CLEANING ZERKS

[flINTLOCK]

My used tractor has much accumulated "crud" around the zerks. Is there a safe solvent for such stuff. I'd like to think creating piles of dirty, greasy towels may not be the answer, although I've done that before!!

 

[1bush2hog]

Just wipe them off with a rag and pump them full of new grease - You will most likely always find a greasy spot on a tractor

 

[mjarrels]

Northern Tool also sells a small handheld zerk cleaning tool... Cheap model and expensive model in a oak case.

mark

 

[normde2001]

My used tractor has much accumulated "crud" around the zerks. Is there a safe solvent for such stuff. I'd like to think creating piles of dirty, greasy towels may not be the answer, although I've done that before!!

You can clean every zerk in the county with 1 shop rag.

 

[Bird]

Northern Tool also sells a small handheld zerk cleaning tool... Cheap model and expensive model in a oak case.

mark

Mark, I'll have to admit to never having heard of such a tool. But I think the original poster in this thread was talking about cleaning off the outside of the zerks while Nothern Tool's tools are for cleaning the inside; i.e., unstopping stopped up zerks so they'll take grease again. Like the other guys, I've always just wiped them off with a shop rag, or even a paper towel. Of course, there have been times when I washed, or pressure washed, grease fittings when I was washing more of the vehicle or equipment the zerks were in, and was then going to grease all the zerks.

 

[ToadHill]

Spray cans of brake cleaner will wash it off, if you want something less costly, a good old kerosene soak with air pressure to blow it off after the soak.

 

[Bob_Young]

What about cleanup around the joint itself? I usually pump grease in until I see some sign of grease being forced out of the joint. Sometimes that just takes one stroke....other times 4 or 5. Sometimes I watch the wrong place and a lot of grease is forced out without my knowledge.

Point is, that it takes time to wipe the accumulated ooze out of tight places and it often uses up much Windex and many rags or paper towels. Blowing it away with a pressure washer risks forcing water into the joint. Yet without doing one or the other the machine starts looking like a mess.

How do you neat freaks keep your tractors looking so good? Forget about greasing and trade often? That seems to be what one CUT owner I know is doing.
Bob

 

[flINTLOCK]

So brake cleaner should be OK?? I've got several cans of that around.

 

[Bird]

So brake cleaner should be OK?? I've got several cans of that around.

I think you want to be careful about getting brake cleaner on painted surfaces, don't you?

 

[workinallthetime]

brake cleaner will only take off the wax, other than that its ok to use. brake fluid will take off the paint