Rebuilding the 1.6 na for my Caddy

[745 turbogreasel]

As far as i know all the  Torque  To Yield bolts are threaded all the way up, and all but the earliest have a trapped washer. 
Reusable bolts are mostly not thread.
If you use bolts from another application, be sure to duplicate the  OEM washer  diameter in some way, too small of washer will cave in the seat area.

[VeroDubs]

So over the last couple days, I have had the motor in the electrolysis engine cleaning setup.  I will say that I am VERY impressed with this thing, considering it cost me a grand total of.... drum roll please... $4.33!!

The stuff to use is the water can be bought at pool places and is called PH Plus and is pure sodium carbonate.  You mix 1.5 cups into 15 gallons of water.



Next you need to put the motor and your electrodes into the water.  Making sure that the electrodes do not contact the engine.  I welded them all together because I knew I would be leaving it running and didn't want to risk them coming into contact.  The elctrode I chose are nothing but rebar.  I used them because they were FREE



Grab your go to beer for the season and watch for a little while cause it's entertaining if you are a little nerdy like me. This process amazes me!



After the first round, about 20 hours.  The surface looked like this. I ran it through two cycles, first was 20 hrs, second was 24 hrs.



And now the before and afters-  Cause that's what everyone really wants to see!

Before-




After-




I still plan to hot tank it at my local shop and then have it magnafluxed.  burn_your_money has offered parts to me, but my budget just doesn't allow it at the moment.  So if this block checks out, I will have it honed and then put it back together!!! If it doesn't check out, well we will confront that if and when it arises!

The reason for me going ahead and trying the electrolysis was that the machine shop told me that depending on how dirty the engine was would change the amount the engine cleaning will cost.  He said semi dirty engine cost around $40, and really dirty can run up to $85.  So I am gonna see how much an "almost clean" one will cost haha!

[damac]

What the hell, that process eats through paint?  I thought it was just a rust thing?

What is the difference between the guys talking about a hot tank and those ultrasonic cleaners?

I'm assuming there isn't a cheap way to run those fancy machines at home?

[745 turbogreasel]

that looks damn good for the money.

[92EcoDiesel Jetta]

That looks amazing! The link you provided on electrolysis is ng. I found this

 http://users.eastlink.ca/~pspencer/nsaeta/electrolysis.html

Is it the same process?

[VeroDubs]

That looks amazing! The link you provided on electrolysis is ng. I found this

 http://users.eastlink.ca/~pspencer/nsaeta/electrolysis.html

Is it the same process?

Yes, this is the same process.  That is one of the links I read.  I did a lot of reading, and there are a lot of great videos on youtube also.  I will check that link that I posted!  Thanks for the heads up!

What the hell, that process eats through paint?  I thought it was just a rust thing?

What is the difference between the guys talking about a hot tank and those ultrasonic cleaners?

I'm assuming there isn't a cheap way to run those fancy machines at home?

I wasn't sure it would remove the paint either.  But since you are possitively charging the sacrificial steel, and negatively charging the good metal on the engine block.  As the electrons want to travel off the block, they take whatever is on the block with them.  And apparently this includes the paint, which I was very happy about!!!  

And ultra sonic cleaner uses, heat, a cleaning agent, and I believe high frequency sound waves.  The nice thing about them is that they will clean every nook and cranny of whatever is submerged.  

The hot tank utilizes very hot, very hazardous cleaners.  This is why a lot of shops don't use hot tanks anymore.  The disposal of the liquid once used up is not easy or cheap for them. This is also why hot tanks aren't the best.  A lot of shops use the solution too long do to how hard it is to get rid of.

I am sure making either at home is possible.  An ultrasonic cleaner would probably be the better choice.

that looks damn good for the money.

I would say so.  Still not perfect, and I plan on painting the block if it all works out ok.  So that is my reason for wanting to use the hot tank also.  I want all the oil build up GONE!

Here are a few motors I have built in the past.  I have a thing for cleaned and functional engine bays!

84 GTI that never got finished- Traded for my 87 Jetta.  But it did run and drive when I traded it!



73 Super



84 GTI's first 8valve



I look forward to seeing what I can do with this Diesel!

[burn_your_money]

I've read that if you leave the sodium carbonate water sitting in your shop it will destroy all your tools as it evaporates. Keep a tight lid on it.

Very impressive results. What did you coat the engine in after coming out of the cleaner? I've heard that flash rust is a big issue with this method.

[VeroDubs]

I've read that if you leave the sodium carbonate water sitting in your shop it will destroy all your tools as it evaporates. Keep a tight lid on it.

Very impressive results. What did you coat the engine in after coming out of the cleaner? I've heard that flash rust is a big issue with this method.

The nice the about the sodium carbonate is that it doesn't make your solution toxic.  So I have a box of sand I poor it into and the water just drains out the bottom.

As for keeping the rust down, I use wd-40 while its still wet.  The wd-40 displaces the water and I got no rusting.  We will see if it has any tomorrow when I run it to the machine shop!

[burn_your_money]

I've also read that trying to clean aluminum with this method could easily kill you, so keep that in mind.

Please keep us posted on how the WD40 turned out.

[92EcoDiesel Jetta]

WD supposedly stands for water displacement. A great way to clean a motorcycle is spray with Gunk degreaser, hose off with water, spray with WD 40 and the water just beads off- no drying necessary.

 I suppose this will work washing your engine.

[ORCoaster]

Makes a guy want to pull every motor they have and throw it in a tupperware tub.  Volts on, grime off.  $4.33  what a steal.

[Gizmoman]

Clean is good. Just wondering if the process affected the bores any? I read some of the link on the process and it's not selective (like doing it by hand with a wire brush, scrapers and picks). It seems iron molecules are discharged away from the mass. If your'e re-boring its a non-issue, but if the bores were good, I'd think that they might have taken a beating.

Do you have any before and after bore specs?

[VeroDubs]

Clean is good. Just wondering if the process affected the bores any? I read some of the link on the process and it's not selective (like doing it by hand with a wire brush, scrapers and picks). It seems iron molecules are discharged away from the mass. If your'e re-boring its a non-issue, but if the bores were good, I'd think that they might have taken a beating.

Do you have any before and after bore specs?

I don't, but the process is a line of sight process.  If the anodes can't see it, nothing come off it.  So the inside of the motor shouldn't have changed.  Right?

[Gizmoman]

Very slick.

[flowmastergfunk]

Off to a great start! I am blown away with how great that block cleaned up!!

I've also read that trying to clean aluminum with this method could easily kill you, so keep that in mind.

Please keep us posted on how the WD40 turned out.

That's a shame, because I instantly started thinking about how much easier it would be to clean all the nooks and crannies of an 020 case with this method. Shoot