Wheeling in mud and dirt water made my Engine compartment full of dirt

What is the right and complete way to clean it. Can anybody show me a writeup?

THanks!

 

good call ive been wanting to do mine aswell but scared screwing up the electrics

 

mix simple green 1:1

spray scrub spray... put a crappy shammy over electrical parts.

 

Put a plastic bag or a towel over the air intake on the air box, as you don't want any errant water getting in.

I had it recommended to spray a water/simple green mix over everything and let it sit for a few minutes before hosing off with high pressure water. I've sprayed the heck out of everything under my hood without any problems knock on wood.

 

I also put a bag over the alternator for piece of mind. And from experience the mat attached to the hood falls off after a couple good mudding/cleaning adventures.

 

I just power wash everything... take it to the car wash and spray degreaser on the engine let it sit for a minuite then power wash everything.. Hold the pressure washer wand about 2 feet away from what you are washing so you dont over do it on any electrical stuff

 

I put a small plastic bag over my air intake and the fuse box. Spray the bay down with 1:1 simple green, let it work for about 5 minutes and then spray with high-pressure.

It's best to have a cold engine when you do this.

 

Just cleaned under the hood this morning. Went on a run a couple of weeks ago that involved a long stretch on very dusty roads (think moon dust) coated everything thoroughly!
Took it to the car wash
popped the hood
got $2 worth of quarters
deposited 4 quarters
turned knob to soap
pointed wand at ground and squeezed the trigger until I could see soap coming out of nozzle
Released trigger and sprayed down engine compartment
Added another quarter
Switched to rinse
Pointed wand at ground and squeezed the trigger until I didn't see soap coming out of the nozzle
Releases trigger and sprayed down engine compartment again
Took about 2 minutes

Forgot about the air intake until after, so I pulled the cover and checked for water. Looks like it's almost impossible for water to make it into the intake since any water would sit at the bottom of the air box and the duct going to the engine is at the top. Buttoned up the air box and drove on down the road without any problems. I did go first thing in the morning while the engine was still cool.

 

Great advice above on an interesting subject. I would like to add that if you are going to wash down the engine compartment (especially the first time) make sure you are parked in an area where the residue will not cause a problem because there will be some oil & such that ends up on whatever surface the Jeep is parked on during the wash process. Not what you want to see on your driveway!

 

I too clean under the hood after wheeling at times. I like to use a foam desgreaer as it seems to do a good job. I spray it on and let it sit for maybe 2 minutes. Then, I fire up the jeep and spray the engine while it's running. That way, it's not having a thermal shock from the cooler water, the heat helps keep water from pooling in areas, and when it on and your spraying, you know you aren't doing damage unless it sputters (which mine never does).

I clean all my cars this way and never have issues. I would avoid hitting the alternator and some electronics with too much water, but sometimes dirt is worse than water so don't be too afriad to get them wet. IMO, having sand and dirt in the alternator acting like sandpaper is worse than some water. Besides, if it's running while water hits it, it will be driven out by centrifugal force, making it clean and water free.