Irukandji

Not sure if this has been posted before, but I'll do it anyway.


As we all know, K&N filters need to be cleaned now and then since all that shit gets caught in it. Well instead of buying the $20 recharge kit from K&N, this way will only cost you $2 or even less.



Start off by spraying water from the inside out. Try to take your time if it's really dirty. Just keep doing that until the filter seems somewhat clean. Then fill up a sink or tub with warm soapy water, and shake the filter around to loosen all the old dirt and oil that comes on the filters. After that, just spray it with the hose again until all the soap is out of the filter, and let the filter dry overnight. Then get some Silicone Spray and spray the filter evenly until it becomes evenly saturated.

Woo hoo you're done.

A couple friends and I have tried this and it's improved the gas mileage significantly considering the filter is now clean.

So save some money and clean yo filters cause gas prices are screwing us up the butt right now.


Edited to clear up a few things...

TheSquidd

Wooooooooooooooooooo
oooooooooooooooooooo
oooooooooooooooooooo
oooooooooooooooooooo
oooooooooooooooooooo
ooooooooooooooooW



You fail 100x.


Please, for the love of GOD do not do what this man just told you to. Guaranteed decrease in life of your engine. Wow.

A. The hose and it's highest pressure, blasted through the element can damage the cotton. Thus leaving big gaps in the element, thus letting bigass rocks in, thus your engine is teh owned.

B. Our cleaner is amazing, it will clean the living hell out of your filter, I wouldn't use anything else. Not using cleaner, you will not get all of the dirt and oil out, and blasting it with the water will probably embed the dirt deaper so it can get through your element and enter your engine. See the last sentence of step A.

C. Our (K&N) oil is a PRECISE blend of elements crafted over 37 YEARS, and still in development. It is specfically made to bond to cotton, wick, and hold for tens if not hundreds of thousands of miles. It's specfically made to hold the dirt it stops, and then wick over that dirt and make it part of the element. THE SILICONE SPRAY AT OSH IS NOT. Holy crap I can't imagine getting whatever the hell that stuff is into my engine or on my MAF.

This is something out of our hilarious e-mails we get when a customer complains because he washed out his filter with shampoo and then reoiled it with hand lotion. Like we don't know what we're doing? We use that oil because it is the BEST. We have on staff technicians testing our filters vs. other oils and filters EVERY DAY. We know our stuffs the best because we've tried EVERYTHING else, no one comes close.

Please, please don't listen to this person, 20$ > blowing your motor.

__________________
www.squidd.org
www.violent-running.org

kandyflip445

Amen. That was a really dumb idea.

__________________
My 240 vBgarage

Irukandji

You work at K&N, so of course you'll say this is bad for the filter (you'll want us to pay $20 for the recharge kit). And you say the oil is a precise blend? Ha... well you should have put your past 37 years of research else where because the silicone spray works fine at catching dirt.

And about the hose comment, I'm not blasting a fire hose through the damn thing, just a regular garden hose. The filter element is still very intact and looks perfectly fine. You guys don't have to do this, just thought I'd throw it out there since it's worked well for me as well as many people I know. In fact, K&N even states that you should use a hose to spray off excess dirt and oil!
http://www.knfilters.com/audio/08%20...r%20Filter.mp3
^Listen to that

Also, majority of the dirt is caught on the bottom half of the filter, so if you spray water from the "top" (when looking down at the air box), then dirt has nowhere to go but out.


You're filter is a reusable filter.. its not a magical filter that requires a precise oil blend for it to work.


Enough talk, here are pictures... looks clean to me. Soap from The Speed Factor has been doing this for the past 4 years on his car, and no problems what so ever.



Wow.. look at that damaged filter.. and all that embedded dirt... oh wait.. It's perfectly fine! What a suprise.

dct223

LOL okay... first off, Ive done this before and it works great!

2nd.. Squidd...your agruement for "high pressure garden hose" is just plain stupid because you dont even have to do that in the first place. Also to note, I think i even recall the directions for the K&N filter recharger SAYS to rinse with a hose unless you guys changed it.

anyways this is what i did instead. I just mixed warm water and a good amount of dish soap in a bucket. I chose dish soap beacuse I didnt have any type of automotive degreaser, so dish soap is the next best thing. I let my filter soak in the bucket for 30-40 min. I swished it around back and foruth and "spun it" in the water trying to get all the dirt off. I then changed the water in the bucket and washed my filter again with clean water and rinsed it off one last time under the sink.. The next day it was dry i sprayed on silicone spray, and after driving around i definately saw a improvement in gas milage, i remember at around 315 my car would already be close on empty. Before i rememberd i could get at least 330-340. Cleaning it I saw my results go back up. I know its not THAT much gain returned but with the gas prices these days, it definately saves you money in the long run. There cleaning a filter without the "damaging" water from the garden hose.

Soooo.. why does this work??? its because if you remember the first day you opened your brand new intake or filter... you noticed that the filter is oiled... The oil is so that the dirt and debris will stick on the oil. If you just wash off that oil, you will wash off the dirt as well, then right it dries you spray silicone lubricant on it so this process can repeat.

the only damage this does is it takes off the distinct "k&n color red" from the filters

__________________
Sfourteen

tre

FAIL!!


dude their kit comes with oil that grabs small fine objects that helps keep your engine from getting little gritty in it. Do it right or don't do it at all.

Please dont tell me after you'r done draining your oil you put it back int eh car and call it an oil change.

__________________
I didn't buy an Audi because it is a Great Car, but for more of a reason to be an asshole.

Irukandji

Do you even know what you're talking about? No.

turboka24

i clean mine out in the sink, from the inside out with some dishsoap, not much pressure and works great. i use wd40 and for you haters, everytime i reclean it the water is filthy that comes out, im sure it traps the same as the other shit. oil is oil.

g6civcx

To the original poster, have you verified with K&N if this procedure will void the 1 million mile warranty?

S14DB

How often are you guys cleaning your filters?

__________________
Comments should be taken as Opinions not as Statements of Fact

WilloW

I've been doing the same shit since 97, nothing blew up yet.

__________________

dct223

wtf are you talking about... comparing cleaning a reuseable filter and doing an oil change is like comparing apples and oranges.. two completly different things.

__________________
Sfourteen

phrozen

20 bucks isnt bad sheesh.. im sure both ways work.... one probalby works better then the toehr but its not worth 20 bucks to some... nuff said

__________________
This box is 400x200:

Please do not put your sig pic back if it exceeds this.
-Moderation

FaLKoN240

It seems like some people have been doing this for years. . .

__________________

Best way to do business with me? Make your best offer FIRST.

Pacman

My cleaning kit came free with the purchase of a filter since it was on promo

__________________
In search of a Zenki S14 right side (passenger) fender and straight hood that are rust free.

drew935

being cheap with $20 cleaning bottles for your filter that you only clean like a few times a year is stupid.

__________________
I'm driving fast
-drew

Irukandji

Nuh Uhhhh!!!! According to Squid it'll blow motors!

tre

Wait you guys dont even know about the oil your spose to put on the filter either? i've got like 3 bottles of it in my garage.

__________________
I didn't buy an Audi because it is a Great Car, but for more of a reason to be an asshole.

Cashizslick

First MR & SSAC manifolds, now home made filter cleaner kits. . . .

tre

I'd like to make note that silicone is usually used to seal things...

__________________
I didn't buy an Audi because it is a Great Car, but for more of a reason to be an asshole.

aznpoopy

it probably works fine, but...

the cleaning kit is like $20 and literally lasts years.

Irukandji

I'd like to make note that you're an idiot.

Silicone aerosols are used as lubricants.... you're seriously the stupidest person on zilvia.
http://www.clearcoproducts.com/silicone_aerosols.html



Did I say you hafta do this? No.. it's just a cheaper alternative.

Done and done

dct223

oooo damn.. are we are turning ghetto like the DSM community and their PVC intake pipes and IC piping??? oooo noooesss

its not really a homemade recharge kit, its just cleaning a filter without driving to a auto parts store and buying a specially made recharge kit, spending extra time, gas, and 20 bux. Im pretty sure majority of you have this stuff lying around the house... (dish soap and silicone lube spray)

the degreaser k&n supplies you is just that, a strong base (k&n even tells you that you can use it to clean your driveway), and due to the nature of bases , it will make the oil water soluable and come off the filter along with all the dirt that has been collected on the oil. Im pretty sure all of you know that water and oil dont mix... if you didnt.. then... i dont know what to say, other than that you fail in life..

anyways.. water is a polar molecule, oil is non polar, they dont like to bond to eachother thats why they dont mix. Adding base allows them to interact. Soap is a base, thats why grease and other things come off so easily when we use it.

i know this discussion is split 50/50.... ive done it, and i have nothing bad to say about it other than that its a nice easy solution to clean your filter and restore those lost MPG!

lets saving money while we drive!! weeee

__________________
Sfourteen

HyperTek

hey squidd, do you work at k&n?? i used to be a customer service rep in 04.. got fired cuz i always came 1-2minutes late.. badass job tho, wish i was still there.. oh well, riverside sucks dont wanna get stuck here.

The reason you want the K&N recharger kit, is becuase it will cover your ass for warrentee if somethign goes wrong with it. If you dont take care or abuse your filter, and it gets ruin or your motor blows, it will be deteremined by if the filter was taking care of or not. I worked there and soo many people would try to say the filter blew up thier motors, when in reality, people neglecting maintanence blows motors.

__________________
Keep it Classy

rainier

where are u guys buying your cleaning kits? its only 10.99-12.00 bucks around here last time i checked.

either way, cleaning a filter is cleaning. whatever you think is safe. id just stick with the cleaning solution and oil from k&n.

__________________

S14DB

$6 on eBay. I can't think that silicone is good for MAFs.

__________________
Comments should be taken as Opinions not as Statements of Fact

jdm_s14_zenki

^^^ i second that. but then again, what do i know??

Just thought i'd add in that I have a Blitz SUS filter and I use simple green, water, and air compressor with the air sprayer thingy and it works just fine for me.. Never ever ever had any probs...

Also, i have another Hyundai elantra 2001 with 160k miles on it. Ive been running that piece of crap with no air filter at all for over 100k miles. so...im sure that whatever air filter u use, and whatever cleaner you use for it is just fine. Just my 2 cents.

HKsilvia

lets make it simple... your motor does not blow doesnt mean the way u do is right, some people run turbo on pipe with nothing to let off the excessive turbo pressure and claim that the engine runs fine or even better than having BOV, guess what, you are testing your luck...
But n1smor, im not saying u are wrong, maybe it works, but i wont even dare trying that, and btw i run HKS SPF so it cannot be washed.

g6civcx

Could you answer my question please?

tre

Eh the only time i use silicone is to seal haha

but from many experiences. Its better to do it the right way.

__________________
I didn't buy an Audi because it is a Great Car, but for more of a reason to be an asshole.