sea foam good or bad

[Marcluv]

I pour a little less then half of sea foam into the crank case, i was expecting heavy smoke but not a thing happen just regular smoke from the exhaust into the cold air.
temp outside is 39'f
engine was fully warm
I drive a gen 4 auto 108k
my question is this good or bad that it did not smoke?

[buci]

You should get smoke most of the times and a lot of it.Maybe your engine is too clean? but i still think you should get some smoke. Be careful though it's easy to hydrolock the engine if you pour to much in there, I hydrolocked mine the first time and had to remove the spark plugs to get the fluid out,lucky no damage though. After that started using a spray bottle it's safer.Here is the link and that's my loyal and ugly car...quality of that video it's not that good though, the camcorder and I both sucks
http://www.carinstructions.com/seafoam-engine-cleaning/

[hill8570]

Um, yeah, it's a good thing she ain't smoking -- that would mean your oil is suddenly blowing past the rings and burning. In theory, right now the seafoam in your oil is breaking loose deposits of crap that your regular oil hasn't cleaned up. I have my opinions on the wisdom of that, but I'll withhold them. Oh, and I hope you're not driving around with that stuff in your oil -- at most it should be used an engine flush right before changing your oil.

If you want to generate smoke, you have to add it into the combustion side of the system. Using the vacuum line for the brake booster seems to be the method of choice. I'll withhold my opinions on that, also.

[gladis]

Yup, adding it to the crankcase won't cause it to smoke, it's just getting mixed with your oil and dissolving (loosening) caked on bits of dirt (if you had any). Now that's you've added it to the crankcase, it's too late to tell you not to, but I'm obliged to tell you to change your oil within a couple hundred miles.

If you have any crap inside your engine that's getting loosened up, you don't want it to get mixed in with the rest of your engine and start clogging things.

As for the brake booster, some people are concerned with the seafoam (essentially a solvent) screwing various seals and hoses up, but imo, the time it takes for the stuff the get passed through, into your cylinders, combusted, and out your exhaust isn't too much of a concern. I've done it myself with no ill effects in the 2 years since I've done it.

I also added it to the oil about a week before it was due to a change, but I chickened out and only added like 1/2-1/3 of the recommended dosage. Also, with no apparently ill effects.

[Nervous]

Ok, there are no "ill effects" (also discussable, though) . But how do you, guys, know that there is any positive effect of doing sea foam? Anybody checked the internals of engine before and after? Any documentary proofs of positive effect of sea foam? Or, is this just one big placebo?

[buci]

Originally Posted by Marcluv

I pour a little less then half of sea foam into the crank case, i was expecting heavy smoke but not a thing happen just regular smoke from the exhaust into the cold air.
temp outside is 39'f
engine was fully warm
I drive a gen 4 auto 108k
my question is this good or bad that it did not smoke?

Now i see he said crankcase, didnt see it before.Lol
Well...if you leave that seafoam in the oil and drive the car soon you will starting to see smoke and not a good smoke. Change the oil man,I hope you did already.

[gladis]

Originally Posted by Nervous

Ok, there are no "ill effects" (also discussable, though) . But how do you, guys, know that there is any positive effect of doing sea foam? Anybody checked the internals of engine before and after? Any documentary proofs of positive effect of sea foam? Or, is this just one big placebo?

If you're referring to my post, I'm just saying that it was the case when I did it, certainly others have reported there to be potential problems.

With regards to documented proof, I lack both the equipment and expertise, I did it mainly just for fun (seeing tons of smoke out the back), and thought why not. And again, I stress, in my case, the car's still running fine two years later, as to whether there were positive effects, I have no idea.

It might well be a placebo effect, and if you were someone who's short on money, and your car's running fine, I would say, why risk it?

[RichieRichJP]

Originally Posted by Nervous

Ok, there are no "ill effects" (also discussable, though) . But how do you, guys, know that there is any positive effect of doing sea foam? Anybody checked the internals of engine before and after? Any documentary proofs of positive effect of sea foam? Or, is this just one big placebo?

There aren't ill effects, but it can spur a leak i.e. old seals that have shrunk but are 'clogged' closed by sludge preventing the leak. I heard it can eat rubber gaskets too and break down lubricants from overexposure (left in oil too long via crankcase) and overexcessive use. That you absolutely don't want to happen.
Definitely not a placebo effect. I've tried it, a lot of board members have tried it, and it works.

[Marcluv]

thanks for all you guys input. I have havent changed the oil yet, i am going to within the week, is that going to harm anything?

i drove maybe about 5 miles and them my cel came on, i havent got a chance to check what the code was yet but does anyone have an idea?

[hill8570]

Originally Posted by Marcluv

thanks for all you guys input. I have havent changed the oil yet, i am going to within the week, is that going to harm anything?

Yes, that's w-a-a-a-y too long to be running thinned-out oil, especially in Georgia. Hell, 5 miles was too much -- you want to idle it to warm it up, and then drain the sucker. Unless you enjoy flirting with ruined bearings.

Originally Posted by Marcluv

i drove maybe about 5 miles and them my cel came on, i havent got a chance to check what the code was yet but does anyone have an idea?

Yeah, something's wrong

[Nervous]

Definitely not a placebo effect. I've tried it, a lot of board members have tried it, and it works.[/quote]

Ok, this is not placebo effect. The question is: how do you know that it works? Have you opened up the engine? Or, is this a religious question and I just have to believe in seafoam? I am not for or against it, I am just trying to understand.

[gladis]

Originally Posted by Marcluv

thanks for all you guys input. I have havent changed the oil yet, i am going to within the week, is that going to harm anything?

i drove maybe about 5 miles and them my cel came on, i havent got a chance to check what the code was yet but does anyone have an idea?

If the CEL is new, that it can at least be suspected that the seafoam had something to do with it. I would say go check it out, but either way, immediately change your oil, you don't want to take the risk of things getting melted away by the solvent.

Get the code read ASAP as well, and go from there.

Originally Posted by Nervous

Definitely not a placebo effect. I've tried it, a lot of board members have tried it, and it works.

Ok, this is not placebo effect. The question is: how do you know that it works? Have you opened up the engine? Or, is this a religious question and I just have to believe in seafoam? I am not for or against it, I am just trying to understand.[/quote]

Truth is, without something like an acoustic analyzer, a vibration monitor, or a gas composition meter, it's impossible to know in any way whether it worked short of disassembling the engine and actually checking the combustion chamber.

Theoretically, knowing the composition of seafoam, especially that it's a solvent, and the general composition of the carbon deposits inside an engine, a reasonably reliable assumption can be made that such carbon deposits will be dissolved within the cylinder and exhausted out.

Whether the composition of Seafoam should actually work, after exposure to the heat of the cylinder (where it's chemistry may be altered) and within the given time frame, can also be studied, but again, not without some extensive knowledge in organic chemistry, and needing a lab to prove it.

[buci]

Originally Posted by Marcluv

thanks for all you guys input. I have havent changed the oil yet, i am going to within the week, is that going to harm anything?

i drove maybe about 5 miles and them my cel came on, i havent got a chance to check what the code was yet but does anyone have an idea?

Change the oil buddy asap,don't drive the car or within the week your going to change the engine. After putting seafoam in the crankcase you're only supposed to idle the car for 10-15 min and change the oil. Right now whatever you have there will be much closer to water than oil.

[flyeri]

Sea Foam and other "fix in a can" will never fix a broken engine. Regular use of a fuel additive (every 2 months or so) will do a lot to keep the back sides of the valves clean, clean carbon build up on the pistons, as well as some other benefits. So will top tier gas in many cases. Regular oil changes at 3-5k miles will prevent internal sludge build up and will help clean up a dirty engine. Look for a oil that has added cleaning agents. If your engine has not ben taken care of, Sea Foam used in the oil will begin to clean up the internals but be aware that leaks may develop. I have seen this in several cases. If I was going to put Sea Foam in my crank case I would add it to a warm engine, drive 3-5 miles, and then let it sit for a half hour so that most of the oil can drain back to the pan. Then I would change the oil letting the pan drain for a bit. Personally I would not inject via a vacuum hose. An additive to the gas will accomplish much the same thing with several treatments. Years ago we would pour auto trans fluid into the carburator to "clean the carbon" off the back of the valves and piston tops. We usually just smoked up the neighborhood and once had the fire dept come over because a neighbor thought the car was on fire. I never noticed any difference in performance afterwards as the engine was taken care of properly all along.

[Marcluv]

i checked my engine code and it read p1133