ProFlow FAQ’s
Q. Which injector cleaning method is the best?
A. Professional off the car/machine diagnosis and cleaning, without a doubt!
Q.What are the advantages of professional off the car cleaning?
A. Because of the following:
▪ Injectors are tested for coil resistance, leaks, spray pattern, and flow rate.
▪ Injectors are tested side by side thus allowing for accurate flow comparison that can be SEEN!
▪ Proper spray patterns are visually checked and confirmed.
▪ Cleaning solutions are safe, biodegradable and never enter your engine.
▪ Cleaning method can not harm the injector components.
▪ New parts such as; o-rings, filters, and pintle caps are installed (as needed).
▪ Before and after data sheets are provided.
▪ Absolutely the safest and most accurate way to clean injectors
Q. Why not use a bottled fuel injector cleaner?
A. Because of the following:
▪ The harsh chemicals can harm injectors, seals, O2 sensors, and catalytic converters. Check your owners manual because there is some auto makers that advise against the use of such products.
▪ Clogged or partially clogged filter baskets, leaking injectors, weak springs, poor spray patterns and other possible problems can not be identified.
▪ No way of accurately knowing if any or all the injectors have been cleaned or how well each one is operating.
▪ No parts such as o-rings, filter baskets and pintle caps are replaced.
Q. What is a fuel injector?
A. Simply put; a fuel injector is an electronically controlled valve that is either fully open or fully close. The period the valve is fully open is measured in millionths of a second. Injectors has the finest tolerances of any mechanical part on the engine.
Q. What does a fuel injector consist of?
A. Most fuel injectors consist of a body that houses an electromagnetic coil and a sealing mechanism such as a pintle, ball or disc. These sealing mechanisms are usually kept close by means of a spring. Injectors are fully open or fully closed. The amount of fuel injected is determined by how long the injector is open or by how long the pintle, disc or ball is removed from its seat.
Q. How Does a fuel injector work?
A. Fuel under pressure is sprayed in a very fine mist from the tip of the injector. To achieve this, a current must flow through the injector. Contrary to popular belief, this is NOT done by sending power to the injector. Fuel injectors are normally fed power whenever the ignition key is on, but the circuit is not completed and therefore the injector is still closed. The computer controls the ground side, of the circuit. When the computer provides the injector with a ground, the circuit is completed and current is allowed to flow through the injector. This energizes an electromagnetic coil inside the injector, which pulls a sealing mechanism such as a pintle, ball, or disc away from its seat. This makes it possible for fuel to flow through the injector and into the engine. When the computer removes the electrical ground to the injector, the electromagnetic coil becomes demagnetized and a spring forces the pintle, ball, or disc shut to cut off fuel flow. Even at an engine speed of just 1000 RPM, this is done hundreds of times per minute.
Q. What is impedance?
A. Impedance measures how easily a circuit conducts current when a voltage runs through it. Measured in ohms, impedance is a way of telling you how much of the voltage introduced at one end will really make it to the other end. Impedance depends on other qualities of electricity, such as resistance, reactance, inductance, and capacitance.
Most injectors fall into two categories: High or Low Impedance
High Impedance
These have a typical coil resistance of 12 – 16 ohms and are the most commonly used. Drive circuitry for this type of injector is simple and sometimes referred to as a saturated driver circuit.
Low Impedance
Low Impedance Injectors has normally a coil resistance of 4 ohms or less and is typically found in larger sized or high performance injectors. Driver circuitry for these types is called a Peak – Hold type and is more complex and costs more than the saturated type.
In a Peak-Hold system, the driver circuit allows a high current for a short time to help turn the injector on quickly. The current is then reduced to a lesser value to keep the injector open. Peak current may be 4 amps to open the injector. Once open, the current might be reduced to as little as 0.75 amps.
With the lower coil resistance, the internal spring pressure that holds the pintle closed can be increased to shut the injector quicker. This allows both faster opening and closing times and makes tuning large injectors easier.
Peak-Hold systems reduce the power requirements to the injector coil thus keeping the coils from overheating.
Q. What keeps an Injector from overheating?
A. Fuel flowing through the injector helps to keep the injector cool and in most cases prevent it from overheating.
Q. How can I tell if my injectors that require service?
A. Because of the following:
▪ Failed emission
▪ Performance lost
▪ Increased fuel consumption
▪ Poor idle
▪ Surging an bucking under light throttle
▪ Smoke from the tail pipe
▪ Detonation which can lead to catastrophic engine failure
▪ Pollution
Leaking injectors will cause:
▪ Increased Fuel Consumption
▪ Poor Idle
▪ Fuel odors inside and around the car
▪ Hard Starting
▪ Poor Emissions
▪ Oil thinning which can lead to catastrophic engine failure
▪ Hydra lock
External injector leaks is a fire hazard and can not be fixed. Injectors with external leaks must be replaced.
Q. Why do fuel injectors need cleaning?
A. Hydrocarbons and additives which forms part of today’s fuels evaporate at different temperatures. Small amounts of gasoline are left behind on the tip of the injectors each time the engine is shut down. Volatile compounds in the fuel evaporate and while others stay behind on the injector tip and eventually form solids. These solids accumulates and eventually start effecting the spray pattern and fuel distribution which in turn can have detrimental affects on the overall well being of the engine.
Higher operating temperatures of turbo and supercharged engines are very tough on injectors, especially due to higher intake temps and sometimes reversion. The same is also true for high performance engines with large duration cams.
Many high performance air filters does not clean the air sufficiently and contributes to the fouling of injectors. Dirty fuel filters and failure to regularly replace them is also a contributing factor
Moisture in the fuel tank that could eventually lead to rust being deposited below the injector filter and can cause catastrophic failure of not only the injector but in some instances the engine
Engines with worn rings and valve guides greatly contribute to the clogging of fuel injectors.
Q. What will cause injectors to go bad when not in use?
A. The internals of injectors are made of various steel alloys that will corrode and or rust when in the presence of moisture. Large parts of America contain enough moisture to cause corrosion/rust damage. Gum, varnish and other normal deposits can be removed by cleaning but once an injector dries out and the deposits hardened inside causing a pintle to get stuck to its seat, that injector will become inoperable and in most cases not possible to clean.
Q. What should I know about Injector Storage?
A. From time to time injectors need to be stored. Since corrosion is probably the injectors number one enemy it is important to make sure that injectors are cleaned properly and lubricated, inside and outside, with a good quality lubricant. The injectors should then be placed in a sealed plastic bag or container and stored in a cool dry place.
Q. Do you service diesel, GDI (gas direct injectors) or GM throttle body injectors?
A. Not at this time.
Q. Do you modify injectors to flow more?
A. Injectors are manufactured to flow a precise amount of fuel. From past experience of testing injectors that have been “modified” to flow more than they were intended to flow, results have shown that they become very inconsistent in their flow volume. This results in poor idle quality, drive-ability issues, higher emissions, and possible engine damage. If you find that you require an injector that flows more fuel, the best solution is to purchase an injector that was manufactured to flow more fuel..
Q. What is your turn around time?
A. Typically 2-3 days from receipt. Rush orders available.
