Choosing The Right Ride

Cleaning Your Air Cleaner Is A Motorcycle Maintenance Job You Can Do Yourself

Making sure that your motorcycle is running in top condition is important, since you want to make sure that you get in as much riding time as possible. In order to make that happen, you should learn to do a few maintenance and repair jobs yourself. One basic job you can do is to clean your air filter or cleaner. 

Air Cleaner/Filter

You need to make sure that your engine gets enough air to keep running as well as possible. The filter is the way to make sure that happens and that nothing like dirt or debris gets into your engine to mess it up. That means that it is going to get dirty. When it gets dirty, your engine is going to give lower and lower performance. 

There are three kinds of material that your filter could be made of. Those materials are paper, cotton, or foam. If your filter is made of paper, the only way that you can clean it is to toss it in the trash can and get a new one. However, if you have a cotton or foam filter, you can wash the filter and get your bike back to running well. The process for cleaning foam and cotton filters is basically the same. 

After you have removed the filter, you need to get as much as the accumulated debris and basic street crud off the filter as possible. You can do this by knocking or brushing it off with your hands. You may want to wear nitrile gloves for this step or even the whole process. 

Once you have gotten all the loose stuff off the filter, it's time to give that cleaner a bath. Cotton and foam filters both have their own chemicals that you should use to clean them. It is important that you use the right cleaning solution for your type of filter so that it doesn't get damaged. 

You will want to do a pre-wash with the appropriate cleaning solution. Let it sit for a few minutes so that all the grease and whatnot has been broken down. Then it's time to give the air cleaner its bath. Fill a bucket or tub with some water and a little dish soap. Start swishing the filter around in there. You are going to have to change that water a few times until that filter is the same basic color it was when it was installed in your bike's engine or the water runs clean. Don't stretch out the filter while you are cleaning it, but you can knead it a little to make sure that the soapy water mix can get all the way through the filter. When the filter is clean, it's time to rinse it off with just plain water. Again, you may have to change that water a couple of times to make sure that all the soap and water is gone. Then set the filter somewhere so that it can dry completely. Don't try to rush this step. If there is water left in your air filter, it can cause problems with your engine. After it's dry, you can re-install it and get back to your ride. 

Making sure that your air filter is clean is something that you can easily do on your own, and it will keep your bike running well. 

For more information, contact a company like Monarch Honda.


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