Pressure wash vs Steam Clean

[Mackee]

If this is a stupid question, I apologize in advance...

I see lots of info stating to steam clean a dirty tub, a greasy chassis, etc. Honestly, I have never seen a commercial coin operated "steam cleaner". Is this what most folks call a pressure washer? If not, where would a person find a "steam cleaner"?

I am having a he!! of a time getting the old grease off my engine, tranny, and tc. I have used just about everything imaginable and nothing seems to work very good...Except hard work and elbow grease.

Any suggestions? I can't paint over grease.

Thanks,
Mike

 

[Buuushman]

Wrap all the important bits in plastic, soak the out of it with super clean,
and blast the out of it with a pressure washer. I spent a few hours with a putty knife on mine to get all the really thick stuff off but the S.C. and the washer got me to a nice, paintable surface.

 

[CJ]

Steam cleaners are high power pressure washers that have a heater on them, tey heat the water until it turns to steam, increasing the pressure. Steam cleaners are common at many dealerships, detail shops and auto shops. They are much more expensive and require some sore of combustible to fire the heater up.

-->> Steam Power Washer, Steam Pressurewashers

 

[Vvajk]

If this is a stupid question, I apologize in advance...

I see lots of info stating to steam clean a dirty tub, a greasy chassis, etc. Honestly, I have never seen a commercial coin operated "steam cleaner". Is this what most folks call a pressure washer? If not, where would a person find a "steam cleaner"?

I am having a he!! of a time getting the old grease off my engine, tranny, and tc. I have used just about everything imaginable and nothing seems to work very good...Except hard work and elbow grease.

Any suggestions? I can't paint over grease.

Thanks,
Mike

I'm kinda late to your question, but I used to work in a detail shop ( almost 20 yrs ago ) so I figured I could add something. What was said before is right. I steam cleaned many an engine while I worked in that shop. We had a system known as a Hotsy. It would fire up via a gas burner and heat the water coming out of the nozzle.

We would first spray the DRY engine down all over with degreaser and let it soak for a few minutes. Then scrub the engine down with a wire bristled brush, and then hit it good from every angle with the water. This would usually leave an engine looking pretty good. IMO the hot water is very good, but not required if you use a good quality degreaser and pressure washer. Watch it on the distributor though. Some vehicles don't keep the water out very well. ( Ford ) seemed to be the worst at the time.