Pressure washing on a lift

[nafarmboy]

Howdy,
Does anyone pressure wash under their car while on a 4- post lift. I am restoring a 68 corvette, I was trying to avoid a frame off, frame and birdcage is solid so i was planning on just cleaning the undercarrage and painting. Not something im planning on doing on a regular basis. I think the cables are stainless so i figured if i blowed everything dry and regreased the pulleys and relubed everything it wouldn't hurt anything. Was just wanting opinions from someone else. Thanks in advance.
Tom

 

[sberry]

Not on mine.

 

[matt_i]

Cables are not stainless.

What about all the "stuff" that gets blown all over everywhere?

I'd take it outside and set it on ramps long before I'd ever wash anything inside.

 

[ovilla]

Take it to a car wash late on a Friday night, along with a jack and jack stands and have at it. A lift is a tool, like everything else, but you don’t want to add gunk to your columns or cables.

 

[JoeMcGov]

howdy,
does anyone pressure wash under their car while on a 4- post lift. Thanks in advance.
Tom

no no no!

 

[Itsjustdirt]

Yes. Multiple times. I use simple green as a pre scrub. Let soak, then blast. Obviously I stay away from brake seals, engine seals and electronics, cable ends, etc.

Also, I set up some sheets/rags on the ground to catch the **** and let the liquid go through.

 

[metaleltr]

The cables aren't stainless but galvanized cable. At work we had to power wash the underside of a car that ran over a can of paint in the road. No ill effect to the lift. Nothing says you can't tape up some tarps to protect the columns either. We did cover the power unit with plastic.

 

[chrismenke]

My mechanic used to do it all the time. He hated working on a greasy anything.

Here was the process:
Bring in car
Get yelled at for state of car
Explain 800 mile weekend rally with dirt sections
Put car on lift
Stand back while mechanic pressure washes the underside
Walk into the swimming pool under the car and have a ha! moment because the problem is now clearly evident
Fix car
Lower car and roll away
Pay mechanic
Jaw jack with mechanic while team of helpers clean the god awful mess off the lift, the walls, the nearby diagnostic machines, the carts, and the toolboxes

Moral of the story, pressure wash the bottom of your car on someone else's lift.

 

[JoeMcGov]

My mechanic used to do it all the time. He hated working on a greasy anything.

Here was the process:

Moral of the story, pressure wash the bottom of your car on someone else's lift.

Aaaahhhhh. Very wise there Grasshopper.

 

[nafarmboy]

Nothing says you can't tape up some tarps to protect the columns either. We did cover the power unit with plastic.

Good idea, the inside of the columns and the cables are my big concern. If I was careful and just pulled to trigger when pointing at the undercarriage, most of the mess should be contained to ME, the top of the runways and the floor which isnt a big deal as I wash out my shop a couple times a year anyway.
Tom

 

[Bruce Amacker]

I pressure wash my shop floor yearly and repaint it. Prior to PW I wrap the lift columns with wide Saran Wrap, this keeps the guts and cables dry. It takes 30 seconds, then cut it off with a razor knife.

I have an old Vette that I did a frame-on, too so I know what you're thinking. I sandblasted the bottom of mine outside on jackstands. I think you'd be better off sandblasting. Even the FG comes out looking like new with careful blasting. I shot the FG with clear and the frame with black to seal it. Then it went back in on the lift (2P) and had the suspension and driveline removed and restored.

 

[nafarmboy]

Excuse my ignorance but what does FG stand for?
Tom

 

[ghnl]

FG = Fibre Glass?

I put the front wheels on the lift and raise it up enough to get underneath with the power washer. This puts about half of the car outside the garage.

 

[leadfoot415]

We hose things down every day on the rotary 2 post hoists at work, not to mention the absolutely nasty salty slop that slides off cars when they are thawing in the winter.

I spray down pivot points on the hoist pads/arms with some pb blaster occasionally to keep them from rusting solid, but other than that, no precautions. These are 20 year old SPO9 models used in a dealership, so you bet nobody has given a **** about their upkeep ever.. still work great.

 

[toplessHO]

find someone with an outdoor lift and slip them some cash to do it