under carriage clean up/rust?por 15?

[dmartin1]

ok so ive been coming up on the task of cleaning the entire underside of my truck and i want to spray it with something to protect from the rust and weather etc.

my truck has a good amount of lightsurface rust on everything,and a good amount of baked on hard greese.

now i was thinking about degreasing the entire thing with oven cleaner and a hand wire brush?
am i basically stuck doing the entire under carriage of the truck with a drill and a wire wheel?
how do you guys do it?im not sure i understand yet.

and what should i spray to protect?
ive heard of a few things-rubberized undercoating,cleaning it well and doing it nicely in a few coats of black paint like engine enamel,,or POR-15.

any info on this por 15 stuff would be great! or tips on how you did your truck?


thanks guys!

[TheWhiteElephant]

I would borrow a good pressure washer and do it at home. I have not used oven cleaner, but I've used DEP industrial degreaser from Home Depot. The truck I'm working on right now is an ex-farm truck which had its fair share of oil leaks mixed in with heavy dirt...




I also used a pair of wire wheels and good old fashioned elbow grease. It took me 4 days to finally clean the engine and some of the frame, but the complete compartment is not yet done...




I have used Rust Encapsulator from Eastwood and I will use that on the rear frame of my truck. The front is pretty clean so I just sprayed it with Rustoleum.

[gchemist]

Ditch the POR15
Use ZeroRust.
http://www.zero-rust.com/

[dmartin1]

that engine bay progress looks good man.

would engine enamel paint be good as i live in arizona with like (-)5 inches of rain a year? lmao

[TheWhiteElephant]

Originally Posted by dmartin1

that engine bay progress looks good man.

would engine enamel paint be good as i live in arizona with like (-)5 inches of rain a year? lmao

That engine enamel is very tough stuff. I've painted several engines with it. The trick (and most important part, as with any paint job) is to start with a very clean, grease-free surface. Once you have it all wire brushed, wipe the surface down with paint thinner or grease remover. I forgot to mention that I also use a Home Depot large spray bottle with a mixture of water and dish washing detergent. That gets rid of the grease very well. You get the idea.

After prepping the area properly, spray the coating on with several light coats, giving each coat ample time to dry. Do this in at least 70 degree weather if you can. The warmer the better. Over the years, I've become pretty handy with the spray can.

By the way, stick with quality spray paint. It makes a huge difference in the final finish. Cheap spray cans have terrible spray nozzles.