Cleaning Greasy Zerks and Pivot Points

[Big Joe]

I greased it again yesterday and cleaned it up pretty good with paper towels. I'll try the mineral spirits suggestion to try to get the other residue off so that it's more orange than black.

Thanks for all your input. That's why I like TBN so much...a great bunch of people who don't mind helping.

 

[GT2]

I have a brush and a can of solvent that I use once in a while to clean the area around the fitting and joint, then give the whole rig a bath with soap and water.

 

[TripleR]

My father in law swore by WD40 for cleaning. I am probably in the minority, but what a good shower won't wash off stays there.

 

[TGF]

My father in law swore by WD40 for cleaning. I am probably in the minority, but what a good shower won't wash off stays there.

WD40 is pretty good stuff in this sense, its better than evaorative solves or soap and water, as WD40 is hydrophobic and leaves a nice coating of naphtha. To prevent rust.

 

[CompactTractorFan]

My father in law swore by WD40 for cleaning. I am probably in the minority, but what a good shower won't wash off stays there.

WD40 is pretty good stuff in this sense, its better than evaorative solves or soap and water, as WD40 is hydrophobic and leaves a nice coating of naptha. To prevent rust.

I love WD40! :thumbsup: (I even bought a gallon jug once)

 

[TripleR]

My father in law bought it in the big non aerosol containers. We always have some on hand, but we don't use nearly as much as he did.

 

[yankeerider]

Simple Green. Biodegradeable, rinses off with water, and is a pretty darn good degreaser.

 

[TripleR]

Simple Green. Biodegradeable, rinses off with water, and is a pretty darn good degreaser.

I use to use that on my motorcycles and it worked pretty well, but offers no rust protection.

 

[Jay4200]

I love WD40! :thumbsup: (I even bought a gallon jug once)

I've always been a fan of WD40 until recently when I discovered that it absorbs and retains water over time - know how it turns white and kinda gloppy over time? It actually promotes rust in some environments.

As far as zerks - some of my backhoe and bucket pin-end zerks get packed tight with dirt. I have an old fine-blade screwdriver that is perfect for scraping around the zerk to dig out the dirt. Then I pack it full. Exposed zerks get a quick wipe with paper towel, but usually only if I can't see them. I leave the grease that globs out from both the joint and the zerk stay where it is. I am an overgreaser - I believe that a goodly portion of outer spooge keeps the actual inner joint and zerk protected from moisture and dirt. If you even think about standing next to my tractor, you're going to get a grease spot on your clothes somewhere .

JayC

 

[WH401]

I usually just wipe the zerks off with a paper/shop towel and grease them. After that there is a slight dab of new grease left on the zerk and I leave that on there so it'll be easy to wipe the zerk off the next time. If you have zerks that are hard to get to try wiping them off with a Q-tip.