Dry Ice Blasting in the San Francisco Bay Area

[Larry C]

I have a friend in the Fresno area who is a professional engine builder and has just purchased a laser cleaner. He is still in the process of working some bugs out, but I'm really looking forward to seeing it in action. I'm not really sure if it's suitable for an entire underbody job, but I'd be happy to keep you posted.

Sounds interesting! Yes, please keep us posted.

[Renn937]

Very interesting. Would love to hear more and/or see results when it's operational.

[ROB III]

Musik-Stadt region members were given a dry ice demo at a local detailer a bit over a month ago. I attended as I've been following the dry ice process for a couple years but had not seen in person until the beginning of August. It can be a very effective tool, and it leaves just dirt on the floor when done, but it is pricey. It seems a typical chassis runs about $2K for a thorough cleaning. I think the biggest advantage is no moisture concerns. There is a lot on YouTube and I've watched a presentation of cloth being cleaned and a suede-ish steering wheel that had glossed over due to use/sweat/dirt and it looked brand new, at least in the video. How aggressive it cleans is up to the operator knowledge/skill and equipment.
I have an 89 944T that I've considered dry ice cleaning more for the ease of work and cleanliness, but haven't made the move due to cost, so its just oily/dirty work at the moment....but the more I climb underneath, the more attractive a clean chassis becomes.

[dr bob]

For just the casual cleaning for oil/crud removal, and assuming you can handle the mess yourself, I've had good results using spray cans of foamy engine brite from the parts store. Then a gentle hot-water rinse with the garden hose. The last few places I've lived have been in environmentally-sensitive areas, so I've been extra careful to build a tarp tray under the car and capture the rinse water with a shop vac before it escaped. My only gripe with this stuff is the fragrance.

With the car reasonably clean underneath, maintaining the clean after driving, I use a bit of Dawn in a garden sprayer, followed by a rinse with distilled water from another sprayer. The concentration of Dawn varies with the concentration of stuff to clean off. For casual road film, a teaspoon per gallon is usually enough. The distilled water leaves no crud trails and mineral deposits, so worth the few dollars in my experience.

There's an aero-approved version of Simple Green that's safe for use on aluminum. You may have to shop for it. It's a pretty good cleaner/degreaser for heavier stuff than the Dawn. Again, in a sprayer or a spray bottle, followed by distilled water rinse.

For really really serious greasy stuff, deodorized mineral spirits (Home Depot paint department) is effective with a parts cleaning brush. It will eventually remove cosmoline with some effort, can be a little tough on painted surfaces (dulls the gloss) but is otherwise effective. Prep and precautions the same as the Engine Brite, plus you add a small flammability component. Capture your rinse, and do a two-step rinse with the Dawn first then the distilled water.

For undercarriage work with no risk to electrical connections, I put Dawn in my pressure washer foam cannon and go at it.

Home Depot and other places I'm sure sell a spray-can degreaser with d-limonene as active ingredient. It's particularly kind to aluminum, and will brighten dull pieces given a little time.


In the giant scheme of things, a good steam cleaning is pretty darn effective, especially since I can drive away and leave all the mess in the rear view mirror.

I've watched the dry-ice guys clean power plant steam-generator tubes with some pretty impressive results, so I know it works well at removing everything on the finned metal tubes. Carbon exhaust coking from gas turbine start-up through ammonia salts from overfeeding NOx catalyst grids, the dry ice does a very impressive job. They attach to CO2 trucks/trailers and form their own dry ice for the actual blasting. Much more economical than the small-unit guys who buy dry ice.

[Renn937]

@dr bob you always have the detailing advice! I wanted to get this done over the summer but time got away from me... When I do get to it, I'm leaning toward going the steam route. Dropping and picking up the car without dealing with the mess is pretty appealing. Seems steam should accomplish most of what I'm after.

[dr bob]

@dr bob you always have the detailing advice! I wanted to get this done over the summer but time got away from me... When I do get to it, I'm leaning toward going the steam route. Dropping and picking up the car without dealing with the mess is pretty appealing. Seems steam should accomplish most of what I'm after.

I'll predict that your biggest disappointment with a good steam undercarriage cleaning is why you didn't get it done sooner. Share back before-and-afters and your impression of the results please. And with the place that does the work for you.

Book an appointment now, or this risks dragging on for messy months. Just sayin'...

[nwexcop]

A friend in the Porsche sales business also does ice blasting.
He is just outside of Sacramento, Juergen, 2Shores.com. 530 268-4737.
He is very careful and appreciates the cars.
John

[blueline]

A friend in the Porsche sales business also does ice blasting.
He is just outside of Sacramento, Juergen, 2Shores.com. 530 268-4737.
He is very careful and appreciates the cars.
John

They had a demonstration here recently following a club meeting. What I gathered from some post-demo talk was that the process was very good and the results impressive.

[Renn937]

A friend in the Porsche sales business also does ice blasting.
He is just outside of Sacramento, Juergen, 2Shores.com. 530 268-4737.
He is very careful and appreciates the cars.
John

I was wondering why he didn't show up in my initial search but I see on his site it's a new offering. Great to hear more folks are offering this service. Someone familiar with (vintage) Porsche would be ideal. Seems like a viable option!

[Preserve Auto]

Hi Dr. Bob.
I'm located here in Bend, Oregon and have a Dry Ice Business. The name is Preserve Auto. you can check us out at preserveauto.com or give me a call at 541-480-7369. Would love to help you out with your car.

Thanks,

Clay Cahoon
Preserve Auto
541-480-7369