Lemon Carb Cleaning - Page 2 - Carburetor Central - Classic Z Car Club Skip to content

Lemon Carb Cleaning

Featured Replies

Cygnus: What kind or brand paint did you used? Brushed or ?

Cygnus: What kind or brand paint did you used? Brushed or ?

Silver brake caliper paint. Spray on. I think it was VHT brand.

post-4964-14150821580302_thumb.jpg

Edited by cygnusx1

  • 3 months later...

I tried the lemon juice method a few months ago on a set of carbs. While it is a cheap alternative to cleaning them up, in the end I was not completely happy with the results. The process took me an afternoon to setup and do. The smell was pretty bad, and the carbs didn't come out as clean as I was hoping. There was still grease and a tarnished finish on them. If you're looking for an easy way to really clean your carbs, go down to the local car parts store and get a gallon of carb cleaner with the basket inside. I did that, and left the carb in it over night. The results were far better than lemon juice and there wasn't a mess to clean up.

Chase

I just sent my carbs to glass blasting, results were awesome (and cheapish)

S
Sponsored
Advertisement
Go Ad-Free
No ad showing? Ads help support ClassicZcars. If you use an ad blocker, please consider allowing ads on this site or Go Ad-Free.
  • Author

Well I am not impressed. I soaked for a few hours and it worked nicely at removing the crud and varnish.

I let sit for another 24hrs and it removed a lot of cad/zinc plating and darkened the aluminum. I guess it is just an acid like any other.

When I disassembled the carb it was messy and gooey in the internal passages and the brass jets and fittings darkened.

It was ok after spraying with carb cleaner and oiling the iron base of the DAF328

Bottom line: I feel dumb as the fools that post this BS on the net.

It is amazing that many just soak in the Pine-Sol and don't even take the carbs apart afterwards.

I do not recommend this.

I have a Weber DGV that I will boil in soapy water and see what happens. Stay away from acids unless you plan to replate the cad/zinc!!!!

Edited by Blue

Thanks for trying this and taking one for the team Blue...

I wish you luck in recovering from this

Bummer. I don't know what the offending ingredient is, but in thier FAQ:

Pine-Sol® Ingredients, How to Use Coupons & Other FAQ's

Where should I NOT use Pine-Sol® Cleaners?

We do not recommend using Pine-Sol® Original Pine® Multi-Surface Cleaner on aluminum, copper or marble surfaces. We also do not recommend using Pine-Sol® Cleaners on cars, on dishes, or as a pet shampoo.

  • 2 weeks later...

I've actually been trying the lemon juice approach in my ultrasonic cleaner lately. Been using that on some motorcycle carbs. Carbs came out cleaner than when I put them in. But not as clean as I was hoping. That said, they seem to work just fine and my bike is back up and running. As most motorcycle carbs were made from aluminum you need to be a bit careful about which acids you use to clean them.

As for my '78 280Z, that has a Holley 4bbl that needed a good cleaning after sitting for a few years. Lemon juice seemed to work OK on that one. At least the car seems to run fine. Well, a lot better than it did before I cleaned the carb (and installed a carb rebuild kit).

post-29108-14150823655302_thumb.jpg

I rigged up a baking soda blaster with stuff I had laying around. It cuts right through the carbon deposits.

post-29108-14150823654855_thumb.jpg

[ATTACH=CONFIG]62463[/ATTACH][ATTACH=CONFIG]62464[/ATTACH]

I rigged up a baking soda blaster with stuff I had laying around. It cuts right through the carbon deposits.

I bought an abrasive blaster at Tractor Supply. I just have to get around to trying it out.

By the way, Blue, what did you and the good Captain find out when digging through the flattops? A friend gave me another set recently.

Create an account or sign in to comment

Account

Navigation

Search

Search

Configure browser push notifications

Chrome (Android)
  1. Tap the lock icon next to the address bar.
  2. Tap Permissions → Notifications.
  3. Adjust your preference.
Chrome (Desktop)
  1. Click the padlock icon in the address bar.
  2. Select Site settings.
  3. Find Notifications and adjust your preference.