whats the big deal with techtron as compared to other injector cleaners? if you had to list the best to the worst how would you list them?

 

Those under $10 FI cleaners just don't seem to do the job one can a year of BG's does which is why they can charge $20 a can and it still sells.

Over the last 20 years being around quite a variety of mechanics one product that nearly all have recommended has been the 44k and I've been a user since '93.

 

I put STP fuel treatment in my car for years thinking I was doing something. I guess I was........wasting my money. Over the years my idle became worse.

I found this forum after I bought my truck and that's how I learned of the BG44K. I bought a 6 pack of it off of eBay. I lucked up and got if for about $11.00 a can.

After the first can, my idle was pretty much back to normal. So, I know it works.

I did do the Seafoam treatment later using the brake booster method, but my car was running normal by that time, so I can't say for sure how much that helped. It did smoke some when I did it, so it must have loosened up some stuff.

If you want to just pour something in your tank for routine maintenance, the BG44K really is good stuff.

 

When I do the seafoam in the intake I either pull the plugs and clean them, or replace them. I put in my gas tank every once in a while. And in the crankcase before every oil change.

 

It's really hard to rank all the off the shelf stuff, but I'd definately put the BG stuff over the Techtron although I have seen the Techtron work personally to some extent so I don't mind recommending it, but don't expect miracles. I think of the Seafoam and GM top engine cleaner more as an intake and combustion chamber cleaner and the BG stuff more as a fuel system cleaner, but they all really try to do everything and the benefits often overlap.

 

Chevron puts Techron in all grades of gasoline. Shell only puts the good stuff (V power) in premium grade gasoline.

 

If you buy Techron, make sure the bottle actually says TECHRON on it. DO NOT buy the ProGuard stuff... though it's cheaper, it's as worthless as the STP garbage.

Techron is by far the best additive for gasoline. It's safe, reliable and will certainly remove most of the crap from your injectors over the course of 3-4 uses.

 

Do they put the same amount in each grade of gas as well?
Also how much is actually in there per gallon?

These would be pretty important to know if we were comparing pump gas with Techtron to using it as an aftermarket toptreat.

 

I purchased the BG fuel system kit, which includes the BG 44K and a fluid they call BG Fuel Injection System Cleaner. Normally (according to the directions), you pour the 44K in the fuel tank, and then start the vehicle and pour the fuel system cleaner into the intake manifold via a vacume hose (a la Seafoam)..Anyone know how pouring it in via the vacume hose would affect the supercharger? It doesn't sound healthy for the SC..

 

did the seafoam treatment this past friday after noon. poured it in via the pcv valve at about 1\3rd can. and dumped a can and a half inthe tank.. it smoked pretty good for a few minutes and after about 75 miles driven i cant tell much of a difference in performance or gas mileage..

 

Based on your years of experience in the Industry ???

David

 

Technically correct but not 100% true...other additives are just as good. Not gonna argue Techron is the class of the field BUT other systems are just as good. Not many but there are some.

STP has different grades and typically, different suppliers for each grade.

David

 

Not strictly true.

Shell has additives in all grades as do Chevron.

Chevon do not use the same amount of Techron in each grade.

It is my opinion that Shell use a different additive at a much increased treat rate in Permium with V power.

Of course, thats my opinion... use it as you will or ignore it... either way.

I do like the suggestion of running a tank of Chevron or V-power premium every so often when the price is right.

David

 

I thought so, thanks for clearing that up David.

 

I have used Techron for years, and just added my second bottle in this treatment. My 4Runner's tank holds 18.5 gal, and at 1/4 tank it takes 12 gal to fill. I run the tank to 1/4 and add one 12oz bottle and 6 gals of gas for a 1:1 ratio. Then I run the tank again to 1/4, add a second bottle and fill the tank. Again the 1:1 ratio. I usually do this about twice a year. Since I haven't cleaned the fuel system in about a year, this time I will add a third bottle again at 1/4 and fill the tank. Since I have a SC/r, I also run 2 step colder NGK IX iridium plugs. 40k miles on them now with no problems and routine service.

I also use it in my MH which has a Ford V10 and a 75 gal tank, same 1:1 ratio (1oz/1gal), but only one application per year.

 

With all the additives out there I'm not going to tell you that Tectron is the best on the market because I haven't tried them all. I really don't get excited about using any additives but I can tell you that Techtron will really make my 2.7 run like a new engine when it starts to feel a little sluggish. Sea foam works but no where near as well as Techtron in my Tacoma. It also cost about 3 times as much as Sea foam around here too. Mike

 

Ok, (VERY LONG...SORRY)

First off, an apology, I re-read some of my posts and sounded like an arrogant ass so I apologize. By way of making things good,
I did my research and now have the following information.

Disclaimer : Your personal good experience is always more valuable than some anonymous person on the net. What I have below is the benefit of my experience and that of some specialists who work in fuel additives for both installed ( gas station gas) and aftermarket ( you buy and put in your tank) fuel injection cleaners.

I do not work for or am I affiliated with any of the companies listed in this or any of the other posts.

What you do with the information in this post is up to you ?..

BS over, here are some facts :

Gas station fuel additives

This is broad brush but there is a minimum standard mandated by the government for fuel additives in gasoline. This standard dictates that all gasoline sold in the US, regardless of grade, will have a minimum level of additive in order to meet minimum performance standards. These standards are EPA mandated and to simplify things , lets say for a given type of chemistry this is approximately 40 PTB (Pounds per Thousand Barrels) of additives. This may be more or less for a given type of chemistry but
to simplify things and have a line in the sand for a miniumum standard, lets say 40 PTB. These additives are typically although not exclusively Fuel Injection cleaners.

All of fuel sold in this country will have a minimum of 40 PTB + 10% so 44PTB or roughly 180 parts per million to use units you may be more familiar with. This is less than 0.2% BY VOLUME which is not a lot). The key is who uses more than that and why ?

Many marketers will use this treat (or some other treat across all grades) so that it safe to assume, no matter where you buy gas, you will be getting 160 ppm of additives including FI cleaners whenever you fill up.

Premium marketers such as the big names, Chevron, BP, Shell , etc will use a higher treat than this which is typically 100 PTB or another 60 PTB on top of the minimum requirement. Others may use even higher still. It is my opinion that Chevron use the same treat in all grades of Gasoline but that the treat is fairly high and would be in excess of 100 PTB of at least 400 ppm. It would not be unusual to get 125PTB or 500 ppm in some premium grades.

Shell, as indicated earlier, most likely use a similar treat in regular and mid grade but use a significantly higher treat in Premium V power.

So, what does this mean ? Big name gas oil companies will always give you at least 400 ppm of fuel additives in every tank of gas you buy. Off brands and folks who buy on the spot market (e.g. they buy the gas to be sold at their stations from a terminal and use the cheapest
bidder at the time ) typically use minimum required treat + 10% so you will end up with roughly 180 ppm fuel additives in every tank.

Majors will not buy on the spot market so the gas always comes from the same feed at the terminal hence will tend to give less tank to tank variation.

Conclusion 1 : Bigger Oil companies use more additive in EVERY grade so when prices are comparable, you are getting a better deal at the majors. However, even the WAWA's of this world are using a government mandated minimum. Gas from the majors is likely more consistent tank to tank and you are less likely to have that feeling 'that I got a bad tank of gas'.

Conclusion 2 : Supplementing cheaper gas at off brand stations with aftermarket FI cleaner you pour in the tank at a minimum treat may prove cheaper in the long run than buying gas from the majors but there is always a risk of inconsistency.

Aftermarket fuel additives

Aftermarket fuel additives are primarily fuel injection cleaners that are designed to clean up and then keep clean you fuel system, specifically the fuel injectors. I think we all know the benefit of clean fuel injectors on performance, economy and also eliminating nightmares with very lean conditions.

The marketers have to guess how big your tank is in order to work out how much additive to put in the bottle to make sure you get the right amount of fuel injector cleaner in the system. Typically, although not universally, they base it on a 15 gallon tank and this is normally stated somewhere on the label. Hence they will suggest adding a certain amount of the FI cleaner into a full tank.

Determining how much of given FI cleaner to use is based on Industry standard tests for 'cleanup' and 'keep clean' and these tests are both bench and actual vehicle tests. There is some variation but typically, you will see 100 PTB or 400 ppm minimum in all FI cleaners from reputable companies. Typically, It is much, much higher from the big names. If you have not heard of the company or its too cheap, then its very likely that the treat rates are very, very low.

A typical bottle of FI cleaner contains some kind of solvent to make sure the good stuff stays in solution in the bottle and is carried evenly within the fuel and the actual additive itself. Less reputable companies who are held to lesser standards than the household names have been known to use nothing more than solvent in their bottles and no FI at all !!!

Conclusion 3 : You get what you pay for in FI cleaners

How much FI do you need ??? Typically, testing will look at concentrations from 40PTB right up to 300 ptb ( 1200 ppm.) or more. As economics come into play, the performance will be plotted by comparing performance in the standard tests versus treat rate and a range of treat rates will be selected. The cheapest product in the line may well have a level that demonstrates passing performance in the testing while the premium product will use a higher treat that is shown to perform significantly better in the testing.

What about Techron ? Well, it is likely that Chevron use as high as 500 PTB or 2000 ppm in the top of the line Techron aftermarket Fuel Injection cleaner. They will have completed all of the required testing and that level of treat shows some benefits?check the bottle?the benefits are likely listed.

Conclusion 4 : Techron has the one of highest treat rates in aftermarket FI cleaners BUT other brands use exactly the same addiitves at lower treats.

Is Techron the best ? Well, you can't go wrong with it and as an earlier poster said, its safe and reliable and likely as good as it gets. If you know where to look, you can get other products just as good but if the price is right, Techron is a great deal.

What about BG44K in the tank ? I do not have specific knowledge but in my opinion, BG use a similar additive system to Techron and at a really solid treat that is most likely considerably higher than the rest of the pack?.performance and testimonials from users here backs that up.

Believe it or not, there can be too much of a good thing but you would have to reach massively high treat rates hence all of these FI cleaners are designed to be used with a full tank as the difference between a full tank and a near empty one could mean you put 15 times too much additive in the system. The biggest issue here is that the additives will not necessarily be distributed evenly in the tank but that is more a function of insufficient volume of fuel rather than too much additive.

If you completely overtreat the additives by say, a factor of 10 times or more, the additive and some of the deposits you have removed from the fuel can deposit out on the valve stems as laquer and varnish... in this extreme case combined with very cold weather, the valves can actually be made to stick open which could be catastrophic. There are standard tests than can be performed to ensure the maximum treat allowable to prevent this. Typically, suppliers will test at 3x and 4x recommended maximum treat to make sure this never happens. This goes back to the point of never using with an empty tank and my earlier point about a 2x or 3x treat to cleanup the system first. Some bottles will actually state how much for clean up and how much for keep clean which is ideal.

How much should you use ? Well, in my opinion, it is ALWAYS safe to use the recommended treat on the bottle. However, if you are first using the FI cleaner and suspect a dirty system, doubling or tripling the treat with MOST additives is beneficial. After the first 'cleanup' treat, revert to the standard recommended treat.
You may end up with 200 or 300PTB's which based on testing is perfectly safe but just not used due to simple economics?e.g. can you make the same claims at 100 PTB that you can at 300 PTB ?? Yes , then, as a marketer, use 100 PTB treat in your bottle and make some money. Put 300PTB in another product and call it a Premium Product and sell it for more.

To answer the specific question, if in doubt, use the recommended treat, especially if using a premium product. If you have a lower grade product from a known brand, using a higher treat, within reason is perfectly safe and has been tested as such.

The big question ?should I use an FI cleaner in my tank or just fill up with Premium every now and then ???

Your call and its based on economics but you could get 500PTB of FI cleaner in your tank from a premium aftermarket cleaner and for clean up, this is a good idea. This compares with at best, 125PTB or perhaps a little higher from a tank of Premium gas. Its not likely that you need 500PTB after the initial cleaning so to be safe, use the aftermarket stuff and then use a tank or two of premium at the gas station or just add FI cleaner to your tank every time you change your oil.

.. you make the call, its your money and you get to decide which is easier.

However, if you take nothing else from this, not all gas is the same and not all gas has the same amount of fuel additives. Shop around and get a good deal on gas at the pump and your FI cleaner.



D

 

David, Thanks for that great info! Good work and and very informative and just proves once again that even this old man can still learn something new every day. There are no Chevrons within 50 miles of me but I may give it a try anyway every time I can, Mike

 

Very informative, Thanks for taking the time to do this.