This question was buried in an induction cleaning thread, so I thought I would raise it as a main topic. I have seen many mentions of Seafoam usage, but no consistent pattern on how to use it.

I am coming up on the time when I do annual maintenance on my 2005 5.4 F150 truck, with 81,000 miles on it. I use a can of Seafoam in my fuel tank every 6 months (as well as the Amsoil fuel system cleaner fluid). I have seen multiple threads of using Seafoam in other ways, in other forums , but my question is: would this be helpful in a truck with 81,000 miles on it?

If so, is this the correct usage? (please correct where I go wrong here.)

1/3 can added to the motor oil 500 miles before changing it out (also, going from 5w-20 to 5w-30 this time around as well.)
1 can in the fuel tank (do this on a regular basis anyway...)
1/3 can into the throttle bottom, let it soak and then start up (2 questions here, will this step really benefit me? What are the risks to other components in cleaning the internal engine this way? Will it damage the MAF sensor?)

Thanks in advance to any and all feedback (if this has been answered already, just add the URL please......) I apologize if this is a rookie set of questions....

 

I just did the intake one not to long ago. I wasn't being fully technical and prob poured half the bottle into the line. Also I poured it slow, they say it should stall your vehicle, and mine came damn close but didnt stall. So I turned it off. I let it sit prob 15-20 min then started revving the crap out of it. Though I had 120k (not 80k) a lot of smoke came out, also found out I got an exhaust leak . But going to your questions in this matter. I'm no mechanic but looking at what I did, I wouldn't see it damaging anything, nor have I notice any to mine. And I think it will benefit you at 80k miles. I believe after I did it to mine, I put it on my maintenance list as a yearly thing, since its cheap.

 

OK, so by an intake cleaning, I assume you took the air filter out and poured the Seafoam into the air intake housing? You said "line", so I wasn't quite sure what you meant by that.... (again, possibly a rookie question.)

 

I've used seafoam for a while now. Throw a can in with a full tank every once and a while. Ill do the brake booster and crank case about every 20,000 miles, right before an oil change. Its really kept the engine clean. Last time I was at a shop and replacing my phasers, the mechanic told me he had never seen a triton with that many miles be that clean. Barely any engine sludge

 

Is there any good videos of this being done? I'm a rookie and don't know where the crankcase is, for example. Have any pics?

 

Sadly, I don't. Ill try and snap some later. What I mean by crank case is that you just dump a third of the can in where you put your oil. Drive it around for about 10 minutes, then drain it. Should come out pretty friggin black. The other third should go in the vacuum hose that comes from the cylinder right in front of your drivers side. That's your brake booster. When the truck is on, you should be able to pull the house and hear the suction. The truck will try to stall, so I keep the hose covered with my thumb before I put it in the cup of seafoam

 

Any pictures of the vacuum hose that you reference on the drivers side?

 

Great! Next time you do please do! I have 116K on mine and feel its time to get her cleaned out. And for security of cleanliness $15 for a can of seafoam is a good deal. So do all this like 30 mins before an oil change? What's the best steps you have experienced? And when do you rev the engine to blow all the crap out?

 

The "crankcase" is a term used to identify the bottom half of the engine. You pour seafoam into the oil fill cap. The cylinder heads are the top half of your engine.

You can seafoam 2 ways.

1. Remove the power brake booster vacuum line and place the can at the hose (Vacuum line) and let the engine "suck" it in to the intake manifold.. Only let about half to 3/4 of the can to get sucked in and save the rest for your gas tank..
The power brake booster Vaccum line runs behind the motor and towards the master cylinder (were the brake fluid goes). Its a hose about 3/4" in diameter.

2. You can buy seafoam "deep creep" (the aerosol version of seafoam. With this version you can remove the breather line that leads from the valve cover to the throttle body at the (air intake). With the straw provided you can spray it in through the throttle body while the truck is running. You need to make sure the straw is aiming down and into the throttle body and not at the MAF (mass air flow) sensor.. If the truck stalls while adding seafoam then just let it sit. If it doesn't stall then shut the truck off manually and reconnect the hose.

Both ways work good. After you put the seafoam in 1 of the 2 ways, shut the truck down and let it sit for 5 to 20 minutes. This gives the seafoam time to dissolve carbon from the valves, pistons, and spark plug tips. After waiting, start the truck up and rev it up in neutral until a thick heavy white smoke starts to pump out of the exhaust... Rev it till its clean or go for a good drive to burn off the rest of the seafoam.. Then your done..

If you poor it into the oil then you should change the oil around 500 miles later..

If you poor it into the gas, do it at an empty fuel tank then fill up with gas and drive..

Regular use of seafoam is a great way to clean the combustion chamber, crankcase and fuel system. It can get rid of hesitation, stalling, rough idle, and carbon build up. Good luck!

This video shows you where the brake booster hose is.

http://m.youtube.com/#/watch?v=ZgUy2...%3DZgUy2rdY2dg

 

I am a fan of Seafoam. My truck is to the point that I get very little smoke. I've used it on several vehicles with good results.