Seafoam

redman76redman76 Band Wagon
in Engine & Drivetrain
OK so iwas having some problems with my lil wagon like sputtering and sluggish take off. I had changed the spark plugs rotor and fuel filter on it and that didnt help at all.So i was pretty much stuck on what next to do(so desperate was even thinking about getting another car)So anyways i went down to autozone to see if they had a clue on what to do and the guy suggested i use seafoam so i figured ok another fuel cleaner that wont work like the rest of them.But to my surprise this stuff is a miracle in a can.You would swear that my engine is new (till you looked at the mileage 180,000 +)For only 6 bucks it is amazing what it does.But heres the warning 1st follow directions step by step and second close all doors windows and everything else because it is going to pur out the smoke bad.So anyways i didnt know where to stick this so i put it here.If a mod has a better place go ahead and move it there.
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Comments

  • lalunettelalunette familEE
    I've been hearing a lot about Seafoam on the other forum I frequent (MazdaBScene) and those guys seem to swear by it.

    I'm even thinking of getting a can or two when I'm in the States later this summer 'cause I can't find it here in Canada.

    Cheers !!
  • turbo_tegturbo_teg Council Member
    me and my buddies have used seafoam a few times its awsome. we did our own lil test to see if its actually burning all the carbon deposits by putting some in my at the time brand new ls/vtec and it barely smoaked at all basically just the seafoam was what burned out. then we used it on my buddies 94 GSR that had something like 140k miles on it and it puked tons and tons of smoke for a long time before it cleaned up. if anyone attempts this it recomended u change your oil and spark plugs. hell u can even use it to clean out your engine as well i dont know how its done but it says how to run it in your oil to clean it as well. i havent seafoamed my car its got 186k on it so ill do it and show u guys the smoky goodness of it.
  • HaydzHaydz Moderator
    Pouring a bit of petrol into your oil and then running the engine for a while then doing an oil change/flush does the same thing.
  • shift_wagovanshift_wagovan Wagonist
    lalunette wrote:
    I've been hearing a lot about Seafoam on the other forum I frequent (MazdaBScene) and those guys seem to swear by it.

    I'm even thinking of getting a can or two when I'm in the States later this summer 'cause I can't find it here in Canada.

    Cheers !!

    Its called something different in canada. I don't remember what tho. :roll:
  • judebertjudebert familEE
    A quick Google search indicates that a parts place called "CarQuest" stocks Seafoam in Canada. So does another called "Piston Rings", as do NAPA stores in Calgary and Edmonton, and some place called "Auto Value". And apparently, these guys will deliver it to Canada.

    An alternative may be the GMC "Kleens" product, or the "Mopar Combustion Chamber Cleaner".
  • mvmmvm Wagonist
    Ive heard good stuff but I have personally never attempted to use it. Might be a great buy overall.

    But considering that I have 300k on the original factory d15, it might cause me more harm then anything. I should probably invest in newer seals before attempting anything like this.
  • lalunettelalunette familEE
    judebert wrote:
    A quick Google search indicates that a parts place called "CarQuest" stocks Seafoam in Canada. So does another called "Piston Rings", as do NAPA stores in Calgary and Edmonton, and some place called "Auto Value".

    Thx, I'll check out the local NAPA.
  • sydsyd Band Wagon
    Has anyone tried the Seafoam stuff on their car? It looks like it works. I hear people swear by it. Even still....

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k2IKrHOVgU8


    -Syd
  • White&NerdyWhite&Nerdy Senior Wagonist
    Haven't used it in my wagon but I did use some in my CB750 Custom. I think it helped - blasted the crap out of the carbs pretty good, I think. Unfortunately, I think putting it in my gas tank loosened up some crap in there, so I have sediment floating around in there now. :(

    I've heard you can use that stuff all kinds of ways. I used it as a fuel additive. I think you can use it in oil, too - just want to change it pretty soon afterward. It's one of those things that sounds like snake oil, it's too good to be true, yet I haven't seen evidence that it isn't as good as claimed, or harmful if used as directed (obviously putting it in your oil and driving 50k miles without changing it isn't a good idea :lol: )
  • bam-bambam-bam Council Member
    It actually works, I've used it just before a teardown, even. Of course, if it's just decarbonizing pistons and ccs that you want, tapwater is much cheaper.
  • evol911evol911 familEE
    Yeah my grandpa used to rebuild motors and before he tore them down he poured in like half a cup of water while running the throttle on the carb and such. Water cleans motors out like a charm. Blasts away all the carbon, its almost like steam cleaning the inside of your engine, but I don't think thats the principle at work here. I think it deals with some sort of pressure changes(????Do you know how it works bam-bam????). Don't do anything dumb and run the garden hose into your throttle body though.
  • lucskywalkerlucskywalker Wagonist
    ive heard good and bad about this stuff, i have not used it myself. people say wow look at all that carbon burn outta there! but then again you spray carb/tb cleaner and it smokes up the neighborhood as well! also had done a port and polish job on a guys car he also said "i just seafoamed it so it should be clean!" well popping the head off there was no sign of progress :? so with that said i would think its a do it often as part of your maintenance program. maybie after a year of doing it regularly? i run premium gas all the time and when my motor comes apart there is no carbon, well a slight amount on the exhaust valves but thats all. just mmy opinion :D
  • sydsyd Band Wagon
    So...if one were to use water...would you do it the same way? Disconnect the brake vacuum line and let the engine "sip" slowly from the cup?
  • sobe_deathsobe_death New Wagonist
    yep! It would be easier if it was a Dual Point or carbeurated motor you could slowly pour it in through the throttle plates, but on a MPFI setup you need to pull it in through a vacuum line.
  • evol911evol911 familEE
    Yeah everytime I've heard my grandpa talk about it, it was pouring water past the butterflys of a carb.
  • bam-bambam-bam Council Member
    yeah, what they said ^^^.

    Seriously, if you're not sure about it, DON"T DO IT! You can do more harm than good.
  • colecocoleco New Wagonist
    Seafoam really does work pretty well :D

    My first reccomendation to my friends who want to use seafoam is always to first check your air filter, clean your throttle plates with throttle safe carb spray(dont screw up the teflon coating with non approved cleaners).

    on the last 3 cars i bought the throttle plate was so dirty it was night and day after i cleaned it.
  • SukebeSukebe Band Wagon
    Make sure you warn everyone before you run Seafoam so they don't freak out at the huge cloud of smoke, esp if you have a jumpy wife or S.O. :lol:
  • canadianbacon52canadianbacon52 Band Wagon
    I seafoamed my wagon last week. i did it 3 way in the gas, oil, and intake. I decided to to it in a mall parking structure for kicks and giggles. Filled the entire parking structure up with smoke! :D I drove in circles for a few minutes and when i was leaving, the cops had come and blocked off all the exits. hahaha. it was worth it. car runs better now. i noticed a difference. its worth the $9.
  • TrueBlueCvcWgnTrueBlueCvcWgn Band Wagon
    i used seafoam on my wagon and my bros rt. works like a charm
    we also took emission tests before and after to see if it was effective.
    ill post a pic of the results on my next comment :P
  • Tatty90EE4Tatty90EE4 Wagonist
    I just seafoamed my Wagon about 400 miles ago (roughly 2.5 weeks.)

    I noticed immediate changes in idle and throttle response. I also noticed a change in my fuel mileage in a + way. I was getting about 20.5-21.3 mpg city/highway combined. Just filled up tonight and the mpg's jumped to 22.7 with the same amount of driving and a bit of harder driving as well.

    I'm very impressed!!
  • bam-bambam-bam Council Member
    I hydrolocked my b16 the other night with Seafoam :oops: I was pulling it thru the vacuum port on the back of the intake manifold. Like usual, I let it suck enough to choke down the engine, then let it sit for awhile. I guess too much liquid ran straight down the intake runner into #2.
    When I tried to restart, it was obvious what had happened. I pulled the plugs and turned 'er over to let it out, no harm done, but it could have been ugly!
  • TrueBlueCvcWgnTrueBlueCvcWgn Band Wagon
    TrueBlueCvcWgn wrote:
    i used seafoam on my wagon and my bros rt. works like a charm
    we also took emission tests before and after to see if it was effective.
    ill post a pic of the results on my next comment :P


    i have the before and after pics of my emissions tests
  • Mandalore88Mandalore88 Senior Wagonist
    TrueBlueCvcWgn wrote:
    i used seafoam on my wagon and my bros rt. works like a charm
    we also took emission tests before and after to see if it was effective.
    ill post a pic of the results on my next comment


    i have the before and after pics of my emissions tests

    Haha that is awesome!
  • udubrx7udubrx7 Senior Wagonist
    I've always used seafoam, when I had the extra bucks for it. They have a spray can version too called seafoam deep creep or something like that. It would probably work better than the regular bottle for putting it in through a vacuum line. As for the emissions results.... wow!
  • GR33KGR33K Wagonist
    Where do I put the seafoam into? I have an 88 DPFI.

    Not my car, but same engine:

    10.jpg
  • GR33KGR33K Wagonist
    I found the answer here:

    http://www.clubcivic.com/board/showthread.php?t=98264

    Just in case you would like to know how to in the future.
  • udubrx7udubrx7 Senior Wagonist
    Follow the instructions on the bottle, as always!

    Pour it in your gas tank

    or

    Buy a can of their "deep creep" spray and run it through a vacuum line

    or

    Pour about an ounce in your oil before an oil change, drive for 10 min, and immediately change the oil. My oil has never come out blacker!
  • CarGuyCarGuy New Wagonist
    Yeah i seafoamed my wagon about 2 weeks ago and it idles a lot better. But be AWARE they could foul your spark plugs. :shock:

    If doing seafoam i would recommend changing your PCV valve too helps tons!

    I use two bottles for this process though. 1/2 in oil (right before an oil change)

    Other half in gas tank and let her idle for about 5 mins and drive hard for 10 mins.

    When i got back I did the vacuum trick 1/2 a cup.

    Plug the line back in and let her sit turned off for about 15 mins. Turn her on and watch the fog machine go...lol
    I used the other half for cleaning i mixed it with Simple Green

    Drive around if you think your neighbors don't care or do this in a safe area. But i recommend doing it at night :twisted:

    Oh and for those of you that are a little slow...don't do it in a closed garage lol. :lol: :lol:
  • FakeJDMEF8FakeJDMEF8 Senior Wagonist
    i use this on all non-vtec engines. did it to a b16a once (same procedure i have always practiced) and it ended up running like shit from there on after....


    you're supposed to change the plugs after anyways. NGK coppersss:)
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