Sea foam

[Roypaul]

Has anyone used seafoam? I have a 2005 gl1800 with 120,000 MILES on it.

[Andy Cote]

Yes. Usually added to the gasoline; usually half a can to a full tank for routine application or a full can if the bike has any issues. You can also add to oil and run for a time before an oil and filter change.

[tamathumper]

Yes, I use Seafoam in everything - snowmobiles, lawn equipment, motorcycles, automobiles, generators, tractors, never an issue and it has rescued many pieces of equipment for me and for my customers over the years. Most recently it rejuvenated a "brand new" Cummins Onan generator that was sputtering probably due to carb fouling, having sat on a dealer's lot for months in the TN heat before being delivered to the customer.

[Snowmoer]

Yep, use it in all my equipment. I just put it in my wing and now it is covered until April or May depending on the weather on what kind of winter I get. The bike always starts right up in the spring and runs nice and smooth. I mix 1 oz. to the gallon of gas. My snowmobiles sit for 8 months a year. They always start right up when snow season hits.

[Rambozo]

[Wingrider55]

I have been using sea foam for years in my bike and all my yard equipment with no issues.

[soujrnr]

Seafoam is the BOMB!! I first discovered it soon after I bought my cruiser back in 2011. I added a dose of it to my tank at the recommendation of another riding friend, and my mileage increased significantly with that first dose. I love the stuff! I use it in my cars and truck and tractor! Great stuff!!

[Medina]

its stupid good...literally the best snake oil offered on the planet.... I have used it..dunno..10 or more years and it does work. Buy a new/used whatever and dose it up...sometimes you'll see a huge white cloud come out-

my winter regimen for the last 5 or so years, a blast of seafoam, and the (blue) marine stabil added to ALL gas tanks that sit over winter, run the engine for a few minutes, top off............ I have YET to have anything I've done that to, NOT start in the spring. the few I've told this to report the same results.

fun note- there's a Canadian shop that makes racing chainsaws (look it up, a whole breed of insane) and not using the marine stabil will void your warranty-

[pidjones]

I've had good luck with it IF USED BY MANUFACTURERS INSTRUCTIONS. A neighbor dumped an entire can in ~1/2 gallon of gas in his VTX. Completely fouled the plugs and required flushing to clean out his fuel system. At manufacturers concentration, it permits more gentle cleaning and allows the engine to burn the Seafoam and removed deposits.

[soujrnr]

I've had good luck with it IF USED BY MANUFACTURERS INSTRUCTIONS.

Absolutely right! More is NOT always better with most things in life. I've been using the stuff for a couple of decades now, and always in IAW the manufacturer's recommended dosage. It has worked wonders in helping my vehicles, especially my motorcycles, to run wonderfully!

[Asphaltmaniac]

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Haaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!

[tamathumper]

Just to play the devil's advocate I will say you cannot use too much Seafoam. I have run lawn equipment, generators, diesel engines, and even my Goldwing on pure Seafoam with no ill effects.



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[detdrbuzzard]

i use it in my bikes, cages, and all OPE. i've never measured how much i put in so i know i'm not following the instructions. about five years ago i broke my foot so most of my OPE hasn't been started. earlier today i was thinking about the wacky weather we are having, seem about right for a late season storm so i dug my old Toro 521 PT out of the garage. it hasn't been started for 5yrs and the gas in it is 5yrs old too. i plugged it in so i could use the electric starter, primed it four times and it started up and ran great as usual.

[detdrbuzzard]

another seafoam story, my Echo chainsaw fired up after about seven years

[GoldWingrGreg]

Beware ... there are lots of chemicals sold in parts stores, and if you read their can, everyone of them will tell you why you need to use them. My advise, when it comes to how to care for, operatate, store, or maintain your Wing, follow the instruction in the Owner's Manual. No where in there does it say to add a chemical to your gas.

[GD2]

Another thumbs-up for Seafoam. When I was refurbing a severely neglected 1500, I trickled it full-strength down the carbs for a minute or two. Filled the neighborhood with white smoke.

[tamathumper]

Beware ... there are lots of chemicals sold in parts stores, and if you read their can, everyone of them will tell you why you need to use them. My advise, when it comes to how to care for, operatate, store, or maintain your Wing, follow the instruction in the Owner's Manual. No where in there does it say to add a chemical to your gas.

I agree with you on a lot of things Greg, but the Owner's Manual for the Wing (or anything) is written by lawyers looking to limit their liability. They will only ever recommend their own products, and they will never recommend another company's product because the variables are just too great once it gets out to the public. That doesn't mean that there aren't great products out there that can be safe and effective when used properly.

[GoldWingrGreg]

I agree with you on a lot of things Greg, but the Owner's Manual for the Wing (or anything) is written by lawyers looking to limit their liability. They will only ever recommend their own products, and they will never recommend another company's product because the variables are just too great once it gets out to the public. That doesn't mean that there aren't great products out there that can be safe and effective when used properly.

Humm ... if all that is true, wouldn't you think they'd recommend using their own synthetic oil and their own fuel additive in 5th and 6th gen Wings.

Actually, an Owner's Manual (OM) is wrote by their Engineering department, and it is the most scrutinized document they pass onto their consumer. Everything in it must be correct. For example, suppose the rear air pressure was printed at 21psi and not 41psi. Not only would the Wing have sever handling issues, but the air volume would not safely carry the weight of the Wing, and such low air pressure would cause blow outs. The result would be lots of law suits and liability. Of coarse once wrote, their verious departments must approve it too, such as their law department, and probably their sales and parts departments too. Let's not forget, that a Wing is engineered and designed based on science. If any error is discovered in an OM, it often causes a major recall. When that happens, usually a new page is pasted over the current page.

[klook]

I agree with you on a lot of things Greg, but the Owner's Manual for the Wing (or anything) is written by lawyers looking to limit their liability. They will only ever recommend their own products, and they will never recommend another company's product because the variables are just too great once it gets out to the public. That doesn't mean that there aren't great products out there that can be safe and effective when used properly.

Humm ... if all that is true, wouldn't you think they'd recommend using their own synthetic oil and their own fuel additive in 5th and 6th gen Wings.

Actually, an Owner's Manual (OM) is wrote by their Engineering department, and it is the most scrutinized document they pass onto their consumer. Everything in it must be correct. For example, suppose the rear air pressure was printed at 21psi and not 41psi. Not only would the Wing have sever handling issues, but the air volume would not safely carry the weight of the Wing, and such low air pressure would cause blow outs. The result would be lots of law suits and liability. Of coarse once wrote, their verious departments must approve it too, such as their law department, and probably their sales and parts departments too. Let's not forget, that a Wing is engineered and designed based on science. If any error is discovered in an OM, it often causes a major recall. When that happens, usually a new page is pasted over the current page.

All of that to say they don't have an opinion on Seafoam and say so in their ass covering publications. I also use Seafoam in everything and other additives and have had no adverse effects. In fact only positive ones. But truly I have had NO issues with my Goldwing and that is what this topic is about. The best thing I have found is to add 1 ounce of TC-W3 conventional oil to 5 gallons of normal unleaded fuel to increase mileage. That should cause a Sh87tstorm of opinions!

[soujrnr]

Beware ... there are lots of chemicals sold in parts stores, and if you read their can, everyone of them will tell you why you need to use them. My advise, when it comes to how to care for, operatate, store, or maintain your Wing, follow the instruction in the Owner's Manual. No where in there does it say to add a chemical to your gas.

But nowhere does it say NOT to add a chemical to your gas. I think the empirical evidence across the board for not only motorcycles, but pert near every form of ICE engine, shows some fantastic results for almost everyone who has used it. It all comes down to doing your own research, and my research and experience over the last umpteen years has shown Sea Foam to be a fantastic additive.

[GoldWingrGreg]

But nowhere does it say NOT to add a chemical to your gas. I think the empirical evidence across the board for not only motorcycles, but pert near every form of ICE engine, shows some fantastic results for almost everyone who has used it. It all comes down to doing your own research, and my research and experience over the last umpteen years has shown Sea Foam to be a fantastic additive.

Keep in mind that the professional side of repair is very different then the DIY side. On the professional side, the rule of thumb is to never, ever, ever, add an additive unless it can be justified. Just because Dumb Dave, Stupid Steve, and Joe Six Pack uses it, does not make it a good idea.

[soujrnr]

But nowhere does it say NOT to add a chemical to your gas. I think the empirical evidence across the board for not only motorcycles, but pert near every form of ICE engine, shows some fantastic results for almost everyone who has used it. It all comes down to doing your own research, and my research and experience over the last umpteen years has shown Sea Foam to be a fantastic additive.

Keep in mind that the professional side of repair is very different then the DIY side. On the professional side, the rule of thumb is to never, ever, ever, add an additive unless it can be justified. Just because Dumb Dave, Stupid Steve, and Joe Six Pack uses it, does not make it a good idea.

Well, then show us some comments from the "professional side of repair" that have good evidence of it causing problems in things they work on in their profession. There are many on the DIY side that I'd trust a LOT more than from the professional sector. Does "I'm from the government. I'm here to help" ring a bell? In my own experience, I have never seen a single contrary indication in any of my vehicles from my tractor to my cars and trucks to my motorhome. They've all run better after I started using Sea Foam recommended to me years ago by a mechanic friend. You may love what the manuals tell you, but innovation and improvement often come about when we color outside those lines.

[klook]

Sorry to say but this is like an oil thread. ONLY use what Mother Honda says. No Darksiding! Only use the approved air pressures! Thankfully, the majority of people are not quite that uptight.

[tamathumper]

Actually, an Owner's Manual (OM) is wrote by their Engineering department, and it is the most scrutinized document they pass onto their consumer.

I'm sorry Greg, but that part about Engineering is not even a little bit true. The scrutiny part is spot on, though.

The Owner's Manual may start out as a supported spec in the Engineering Department, but it is actually written by the Technical Writers, and it is scrutinized top to bottom by the Legal Department before it is released to the public. An Owner's Manual is, first and foremost, about limiting liability. That is the only reason it exists in the year 2000+.

Back in the day, an Owner's Manual would tell you how to tighten the belts, how to adjust the valves, how to set the timing, and how to adjust for things like backlash and torque. Nowadays, it warns you not to drink the battery fluid.

The lawyers have won...

[Ghostman]

My fathers neighbor used to do small engine repair on any kind of lawn equipment and worked out of a shop. He highly recommended it since the US switched over to E10 gasoline. His issue was with the E10 it was more geared to fuel injection rather than carburetors. And with lawn equipment sometimes gas sits awhile either in the equipment or gas cans and you mix that with gas that after 30 days starts to go bad youve got issues. Ive been using it longer than I can remember on my wings especially since sometime they get laid up for up to 6 months due to weather out here in the midwest. I also use it it all of my lawn equipment. And with my carbureted Kawasaki I differ between TC3w two stroke oil or Marvel mystery oil in the gas to keep the carbs from sticking internally and varnish forming. Either one works well enough for me.