Technical Seafoam Stories Good or Bad

I'd swear by seafoam. I've used it on multiple vehicles through the brake booster vacuum line and every time they smoke like a locomotive, and then run like a dream afterwards.

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I had a snowmobile that was running bad- bogged out after sitting all summer, couldn't accelerate. A friend told me don't run it that way as it will probably go lean and take out a piston. (2 stroke) I added a bout a quart of sea foam to the gas tank and took it out. As soon as it would bog I would let off. It got better and better until it ran great again. And has run great for 3-4 years now. I do believe in it. I also thought it was "Snake Oil" ( as someone else mentioned) until I saw it work.

 

One word of warning about Sea Foam... ha ha
I had a motorcycle that sat too long, so I tried to fix the clogged-carb rough running by dosing it pretty heavy with sea foam.
The white smoke out of the exhaust from too high a dose led a few bike shops to tell me all sorts of horror stories about my blown head gaskets, water pump leaking into the coolant etc etc big bills, big costs.
Long story short-
IF YOU DOSE IT TOO HEAVY TO CLEAN OUT A CARB, BE PREPARED FOR ALL THE NEIGHBORS AND SHOPS TO TELL YOU THAT YOU BLEW YOUR ENGINE.
I have a very nice running bike now, and it doesn't smoke any more



WHY BE ORDINARY ?

 

Not that I doubt what you are saying, but they look completely different to me (Seafoam is a thin, clear liquid, while tranny fluid is a reddish, more viscous fluid). How can they be directly compared?

 

I think the comparison is that transmission fluid used to be poured down a carb, added to oil etc. in days past as a kind of folk remedy for various ills. Kind of like Seafoam is nowadays.
I'm not saying that it worked or not.

 

Seafoam is a blend of hydrocarbons and isopropyl alcohol.

Pretty sure ATF is not that.

 

I've used the old, original Dexron and Type F fluid in the oil to clean and quiet down lifters on older engines. Don't know if the newer blends would do the same or not. Definitely not the same stuff as Seafoam.

 

Don't forget the perfume in Seafoam, methyl salicylate aka Oil of Wintergreen.

 

I believe you're thinking of Marvel Mystery Oil.

 

You tube has a lot on it for sure..

 

ON TOPIC use as a fuel stabilizer for lawn equipment, though lately I just buy less fuel and replace more often, theres a gas station 5 min away. Why am I putting so much effort into preserving old gasoline

OFF TOPIC Used it in a friends late model high mileage car as an intake fog, in the oil, in the fuel. Drove the hell out of it for a few miles, smoothed out rough idle, cleared up a lot of ticking valvetrain noise, was able to reset the throttle body after removing and cleaning manually did not clear the codes.
Ready for trade in.

 

awesome quote!

 

My snow thrower was spittin' & sputterin' after sitting a long time. I poured a little seafoam in the tank and it ran great. I just think it helped the old gas in the tank.

 

Been three weeks, let me see if I can remember to start the bike [F7] tomorrow. Local bike guys said it will remove gas tank sealer; gees I hope not!

 

I have a buddy that works at a marine shop. He said that it worked well on older engines, but causes a bunch of problems on newer ones. In the scope of the HAMB, it should be allright.
I did get a stubborn trans (OT 1990 F150) to start shifting again with a half bottle of their "trans tune". That tranny had 160+ on it when it decided not to shift, and after 4 miles ("around the block" if you live in the country) it came back to working order, and went another 80K miles before the truck was retired, and was still working then.

 

Yeah, you're right.

 

I own a farm and have used it in all mowers, weed wackers, chain saws tractors etc in place of Sta-Bil and alway start in the spring , I was a Sta-bil devotess until my son turned me on to Seafoam, we had a pair of Polaris ATVs that sat for years with gas in them we picked up cheap, Seafoam got the running

 

I've used it several times in the gas and in the oil. Last used in a '41 Chevy that had sat for 30+ years, poured a can in the gas tank and a can in with the oil, freed up the sticky valves and cleaned out the varnish in the fuel system. I like it...

 

Im interested too. My Dad just had to replace all the fuel lines on a man lift, swollen disintegrating inner that was throwing chunks into the system, no outer damage. Diesel if it matters.

Some of the small equipment fuel lines are weird sizes too, difficult to find.

 

I've literally never used this stuff ever but after reading this thread I'm going to give it a shot. I have a load of outdoor power equipment that sits for long periods of time and this stuff might really help it.

I've never been one for the "snake oil" treatments, but some recent experiences I've had have started to make me reconsider what various additives can actually do.

 

Interestingly enough, they don't include synthetic wintergreen for the smell, the reason they use it is because it's one of the very best penetrating oils around.

 

Used it in plenty of engines.
Usually hit them with the barrage of in the sump, in the tank, and down the throat.

Smogger Olds V8s. Usually fairly gummed up from high heat and lack of oil changes. Only problem is after they get cleaned out have to replace the umbrella seals and valve cover gaskets, as the varnish and goop on the valve train was preventing oil from leaking.

Smogger 305 SBC, fairly quiet but lacked power, dumped in a full can after a fresh oil change. I'm guessing the valves were hanging up before as after about 40miles the engine had a new power band. Still gutless. Changed the oil after a couple hundred mile loop around the bay area.
The stuff that came out was gloppy and glittery. Pulled the valve covers a year later for valve stem seals, pretty clean 'cept for some carbon chunks stuck in the oil drain backs.

B&S power pressure washer that I hadn't used in quite some time due to the one piece plastic carb was all sorts of gunked up. Had that indirect throttle control where the fan blew on a lever to control engine speed. It always oscillated and never could settle down. Used carb cleaner, nothing, tried a few other sprays, nothing. Found aerosol SeaFoam, sprayed the begesus out of the carb and added some Seafoam to the tank. Over the next 30 mins the oscillation went away. Now starts on the first compression stroke.

Several 90's Hondas. Only drawback is they seem to get the carbon and junk stuck into the spark plug gaps. Maybe a testament of Honda being able to get the A/F mixture swirled right into the plug gap.
Usually, choke the engine down and let it sit a bit longer than the normal 15min interval. Cool enough to pull the plugs, either clean them or replace. Start up the engine and they make an amazing amount of smoke out of the exhaust.

Ford 3V 5.4. Done the sparkplugs on that engine type three or four times. I'll give Kroil the credit for the spark plug threads, but cleaning off the ends of those plugs is a SeaFoam blessing. Have yet to break a 3V plug. Usually dump a couple cans of Seafoam into the tank a week before I bother and a SeaFoam fogging right before I pull the plugs. They always come out clean.

Neighborhood kids Dorifto Nissan 240SuX. Known for weird valve train noises. Cleared up a random miss the engine was having. Quieted most of the valvetrain. It started leaking out of every oil seal about a week later. Perfect excuse to 'ls swap' it.

Probably should dump a gallon into the 235, but not really ready to deal with any Stovebolt nuances at the moment.

Had a co-worker that was a bonefied rotary wankel nut. Would pick up 'blown engine' Rx7s all day long for $50, let them soak in SeaFoam for a week. Change the oil, start them up, give a basic tuneup and another oil change, and sell them for ~$2500 on CL.

Found the best deal locally is at Target.

 

1958 4 cyl. Red Tiger wouldn't run for Shit with it, But all my Modern stuff with Compression, sits all Winter and Fires Rite up in the Spring

 

I even run my MacLaine mower out of gas after each lawn mow.

 

Whatever would tend to prevent varnish and gum from building up in the IABs and all those tiny orifices &c would be best. I always intend to run the carb dry but hardly ever remember. I think no matter what, a carb probably needs to be gone through every few years.

 

Due to some health issues, I had three vehicles sit for a few years. I siphoned out the old gasoline, changed the fuel filters, put in a few gallons of fresh gas, added some SeaFoam to the tanks, and changed the oil. It exceeded my expectations, and all three are now running better than when they were parked. A carbureted 327 SBC, an injected 350 SBC, and a carbureted Ford 352. I'm a believer.

 

Stihl strongly advises using their 2 stroke oil which already has stabilizer and additives in it. I wrecked a carb and after replacing it only run Stihl oil, no issues ever.