaving a mess.

If I was painting something, I'd probably do a final scrub with fairy liquid, unless it was a smooth surface where wiping with solvent might be more effective.

Drying parts with a hot air gun can be a good idea.
 
I found a tin of Blakes degreaser in the garage the other day and used it on some car components. Very impressive.
I realise it's a bit expensive for washing down engines, but it's been in the garage for 7 years so by now, it's free.
 
Lakesailor said:
I found a tin of Blakes degreaser in the garage the other day and used it on some car components. Very impressive.
I realise it's a bit expensive for washing down engines, but it's been in the garage for 7 years so by now, it's free.
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No, it owes you purchase cost, plus cost of storage....
 
My favourite cleaning 'gadget' is a strong kitchen degreaser called Chante Clair and it comes in a handy spray bottle. It lives on the boat and, so far, it has never failed me. It even solved a BIG problem of an old Goiot furler that was jammed solid because a previous owner had applied gresse to the balls and this had collected so much dirt that it looked just like asphalt!
 
For the past 50 years I have used paraffin to clean engine parts then hosed them strongly with water, power hose preferably, dry and paint.

Paraffin is not so easy to get now so I use 28sec central heating oil then thinners for whatever paint I intend to use, hose, dry and paint.

Works a treat and is cheap.
 
I used to get car engine components dunked in a hot caustic cleaning/degreasing bath, which does a lovely job. I used F J Payne in Eynsham - I would not consider doing this at home.
 
PuffTheMagicDragon said:
My favourite cleaning 'gadget' is a strong kitchen degreaser called Chante Clair and it comes in a handy spray bottle. It lives on the boat and, so far, it has never failed me. It even solved a BIG problem of an old Goiot furler that was jammed solid because a previous owner had applied gresse to the balls and this had collected so much dirt that it looked just like asphalt!
Click to expand...

Bet you can only get it in France!!
 
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