Cleaning belly and wheel wells

[Danb]

That time of the year again. I keep the belly of my plane clean throughout the year but usually do the wheel wells etc. in the fall and spring. What are the recommendations for a good cleaner to use in the wheel wells that will not hurt or damage anything. 

[markejackson02]

Wash and Wax, the blue stuff works pretty well.  Plain old gasoline works to remove stubborn oil stains.

 

[Browncbr1]

i use wash&wax blue for top of plane and red for the bottom.   lots and lots of paper shop towels

tip: wheel wells will stay much much cleaner if you make sure to hit the breaks before retracting gear.

[Danb]

Good tip.

[cbarry]

One of the best cleaners I've found for that type of job is Crazy Clean by Sprayway.  

[slowflyin]

For me, hands down, Belly Wash.  https://www.aircraftspruce.com/catalog/cspages/aerobellywash.php  Get the pad with it and the sticky, sooty stuff just wipes off.   Fantastic stuff.  I use the W&W Blue for bugs on leading edges and like it as well.

 

 

[Jsavage3]

For a degreaser, I've found 100LL and lots of shop towels to work the best. Kerosene works good too, but the fumes nearly make me ill...

[Emmet]

Baby wipes - cheap, degreases nicely and no shop towels required :-)
Works great !

[bonal]

Gojo hand cleaner takes it right off. Brush it on hose it off or use wet towel to wipe if you don't like spaying water on your plane

[JKSmith]

I'm not sure if it was my fault or the elements fault, but my main wheel bearings somehow had got water in them and had to be replaced. Not sure if it was because of washing, or humidity from the hanger, or lack of use but it's just a thought. 

[bradp]

Isopropyl alcohol is a good polar cleaner that won't take your paint off.  

[DXB]

8 hours ago, Emmet said:

Baby wipes - cheap, degreases nicely and no shop towels required :-)
Works great !

On the other hand, aviation products like 100LL should NEVER be used to clean your child's bottom.

[par]

WD-40 will also remove the grime/soot/grease. It worked exceptionally well last time I cleaned up the belly.

[Bravoman]

Diluted aviation simple green or Belly Wash has always worked for me.

[bonal]

I'm telling you your working too hard at this Gojo is mild it brushes on easy and washes off with no residue. I have a kind of messy old C and this stuff takes it right off. And when your done you can use it to wash your hands.

Just make sure you get the non abrasive one.

[Txbyker]

Tub O’Towels $12 on Amazon as belly cleaner?  Wipe and dispose, throw away.  Trying to find something I don’t spray. Work as well as orange degreaser.  Thoughts?

Russ

[N201MKTurbo]

37 minutes ago, Txbyker said:

Tub O’Towels $12 on Amazon as belly cleaner?  Wipe and dispose, throw away.  Trying to find something I don’t spray. Work as well as orange degreaser.  Thoughts?

Russ

Works as well as orange degreaser because it has the same solvent. d-limonene a good choice around the plane.

[N201MKTurbo]

On ‎9‎/‎30‎/‎2016 at 1:05 PM, bonal said:

Gojo hand cleaner takes it right off. Brush it on hose it off or use wet towel to wipe if you don't like spaying water on your plane

The active ingredient in GOJO is deodorized kerosene. Also safe on the plane.

[jetdriven]

Kerosene or mineral spirits. Aviation simple green is still not safe for aluminum. 

[mike_elliott]

1 hour ago, jetdriven said:

Kerosene or mineral spirits. Aviation simple green is still not safe for aluminum. 

Agreed, yet in this months Mooney Flyer, they recommend using It. They also do not warn of using Wash N wax red on plexiglas, which also is a no no.

[Hank]

59 minutes ago, mike_elliott said:

Agreed, yet in this months Mooney Flyer, they recommend using It. They also do not warn of using Wash N wax red on plexiglas, which also is a no no.

I love Wash N Wax--red for the belly, blue for everything else, Plexus on the windows, inside & out. No muss, no fuss, lots of wiping and very little scrubbing. Makes it really easy to remove bugs, too, but it's getting to be bug-free time of year now!

[StevenL757]

On 9/30/2016 at 2:37 PM, slowflyin said:

For me, hands down, Belly Wash.  https://www.aircraftspruce.com/catalog/cspages/aerobellywash.php  Get the pad with it and the sticky, sooty stuff just wipes off.   Fantastic stuff.  I use the W&W Blue for bugs on leading edges and like it as well.

Yeah, and agree with Browncbr and Hank as well...been using the Wash-WaxAll for several years, and love it, love it, love it.  My routine has been...

- Degreaser for cleaning the belly panels...initially

- Belly Soap (formerly BellyWash) next to remove the exhaust stains

- WWA “blue” stuff to finish them off (leaves a nice waxy-like texture)

- WWA “pink” stuff for the windows inside and out

Steve

[Raptor05121]

I use 1/2 mix of dawn dish soap and water in a foam cannon, get in there, and just scrub scrub scrub.

[jonhop]

On 10/1/2016 at 3:23 AM, par said:

WD-40 will also remove the grime/soot/grease. It worked exceptionally well last time I cleaned up the belly.

+1 for WD-40 on the underside and gear wells. Then I use a light squirt of dish-washing soap and water and go to town on the upper-sides. I follow that up with wax. I keep bugs off the leading edges and cowl with liberal use of pledge after each flight. They normally wipe off because there is nothing to adhere to...

Edited December 4, 2017 by jonhop

[Andy95W]

I've wiped down/degreased more bellies with either mineral spirits or kerosene than I can count.  Never found anything faster, easier, or cheaper.  I think the WD-40 might be easier, though not as inexpensive.

(when you start as a mechanic's helper, you get all the shit jobs first)