Most car owners don’t perform maintenance on their vehicles outside of giving them a thorough clean and vacuuming. But did you know there’s another easy way to keep your vehicle in pristine condition? You can clean your car’s engine filter with simple steps. Keep reading to understand why it’s important to keep your air filter clean and tips for cleaning your car’s air filter thoroughly.
Why Is It Important To Clean Your Air Filter?
Cleaning and replacing your air filter is an easy but necessary task. The air filter ensures that debris or dirt doesn’t make its way into the car’s engine. These contaminants can potentially cause problems that are expensive to fix.
When you have a clogged filter, your car’s motor will no longer be as efficient and will have to work harder. An overworked engine can cause poor gas mileage, wear and tear, and possibly a loss of power. All these issues can cost you expensive repair bills. Knowing how to clean your car’s air filter thoroughly is important to preventing these issues.
Vacuum Your Air Filter Before Washing
Before you clean your air filter with soap and water, you need to remove any dust, dirt, and other debris from the air filter. It would help if you tapped or shook the air filter multiple times to ensure all the larger debris pieces are gone. Vacuum the air filter using a soft brush or duster attachment. You want to press firmly to ensure you get all the dirt and dust between the pleats.
Add Degreaser to Your Soap and Water
After getting all the debris out of the air filter, you should create a mixture of water, soap, and degreaser. The water and soap will dilute the degreaser so that it won’t eat away through the air filter paper. It would be best if you let the air filter soak for about 10 to 15 minutes to ensure all the dirt and grease are removed.
Allow Your Air Filter To Fully Dry
After cleaning your air filter, you should wait until it is completely dry before putting it back into your vehicle. If you put it in before it’s done drying, you could potentially damage your engine. Give yourself about 20 minutes and check to see how dry it is.
Know When It’s Time To Replace Your Air Filter
You can’t keep the same air filter forever. Sometimes it’s better to replace your air filter rather than clean it over and over. You need to replace your air filter when you start to see the warning signs like your engine light or poor acceleration. All vehicles are different, but you should replace your air filter every 30,000 miles.
