The Ford Barn - View Single Post

Tom Wesenberg · 11-23-2012, 06:11 PM

I've had to save a few cars that were submerged in a lake, a pond, and a river. Water and sediment gets everywhere. These were newer cars, which are often an automatic insurance write off. It's important to get to work on it right away. Don't wait for some insurance settlement. Take pictures of what you do to show the insurance guys. They should understand that the sooner you get to work, the better it is for both of you. I'd remove the seats and any upholstery that is easy to remove, like door panels and kick panels. Spray warm water on all the wet fabric and wood to rinse out as much salt as possible. Remove floorboard screws before they start to rust in place, and clean and dry them. Spray warm clean water on the wood blocks and frame welting to rinse out as much salt as possible. You want everything rinsed, cleaned and dried ASAP.

As Brent mentioned, you want to drain all fluids ASAP and flush with kerosene. Drop the oil pan and side cover and clean and oil the inisdes ASAP. Repack the front wheel bearings and coat all spindle and hub surfaces as well as packing the bearings with a good grease such as Mystik JT-6 High Temp. I'd pull and repack the rear wheel bearings also. If any salt water got inside the battery, you might get by with draining it and replacing the acid with the correct mix. Remove the spark plus and spin the engine over to expell any water. This is where a 12 volt battery will help to spin it faster. Then oil the cylinders and spin it some more. If you can't run the engine for a few days, I'd hand crank it to keep the parts oiled and free.

The most important thing is to get rid of the salt water ASAP and get all the parts dry and clean or oiled. If you car had a nice paint job on the undercarriage, I'd spray everything with ATF, so it gets into all the seams and hidden areas. You can always come back later and wipe off any oil you don't want on the surfaces. My 28 Phaeton has very little paint on the bottom side, and 3 days ago I ran it up on car ramps and used a syphon sprayer with my air compressor to spray ATF all over the undercarriage. Less than a quart covered it. This will help protect it from any further rust until I get around to painting it.

Post pictures and let us know how it's going. This is one job where HASTE does NOT make waste.

11-23-2012, 06:11 PM	#9
Tom Wesenberg Senior Member Join Date: May 2010 Location: Mpls, MN Posts: 27,582	Re: submerged up to the plugs I've had to save a few cars that were submerged in a lake, a pond, and a river. Water and sediment gets everywhere. These were newer cars, which are often an automatic insurance write off. It's important to get to work on it right away. Don't wait for some insurance settlement. Take pictures of what you do to show the insurance guys. They should understand that the sooner you get to work, the better it is for both of you. I'd remove the seats and any upholstery that is easy to remove, like door panels and kick panels. Spray warm water on all the wet fabric and wood to rinse out as much salt as possible. Remove floorboard screws before they start to rust in place, and clean and dry them. Spray warm clean water on the wood blocks and frame welting to rinse out as much salt as possible. You want everything rinsed, cleaned and dried ASAP. As Brent mentioned, you want to drain all fluids ASAP and flush with kerosene. Drop the oil pan and side cover and clean and oil the inisdes ASAP. Repack the front wheel bearings and coat all spindle and hub surfaces as well as packing the bearings with a good grease such as Mystik JT-6 High Temp. I'd pull and repack the rear wheel bearings also. If any salt water got inside the battery, you might get by with draining it and replacing the acid with the correct mix. Remove the spark plus and spin the engine over to expell any water. This is where a 12 volt battery will help to spin it faster. Then oil the cylinders and spin it some more. If you can't run the engine for a few days, I'd hand crank it to keep the parts oiled and free. The most important thing is to get rid of the salt water ASAP and get all the parts dry and clean or oiled. If you car had a nice paint job on the undercarriage, I'd spray everything with ATF, so it gets into all the seams and hidden areas. You can always come back later and wipe off any oil you don't want on the surfaces. My 28 Phaeton has very little paint on the bottom side, and 3 days ago I ran it up on car ramps and used a syphon sprayer with my air compressor to spray ATF all over the undercarriage. Less than a quart covered it. This will help protect it from any further rust until I get around to painting it. Post pictures and let us know how it's going. This is one job where HASTE does NOT make waste.