So I know this is supposed to be fairly strait forward, but I've never done it and don't want to hurt anything.

My truck is a 63' f100 4x4 that was a farm truck/camping truck/hunting vehicle, so its got a 46 years worth of dirt on it. how can i get it out without hurting anything? What do i need to cover up? Can i spray it with a pressure washer?

 

There are pressure washers and there are pressure washers. Obviously we need to seal off the distributor, the carb and the oil breather/filler opening to keep water out. You should be able to go from there I would imagine unless you have an incredibly high pressure washer.

 

I used "Green Clean" spray (sorta like greased lightning) from the local Dollar Store along with a lot of elbow grease and a plastic putty scraper. I just took my time and was careful about where I sprayed (or just sprayed the shop towel). I'd let it soak then scrape, then wipe/scrub hard, then spray, then scrape, then wipe/scrub hard, then....

 

Scrape it good first. Nothing I have found short of a hot tank can eat the crap that builds up on an engine over the years.
If you hug alot of trees I would use simple green. If not, diesel oil. Spray it down with either and let it soak for a few hours. Oh yeah, dont do this on a hot engine.
Spray, spray, spray. A heated power washer would be best as it will cut the time in half. Wear old clothes and get ready for a mess.

 

Suggest warm engine, not to operating temp. Move truck to location where rinse off does not cause any problems. Not a fan of toxic type degreasers, I keep a container of Marine Clean, put out by Por15 on hand, suppose to be environmental friendly but found don't want to let it stay on skin too long. Understand Simple Green may be simular, have not used myself and not sure about how it impacts on environment if into that kinda stuff. I then take plastic, bags or otherwise, and wrap distributor, especially the alternator, carb, and plastic around the starter, and any open ports. The pressure washer I have came with different degree nozzles, and I use the mid, to low pressure. I try and pay attention to where I direct the nozzle, don't want to point pressure directly into critical area. Start by spraying the solution thru out engine compartment and engine, then take brush to areas where grease/gunk is concentrated. Let set, then rinse. If air compressor avail. then air area off. Occassionally spray the engine and compartment liberally with product called Tire Care, kinda my solution to a quik engine detail, what does not get wiped off blends in and it brightens the area while rejuvenating the rubber hoses, plug wires, and fan belts, etc. Anyhow, had an urge to chime in.

 

X2 on the marine clean from POR15. Ive used it many times, for cleaning, de-greasing, and prepping for painting, and it cuts the dirt/oil real good. Takes some elbow grease, but the finished product is worth it, in my opinion. I also recommend all other POR15 products, ive used just about all of them, with awesome results. Their stuff is a little on the pricey side, but their products are good quality.

 

I like super clean and purple power. these seem to work the best for me. I also like the Green Clean mentioned by macgiobuin for a buck it works great !

 

I cleaned it out today. i put some engine cleaner on it, let it sit, then scrubbed with a wire brush, the rinsed it. I'll probably do it again because there is still a lot of stuff on it. under all the crud i discovered a lot of surface rust, which was expected. I'll probably paint the valve covers the original color, which is blue.

thanks for the help.

PS- when i was done, i forgot to take the bag off the air breather. the engine ran for about a second, then turned off. I remembered the bag and lifted the hood. It looked like it was a vaccum sealed air filter, which it was. I kicked myself, took it off, and it started right up.