sbtiger

My Feedback: (15)

I was reading my April 2011 Model Airplane News and under Tips & Trick I read an article on cleaning glow plugs. It stated in the article to let them soak in Vassal. What is it or is there a US equivalent? The article was from a gentleman in Canada, so it may not be available here. Or was this a typo in the mag? Would like to save a little bit of money on glo plugs if I could clean them and reuse them???

Dave McDonald

My Feedback: (19)

I was wondering the same thing. A google search for VASSAL came up with nothing.

But it did find something made by Exxon called Varsol, which is a solvent. I wonder if this is what the MAN glow plug tip was referring to?

Do a google search for VARSOL for more info.

estradajae

Varsol is quite common around here... In fact, varsol is quite similar to kerosene, it is some kind of refined petroleum derivate.

It is used as general cleaner, sometimes mixed with floor cleaning products to get rid of black spots left by the shoes etc... and used as light solvent (best thing to get rid of the decals)...

Once in a while I've used it to clean the engines, and while it works good to clean the oil, it is not good to remove castor gunk.

I've cleaned myself the glow plugs when I didn't have anything else to clean the engines...but have not noticed anything special on them after that, but maybe I should give it a try.

saludos,

Jorge

w8ye

My Feedback: (16)

In the USA, we know Varsol as Mineral Spirits

Turk1

I am using sole methanol to clean flament of glow plugs after a good use.Soaking the flament by methanol, I energize the plug heater and blowing slightly onto the reddish flament to make it shine bright really hotlike red.That blow with methanol burns the residue into the cave and flament surface.After some time blowing and several methanol bath,then there will be no residue to burn and flament itself gets old red color though blowing.Then I understand process is finished.

Phoenixangel

This makes sense, any good engine or transmission shop has a parts cleaner bay. The product used to soak parts and clean them is 99% pure mineral spirits.

It dissolves the bonding agents that allow carbon and other deposits to stick to metals.

For an easy supply, the STP type fuel system additives you pour in you fuel tanks, those type fuel system cleaners are mineral spirits (petroleum distillates) [link=http://www.thecloroxcompany.com/products/msds/armorallstp/stpsuperconcentratedfuelinjectorcleaner.pdf]STP MSDS [/link]

daven

My Feedback: (1)

Hmmm,,, Not to be arguementative, but if the element still glows, why bother messing with it?

estradajae

dirt around it prevents direct contact with methanol...so the principle itself of the glow plug is messed.

daven

My Feedback: (1)

There is no dirt in my motors unless I plant them

gkamysz

My Feedback: (19)

Deposits collect on the plug. It will glow with electric current, but the chemical reaction with methanol doesn't occur as efficiently as needed to keep it hot when the engine is running. I highly doubt a solvent will remove any of those deposits.

There are several grades of Varsol. Which did the article recommend?

estradajae

It may be better an ultrasound cleaning?

daven

My Feedback: (1)

I'm just not buying this would extend the life of the plug.

Clay Walters

When I was a kid working in a service station we kept a vat of salvsol (Mobil's equivalent to Exxon's varsol) for soaking carburetors and the like. It was for all practical purposes a lite kerosene...and smelled like kerosene. It was good to have around for cleaning leather seats or your greasy hands too.

Regards,

Clay

slopoke

My Feedback: (16)

Mineral spirits is also sold as paint thinner

slopoke

blw

My Feedback: (3)

this?

Rodney

A glow plug work by the interaction between alchohol and the platinum plating on the glow plug. Once that platinum plating is gone (most plugs are platinum plated, some pure platinum) no amount of cleaning will restore it's function. Now, the plug can also get that plating covered with a coating that prevents the reaction, if that is the case, removeing the coating would help. Just because a glow plug glows, it does not mean it will work as desired. If the plating is covered or gone, no amount of glow will make it work. In most cases, cleaning will not improve the plugs performance. Since platinum is very expensive, few if any glow plugs now are solid platinum. I think Fox was the last company to use solid platinum.

earlwb

I have actually had a couple of glow plugs go bad at different times, but they still had a nice coil shape that was undamaged, and they glowed a nice red color when you applied power to them. But the engines would simply not sputter or fire or anything.

MJD

My Feedback: (1)

Usually a plug with a poisoned element will start an engine with power to it, but pull plug heat and rpm drops or the engine will quit altogether depending on the state of deterioration.

I too am very skeptical that mineral spirits/Varsol will do anything about baked on deposits on a plug element. If it was that easy we would have known about it a long time ago I think. Cleaning out oil and crud, sure. But how does that get there in the first place expect perhaps in storage.

It's hard to throw out a plug that still glows, but over time I have become ruthless enough that when the standard signs start to show, out with the old and in with the new. But you still run into folks that are determined that if the plug glows there must be something else wrong. I love it when a plug swap vaporizes the problem.

earlwb

I keep a little box with my old glow plugs in it. If I have a balky engine, I swap out the plug and put the old one in the box as it is still working. Later when bench running a new or repaired engine, I'll use the old plug first, so that a new good plug isn't fouled out by the stuff in the engine. Sometimes even the ARO or lubrication oil you use in the engine can poison a glow plug element. I tend to run a new or rebuilt engine extra rich for a while to ensure it is lubricated good, before I lean it out and that in itself is pretty hard on a glow plug.

blw

My Feedback: (3)

Earl, I keep my older/questionable glowplugs for bench running and break in too. When I break in a new engine I use the plug that comes with it. When I think the break in is done I put in a new plug and the original gets marked for bench use.

captinjohn

captinjohn

jeffie8696

Merlin plugs does not sell plated wire plugs. Iasked this directly.

PiccoLino

When I was a chemistry college student we used to clean the platinum filament, of some elements test tool, with hot concentrated hydrochloric acid (use rubber gloves beside a fun or inside an aspirating cabin). The filament became shiny like nothing else. Hot concentrated hydrochloric acid dissolves everything (including your lungs), but platinum.
However at this point I have no idea about the performance of your engine.